There are plenty of fashion shows to catch up on from Paris and Milan, but today we’re talking about spring shoes! Check out style.com if you want a full list of fashion show reviews and photos.

Now, back to shoes. Since I live by the beach, most locals roam around in flip flops or barefoot, but I couldn’t be more excited to purchase some serious spring shoes – even if that means wearing peep-toe booties to the beach.

There was certainly a range on runways, from casual to dressy. In the casual category for spring, are the all-American oxfords. Although generally suited for men, as seen at Max Azria, women can add the masculine accessory for a sportier look. Check out Urban Outfitters to get your very own.

Max Azria oxford

In between causal and dressy are this season’s hot shoe – clogs. This was the signature item from both the Chanel and Louis Vuitton spring collections. But don’t think they’re your typical, boring clog. No, these are sky-high and super sexy (and possibly even comfy). Grab yours at Stuart Weitzman.

Chanel clog

Louis Vuitton clogs

As we transition from winter to spring, the peep-toe bootie is the perfect boot/shoe to wear. Diane Von Furstenberg did a metallic dressier version, while Alexander Wang showed a sportier look. Great versions of both can be found at Steve Madden.

DVF booties

Alexander Wang booties

Finally, there are t-strap shoes. These are a great alternative to mary janes. I love how Ralph Lauren showed them with boyfriend jeans.  They are also a great way to dress up a more sophisticated look, like that at J. Mendel. I’m loving the flat and heel styles shown on piperlime.com.

Ralph Lauren t-strap shoes

J. Mendel t-strap shoes

Other shoes to keep your eye out for are gladiator sandals and styles with Lucite details.

Hope these shoe suggestions help put a spring in your step this season!

All images courtesy of Getty Images.

I’m going to take this opportunity to give one of my favorite restaurants a bit of attention.  The Bagel Deli is my favorite place in Denver to go for breakfast at lunch time.  The staff is incredibly friendly.  You even get to know the owner, as he’s in almost every day, behind the counter.  It’s a kosher deli, so if you were hoping for bacon with your eggs, you’ll be disappointed.  The corned beef hash, though, is absolutely amazing.

I usually get the Meat & Eggs breakfast (only $5.95!) with corned beef hash and eggs over easy.  It comes with potatoes and an amazing bagel (with cream cheese), and everything is cooked to perfection every time.  There’s no better place to grab a booth and enjoy a meal with a friend.  Their bagel, sandwiches and soups are also amazing, so if you’re hungry, give a family owned Denver business a try.

Is it just me or does it seem like Brooke Shields endorses way too many products?  From Colgate to Latisse this lady doesn’t know when to say no. When I first saw the Latisse commercial featuring Ms. Shields, I was in shock.  Sorry, but I was unaware that thin eyelashes were currently a pandemic in this country.  However, not only do I feel like it is silly to attempt to grow fuller, thinker eyelashes, I think it is extremely dangerous.  Have we not heard the warning signs? The listing of warning signs takes longer than the actual endorsement part of the commercial. Eye browning? Sudden decrease in visual acuity? Possibility for a difference in eyelash length, thickness and pigment? Jesus. Call me old fashioned but those seem a bit severe. Want to know what I recommend? MASCARA! Yeah, that one product that has been around for centuries to thicken eyelashes.

Product of the Week: Maybelline’s Great Last Mascara.

This can’t be a big surprise. Who doesn’t love this mascara? It is under 5 dollars and has won numerous awards for being such a loyal product.  Since it is so cheap I buy a new one every 3 weeks or so. Mascara expires quicker than any other makeup product, one tube of mascara should be used for only 3-4 weeks. Not only does it spread germs but the formula loses it’s consistency and effectiveness after about a month.

My other favorites include, L’Oreal Paris Voluminous Mascara, in Carbon Black, Maybelline’s Colossal Volum’ Express Mascara, Rimmel London: Extra Super Lash Mascara,  Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara, Cover Girl’s Exact Lash Mascara. Oh and for those sensitive eyes try Almay’s One Coat Nourishing, Thickening Mascara.

Photo Credit: Glasses: Shoulda eyewear; photographer: Joe Megyesy.

Robischon Gallery is a Denver institution. It has been bringing world-class art to Denver since 1976, and is Denver’s top contemporary art gallery. I tend to be caught up in the middle of Denver’s  alt/emerging art scene and Robischon is a nice and welcomed break from the lowbrow. I highly recommend checking out Thursday night’s opening at Robischon showcasing the work of David Kroll and Karen Kitchel. New media always get me visual excited but I always tend go back to oil. There is just something about it that amazes me, It’s like going home for the holidays – comfortable, nostalgic and always rewarding. Kroll and Kitchel’s oil painting will for sure add to my amazement of this classical medium.

David Kroll

Karen Kitchel

Also while you are in the area go a few blocks east to Redline, and check out “Love Lines” a incredible group show that was curated by Robsichon, that includes work by Kiki Smith. The Show is described as “figutive works exploring the concepts of love – from the romantic to the relational.” It is so exciting to see shows like this in our fair little city.

Love Lines at RedLine

Happy accidents can certainly play a part, but true innovation is rarely stumbled upon. Achieving it normally requires decades of osmosis and experimentation. Everybody’s gotta start somewhere. Strangely enough, Kraddy craved polka as a pip squeak.

“I remember loving Bobby Vinton, the Polish polka king as a little little kid. The first 45s I bought were ‘Heartlight’ by Neil Diamond and ‘When The Bullet Hits The Bone’ by Golden Earring.”

As the burned out birthday candles piled up over the years, some of the classics—Floyd, Hendrix and Zeppelin, to be exact—made an impact. Genesis also generated its share of air time with the growing Kraddy’s young eardrums. The previously mentioned influences served well together as a sort of musical foundation, but true mind-shattering was still around the corner.

“Two tracks blew my mind when I heard them: LA Style’s ‘James Brown Is Dead’ and KMFDM’s ‘Naïve.’ The 32nd note kicks at the intro of ‘Naïve’ had me bugging! I had never heard drums so fast. I went to see the Triple Threat DJs in SF. After that night, I decided I wanted decks.”

Although he was often designated “stereo b!+ch” at college keggers, Kraddy made his proper debut spinning drum and bass with his first crew, The Stress Collective, at a tiny club in San Francisco. Glitch Mob, a collective of California producers he has since parted ways with, is largely responsible for the popularization of a cutting-edge hybrid of electronica and hip hop called “glitch hop”. Glitch refers to the producers’ propensity for intentional glitches or “stutter edits”. Genius recluse Richard James, slightly better known as Aphex Twin, is recognized by those in the know as the godfather of the technique. Defining stutter edits in laymen terms can be a challenge, but, basically, they are micro-edit percussive stabs that can only be accomplished with computer software. Hearing is believing, but the sound has definitely found an audience. Kraddy has rocked Burning Man, Coachella, Electric Daisy Carnival, South by Southwest and even NASA alongside Bassnectar, Digable Planets, Funkstorung, Glitch Mob, Hank Shocklee of Public Enemy, Freq Nasty, Prefuse 73, Modeselektor, Plaid, Richard Devine, Sound Tribe Sector 9, Telefon Tel Aviv, Tipper and Zilla, among others.

“There’s nothing better than playing with friends to an appreciative crowd.”

Kraddy is set to crush Euphonic Conceptions’ official Pretty Lights’ after-party this Saturday, March 13, at Quixote’s (2151 Lawrence), along with Eliot Lipp and friends.

In the March issue of Self Magazine  there is an article titled “Welcome to the Nine Rooms of Happiness,” which I found particularly interesting. Self’s Editor in Chief, in collaboration with prominent psychiatrist Catherine Birndorf, examines life through the metaphor of a house in the new book The Nine Rooms of Happiness.  Each room represents an area of your life, for example the bedroom houses all things relating to intimacy, sex, love, and desire. The bathroom is all about body image. The goal of the book is to encourage women (and men) to leave certain issues in the rooms they belong and to learn to appreciate the “perfect moments in life”.

Whether it’s the attic, the kids’ room, the family room, the living room, the basement, the office, the bathroom, the bedroom, the kitchen, or the 10th “room” (a sunny space, a cozy corner, or a mental space where you reflect on your life and role in the world), we all have issues. Hell, I think I need a mega mansion with nineteen rooms to house all I got going on upstairs. I mean, cleaning my actual, physical bedroom seems daunting enough, now some psychiatrist wants me to clean my metaphorical room? Ok then.

I suppose the idea of “cleaning” these rooms, basically clearing out mental space and not dragging your baggage with you into every single area of your life, is a valuable concept to run with. Perhaps even making an effort to visualize this metaphorical image could be beneficial. I know I am going to try. In the meantime, I think I’ll go spend some time in my 10th room (couch, tea, magazines are calling my name). Noah, the other half of The Odd Couple, is dividing his time among all rooms equally, just so you know.

How about you? Which room of yours needs the most TLC? Do you like the idea of the nine rooms?

Oh, and on a semi-related note (I suppose, in Nine Rooms speak, having to do with my bathroom and bedroom issues), as we all know I am a bride-in-the-making, check out 303’s new issue with a fabulous feature dedicated to all things bridal.

Before Denver’s longest running club night Lipgloss settled on its longtime current location La Rumba, it tried a few venues on for size. 60 South, now home to 3 Kings, was the first, nearly nine years ago. I was there. Does that make me old school? At the time, I was on assignment for now-defunct Go-Go Magazine. Michael Trundle, recently retired resident Tyler Jacobson and long absent Tim Cook had just hosted their first monthly Brit-pop shindig and I was in charge of checking out the second installment. Losing my Lipgloss virginity at such an early point in the event’s storied history is a bragging right I’m proud of. This past Friday, Orange broke a different kind of cherry when he sang live at the Ginger Perry-hosted First Friday After-Party.

Lipgloss has come a long way in its near decade existence. Back at 60 South, it was a fledgling monthly struggling to find its niche audience. The complimentary sampler CD I received upon entry was dominated by bands like Blur and Ladytron. Accolades have since been showered on the tenacious weekly for the past five or six years running. Friday’s rager saw more than 575 heads through the door–over 1,100 feet on the dance floor. Electro has infiltrated the playlist in a big way. New resident Chase Dobson even dropped some dubstep, including a re-rub of MGMT’s electro-pop masterpiece “Kids”. Performing the Arete & Kaution mix of “Pussy Whipped” live at midnight was a fantasy fulfilled. Trundle, also known by his alias Boyhollow, brought acts with axe—including Faith No More and Rage Against the Machine–back at last call. Kitty, lead singer for Le Divorce, and I air guitared our hearts out. ‘Twas bananas, I tell ya. Bananas.

Listening parties have become a Lipgloss staple over the course of its lifespan. This Friday, March 12, Trundle and company will engage in a little Gorillaz marketing when La Rumba plays host to the single most famous animated band on the planet. The five year dry spell since Gorillaz’ last gazillion-selling platter has got fans ape nuts with anticipation. Plastic Beach, due on both digital and physical shelves today, doesn’t monkey with their aural formula much, and no one’s complaining. Co-conspirators this time around include Snoop Dogg, Lou Reed, Mos Def, Barry Gibb, De La Soul, Little Dragon and The Lebanese National Orchestra, among others.

I foresee a jungle fever epidemic on the horizon, not to mention Miike Snow (4/9) and Hot Pink Delorean (4/16).

No relationship is all roses and rock star sex. Yesterday, Kailey and I were getting ready to leave her house when one of the dogs decided it wanted to get her attention by jumping on her when she wasn’t looking. The result was a canine-human head-butt whose resounding crack filled the air. Uh oh, I thought, this is gonna be bad.

Sure enough, the skin just below Kailey’s lower lip split wide open. If she wanted a Labret piercing, she’d be all set–just stick some jewelry in there and go. It looked like she’d need some stitches, so we headed to the closest hospital. On the way, I decided to take her to urgent care instead, with the hope the wait would be shorter than at the ER. We arrived at a nondescript downtown storefront that hardly looked like the sort of place you could find any kind of medical care, let alone urgent care. But we walked inside, anyway.

Picture the scene: a receptionist wearing too-tight Broncos gear from head to toe talking to a doctor with mad-scientist hair. A young woman, waiting to be helped, wore a garish green and white floral dress, Buddy Holly glasses and patent leather Mary Janes while clutching a bright red lunchbox purse. I understood the look she was going for, but on her it was a complete miss. “Oh my god, we’re at Kmart,” Kailey groaned under her breath. I think that sight pained her more than her busted lip.

Just then, a burly man walked in with his friend and announced in a booming voice that he brought the friend in for a blood test. He then proceeded to quiz all the injured, sneezing, sniffling, gimpy waiting room occupants about what ailed them. “Didn’t he ever hear of HIPAA?” Kailey mumbled through the wad of tissues pressed against her lip. Maybe because it appeared that Kailey couldn’t speak, Geraldo Rivera’s more obnoxious twin (thankfully) spared us.

It was all so unusual that I started to feel like the protagonist in a David Lynch film. Finally, we got in to see a nice, normal doctor who decided her wound wasn’t bad enough for stitches. He glued her together with Dermabond–which is basically superglue–and sent us on our way. We assessed the damage: one slightly chipped front tooth, a prognosis for zero scarring, and a moratorium on kissing. If the worst thing we experienced that day was horrific fashion and a surreal waiting room, I’ll gladly take it.

I initially wrote a winded entry about Milan Fashion Week and it’s fall highlights, but after seeing today’s Christian Dior Paris Fall 2010 show, I had to immediately share it with you all.

Always a favorite of mine, John Galliano delivers perfectly crafted, feminine garments with a sexy edge. While the collection may not have been as cohesive as editors would have liked, it had all the Dior details to make one drool. Often a fan of equestrian themes and eighteenth century milieu, Galliano had models galloping down the runway in English riding attire broken up with soft colored, georgette, ruffly dresses. Then, there was the leather to supply ample edge – jackets and dresses with texture detail in brown and blacks, gave the collection a more fall feeling. Over-the-knee boots and thigh high socks also added warmth to some of the barer looks.

It is truly one of my favorite collections to date! The feminine rawness is both timely and timeless. May I never wake from my Dior dream…

All images provided by Getty Images. Images of the entire collection can be found at Getty Images.

Christian Dior Fall 2010

Christian Dior Fall 2010

Christian Dior Fall 2010

Christian Dior Fall 2010

Christian Dior Fall 2010

Christian Dior Fall 2010

It’s the first Friday of the month, which means almost every gallery/boutique in Denver will be having an opening of some sort. First Fridays can be overwhelming to some, me included at times, so here is a list of some of my recommended shows tonight.

• The Illustrated, featuring work by John Grigsby and Kristophor Hutson, at Illiterate on 82 South Broadway. I never cease to have a great time (i.e. drunken debauchery) at Illiterate, Denver’s newest contemporary/emerging art gallery.

Kristophor Hutson

• Detour Legends, featuring the work of Thomas Evans, at Division West.  I have not been to Division West yet, but I have heard good things. It is a sneaker/snow sport botique located at 2632 E. Third Ave in Cherry Creek North, they have art openings every month.  Evans  partnered with a local charity, Arts Street, for the show.  Arts Street mission is “to help high-risk youth channel their artistic talents, creative ideas and natural curiosity into professional activities that provide real-world employment experience.”  The show is 6pm-10pm and will have a DJ at the event.

Thomas Evans

• f/Stops at Indyink. My good friends from xrocksthespot.com is putting on this bicycle inspired photography show.
• A Solo Exhibit of Vague Proportions by Josh Shively, at Crema Coffeehouse - my new favorite coffeehouse and untraditional art venue! Also music by DJ AWHAT! from the Pirate Signal. Should be a great time.

Josh Shively

These are just a few shows that came to mind, if I missed something that you think is worthy of checking out tonight, feel free to post it under comments! Also check back on Sunday to see a recap of the shows I attended.