trendspotting: tropical prints

With images of surfers and palm trees constantly dancing through my daydreams these days, it's clear I've got a tropical story on the brain. Maybe it was my trip to Miami last month where I couldn't stop snapping photos of naturally lit green palms and reflections of them in my mirrored sunglasses. Or maybe it was the test shoot I did recently which featured tons of mismatched, gypset-inspired swimwear and an experiment with palm leaf shadows. More likely, this infatuation goes back to September when tropical prints began manifesting on the sidewalks outside fashion week. Whatever the reason, I've been on a ferocious hunt for pieces in hibiscus and palm patterns as of late and I cannot get enough! Here are some photos that have been perpetuating my obsession.

[images: honestly...wtf, refinery 29, they all hate us, how two live,
luella & june, the man repeller, song of style and style.com]

To shop some of my favorite tropical prints of the season, check out H&M's Conscious collection, Joie, and Juicy Couture. Aloha!

 

Peace, Love and Neon,

Marisa

style icon: viviana volpicella

Italian style is often stereotyped as being gaudy and ostentatious with a hefty load of sex appeal à la designers like Versace, Moschino and Dolce & Gabbana. More recently, a new breed of Italian taste-makers has invaded the street style scene decked out in fresher, more playful ensembles that leave more to the imagination than a D&G micro dress. 

Sartorially leading the pack (which includes fellow fashion editors/stylists like Elisa Nalin and Aurora Sansone), is, in my opinion, stylist and fashion consultant Viviana Volpicella whose cheeky aesthetic has me continually craving snaps of her every look. 

This woman seriously knows how to have fun with fashion. She is the master of wearing and mixing color and can rock a quirky print like it's nobody's business. Despite her loud fashion choices, she always looks chic and totally put together. I'll credit that success to her barely-there makeup, vivid white smile and Mediterranean skin that anchor the commotion in her clothing. 

I easily see my own style in hers and am forever taking cues from her ability to balance the bold with the, well, beautiful.

 

 

 

[images: gastrochic, portraits of elegance, emillana, harper's bazaar, the sartorialist, catching instants, refinery29, the sartorialist, stylish starlets, unidentified, and silvia olsen]

For a closer look into Viviana's style, check out this fun list of her most beloved fashion essentials on Garance Doré.

Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa

on styling with elisa and viviana

I came across this video on Garance Doré this morning, in which she interviews two of my favorite street style icons, Italian stylists/consultants Viviana Volpicella and Elisa Nalin. The girls chat about how the jobs of a fashion stylist and consultant work, what it takes to get there and how street style has affected their careers. The two ladies look absolutely adorable, as always, in their signature brightly-colored, well accessorized, playful ensembles (not to mention their color coordinated yellow accents!) and all three girls are so much fun to watch as they gab like old friends.

I hope you'll all find this video as enjoyable as I did!

Peace, Love and Neon,

Marisa