Winners, Performers, and Presenters

Beyonce COULD NOT have chosen a better dress for dancing next to Tina Turner. Her outfit, a silver metallic sparkly minidress, was a PERFECT tribute to what Tina Turner has accomplished throughout her career. And I might be reading more into this than I should, but I think Tina looked pretty darn proud of Beyonce. But who wouldn't? She was FANTASTIC!

Cher wore a eighties' themes Les Mis-reject costume to introdue Beyonce (who looked sooo cute -- very Broadway, but that's what they were going for). But even still, Cher

Fergie is SO NOT Fergilicious in her performance outift! Yikes -- she could have worn something that's been in style within the last, like, 40 years, couldn't she? Oh, or at least something that worked for her shape. Or color. Or something ...

Kanye West wore a most fabulous jacket in the strobe light, but we've GOT to do something about the glasses. Although, at second glance (and without the black light), I'm not sure about the collar. However, he did a lovely tribute to his mother (and had MAMA shaved into his hair), so I'm going to hold back on any critique on what he's wearing.

Until he got up to accept an award and I saw his jacket in the actual light. It really was spectacular in the strobe and black light, but in real light, it was less than stellar. A costume change (and attitude change, Mr. Stop-the-music-playing-me-off) might be in order.

Cyndi Lauper and Miley Cyrus (or is it Hannah Montana) looked too cute together. It's a great comparison to have someone with so much experience and so many awards next to someone who's just starting out -- and isn't that what the Grammys are about? They both looked lovely, although I was hoping for something a little crazier from Cyndi ...

Rhianna looks like she might have killed an ostrich to make her gold little mini dress for her performance of Umbrella and Don't Stop the Music. But she jumped in on The Time dance, so I'm going to give her some props.

The Time appears to be wearing glimmery gold chiffon ascot and matching suit. Sheesh.

Prince isn't wearing a purple velvet suit and he looks great. His red suit, well, suits him -- it's flamboyant but still totally fashionable, and his sunglasses (Versaces?) were so hot.

Carrie Underwood sings her hit single, Before He Cheats after Alicia and Old Blue Eyes finish the initial duet. Her outfit works for her -- sparkly black boot/spat things, hotpants, and a hot little v-neck. The little black outfit paired with her long blond hair and big eyes are fantastic.

Alicia Keys (and Frank Sinatra) sing a fabulous duet at the start of the Grammys, and she looks just wonderful. The green of the dress is WONDERFUL skintone, and she's totally rocking it. Except for the cleavage factor, and her hair is sitting on top of her head like a scoop of ice cream. But the dress is mostly beautiful (and STILL better than a jumpsuit!).

(Arrival pics after the jump)

If you've ever had the desire to run free through the fields in a skirt, well, we can't help you with the running free part, but we can get your the skirt. The Utilikilt is a men's skirt made of a durable yet soft poly-cotton blend fabric. It's more like a pair of one-legged cargo pants than anything else because it has belt loops, rivets, and a lot of pockets to carry everything that a guy needs. Of course, if you're going to wear a skirt, you may as well carry matching purse for all your stuff rather than weighing down your pockets.

I think I may have to change careers tomorrow. If it's possible for the house of Givori to explode its arts and crafts supplies box all over a Nokia 8800 cell phone and sell the bejeweled aftermath for $3,100.

Givori's 'Serendipity' collection is made up handcrafted pieces that feature vintage 1930s and 1940s intaglio Czech stones sprinkled with tiny specks of Aventurine gold. Each piece is individually numbered so that if you accidentally buy one -- I say "accidentally" because no one would intentionally buy one of these, right? -- you'll be assured that your piece is unique.

[via: Engadget]

From the designer that I've always associated with "rocker chic," comes a sandal that's still got a lot of that rocker vibe, but still looks like a lady. Rock & Republic's Franchesca Stiletto Sandal is made of a chain-link print that has patent leather trim and silver buckle on the ankle strap -- that's the rocker part. The lady part comes in with the over-sized bow on the center of the vamp and the 4" stiletto heel.

Available for $355 at eLuxury.

I almost made this a Dress of the Day post, except lately this is the dress I want to wear everyday. Yep, that's me at right, in my current favorite outfit.

I have to make an effort not to throw this same ensemble on day after day to head off to work. It really is an effort, too, because for some reason I'm totally in love with this look. It's so comfy and easy to wear... one day recently my alarm didn't go off and I woke up half an hour before I had to be at work. I threw this outfit on and my boss said I still looked fab.

Are you as smitten as I am? If so, you're in luck, because I'm going to tell you how to steal my look:

tentacle earrings: OctopusMe
octopus necklace: very similar to this one by dahliasforme
dress: Kimono Dress in navy floral by Trashy Diva
boots: Fluevog (of course!)

There's nothing I like more than throwing on something comfortable on Saturday morning and wearing it all weekend until I have to change into work clothes on Monday. Yes, and when I mean "all weekend," I mean wearing it for whatever errands, lunch, outing, events I have over two days.

Normally, an all-weekend outfit is made up of a pair of sweats, a C+C tank, and when I have to go out, a fitted hoodie. However, there are some weekends that require a little more effort. Made of a blend of cotton and stretchy Modal, the Pima Henley Dress is almost as soft and comfortable as a sweats outfit, but is probably slightly better than sweats for meeting a friend for coffee on a Sunday afternoon (but only slightly!). Three-quarter length sleeves won't get in the way of whatever "work" you have to do around the house like blogging, paying bills, or if you have to, doing the previous week's dirty dishes.

The best part of the dress? The all-weekend price of $39.99.

The dress is on sale at Gap.

All right boys, I am going to give you a gift idea that is sure to get you lucky on Valentine's Day.

You know the story; you meet a great girl towards that later half of January and things are going pretty well until you realize that Valentine's Day is coming. What do you do? Be a dog and dump the girl to avoid buying her a gift or buy her something extravagant and come off looking strange and desperate? Neither, the key to situations like these is to be cheap without looking cheap. Back in middle school a mix tape would do but today, not so much.

Gift your girl with this tube of Philosophy lip gloss that says "Kiss Me" across the top of the tube. Of course you can't just hand her a tube of lip gloss and stand there puckering like a fool. This simple gift must be given over a lovely dinner with a bouquet of her favorite flowers (no carnations please).

Trust me this simple gesture will have your girl weak in the knees and maybe, just maybe, you will get more than a kiss.

I first learned about C.O. Bigelow's mint-infused lip balms through a magazine interview with Parker Posey, who swears by the stuff. Intrigued, I picked up a couple of tubes the next time I was at a Bath & Body Works.

The no-shine chapstick variety is my personal favorite for everyday use. This stick is 9% shea butter, so it goes on smooth and makes my lips feel super soft even during these harsh winter months. I also love how the 2% peppermint oil infusion makes my lips tingle and leaves me feeling refreshed. The peppermint is also supposed to help freshen breath, though if I'd just eaten a big garlic-laden dinner I'd still want to pop a Listerine tab or two.

The mint-infused balm comes in a few tinted varieties as well, which are more lip gloss like, plus there is a whole line of mentha body care products. A recent issue of Real Simple magazine picked these lip balms as one of their must-have beauty picks. I've gotta say, I totally agree.

We've tried, on a number of occasions, to persuade you that, whatever you do, you should avoid the dreaded Crocs at all cost. They're funny looking. And nobody who sees you wearing them thinks you're "fun" or "funky" -- I promise.

But your fashion concerns may pale in comparison to the threat of physical danger. I've written before that wearing these absurdly-colored monstrosities while on an escalator could have some serious consequences. A number of people (especially children) have suffered foot injuries by wearing the particularly grippy footwear, and there's a few horror stories floating around about mangled (or even missing) toes. Yikes!

Now one family, who claims their daughter was "severely and permanently" injured after her Croc got stuck in an escalator, is suing the shoemaker for $7 million.

The Croc response? "The popularity of our shoes has helped draw attention to a long-existing issue that we think is very important -- escalator safety." Which seems to imply that the company believes escalators routinely eat toes, no matter what kind of shoes you're wearing.

So how come no one else is being sued?

[via Consumerist]

It's been a really long time since Gap was anything to write home about. After achieving phenomenal success back when Hootie and the Blowfish had fans, the company lost its way -- limping along as a watered-down, cheaper (but not cheap enough) version of JCrew, too expensive to be Target, yet too bland to be worth the money.

But things are looking up. Gap recently hired Patrick Robinson, a new creative director who they hoped would return the brand back to its glory days. And while sales still suck, the clothes are at least looking halfway decent.

Gap's showing at New York Fashion Week (the first new line under Robinson's guidance) revealed a new direction -- capitalizing on the 90s resurgence, and combining grunge aesthetic (read: flannel shirts) with more modern looking pants and boots. In traditional Gap style, it's all a little safe (fashionable, but not so fashionable that you'd get beat up for it at your suburban high school), but I bet even the discerning fashionista will be able to find an item or two that they'd be willing to include in their regular wardrobe.

One of my fashion obsessions is checking out all of the everyday looks that people put together to express themselves. We're talking REAL people here. Not celebrities, not uber-thin models. What do real people like you and me wear in their everyday lives? That's what the wardrobe_remix community on Flickr is all about exploring.

Inspired by the original (official!) weekly wardrobe_remix recap that the group's founder Tricia Royal does on her own blog, bits and bobbins, I thought I'd start picking out some of my favorite recent remixers and posting them every week or so. Remember: these are real people, of all different shapes and sizes showing off their own personal style. You'll find everything here from mainstream mall finds to thrift store scores to haute couture and everything in between. There is no right or wrong. Or as Tricia would say, "It's not what you wear, it's how you wear it."

This week I noticed a lot of bright, bold pops of colors paired with neutrals, like in this outfit worn by user mouthyspace. I love the pairing of the simple red ribbon belt with this graphic print skirt.

Got a favorite recent wardrobe_remixer? Post the links to your faves in the comments!

Just in time for Valentine's Day, I came across this super sexy line of romantic t-shirts and one of a kind deconstructed vintage camis called Every Little Counts.

Los Angeles based designer Amy Snider creates this exclusive line of women's tops from her cozy hilltop apartment with the help of her husband, who she refers to as her "Master Screen-Printer". (How romantic indeed!)

Amy also creates some very snazzy reusable shopping bags, a perfect gift for your eco-minded boy or girl who's trying to go green instead of pink this V-day. And even better, everything in her shop is under $40!

[via IndieShopping]

I know what you're thinking, why would KISS smell any better than Avril Lavigne? That's a good question and one that I can't readily answer.

In all fairness I've never actually smelled any of them in person, but I do have a bottle of KISS for Him, the him being me, and it actually smells pretty good.

I thought the gift had been a joke. My youth was spent in a shrine to the make-up wearing rockers. If KISS made it, I had it.

Of course that stopped long before they started selling coffee, condoms and caskets- and that's just the "C's," so I laughed when I saw what my wife had bought me.

She wasn't laughing. She also isn't a KISS fan, despite me forcing her to sit through hours of scratched up records, or perhaps because of that. I don't know.

The point is that the fragrance, available for men and women, is actually quite pleasant. I've had numerous compliments on the scent, and most of them weren't from the guy at Hot Topic.

If you are in the market to smell like a rock star you could do a lot worse.

On Christmas morning there was one gift left. It was for me. I was a bit surprised as I had already been sufficiently spoiled by all in attendance. I opened the box and looked inside. An iPhone was resting there, gentle and content. Oh, how my heart skipped. I jumped up, still in my pajamas and announced to the 9 family members around me that I would be back momentarily. I had an iPhone and I loved it so much that I just had to be alone.

Actually, what I really said was, "I'm going to take this behind the middle school and get it pregnant." Yes, I stole that line from Tracy Morgan, but damn, I really loved it.

I still do.

The iPhone is sleek and stylish. It is compact and powerful. It is a laptop in your pocket. I'm writing this post on it right now. In a park. That is what the kids call a tax write-off. I'm also using it to listen to Seu Jorge on the built in iPod. When I'm done here I might watch a movie. I rented some flicks off of iTunes and I purchased Season 1 of MTV's classic sketch comedy show "The State."

I won't. I don't want to show off, plus I have kids to play with. I promised them Daddy would be "it" as soon as I was done writing this love letter. Yes, that's exactly what it is.

Now excuse me, I have a phone call.