Fashion is fad, style is eternal. ~Yves Saint Laurent

Ok, I’ll be the first to admit I’ve committed some style sins. I’ve looked at old pictures of myself and wondered, “WTF?!?!?”. None of us is immune and while I can blame it on peer pressure then, there comes a time when you just have to own up to it. While trends can be fun to wear at the time, you are only allowed one get out of jail card for wearing bad fashion.

Lately, there seems to be a resurgence of 80s fashion. You remember it and don’t act like you don’t. Fashion magazines to television and movies all had stick thin models wearing all types of clothing with big shoulder pads and bad hair. So many women thought they could pull this look off too. “Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.” First the fashion industry deceived us, then we deceived ourselves into believing the lie they sold us in the first place. Over 2 decades later, the deception has reared its ugly head again. It’s bad enough seats are getting smaller on planes, trains, and buses. The last thing I need on an 8 hour flight is a woman with monster shoulder pads infringing on my seat! Women who wore this trend in the 80s and think they can dust off those big shoulder pad jackets, think again. Women who weren’t even born in the 80s who are thinking of raiding their mom’s closet and wearing this trend then calling the garment vintage, think again! Fashion magazines fooled us all once before with this trend. Shame on them if they fool you once, shame on you if they fool you twice.

TLC Life Lesson #80: "Nice outfit! Where'd you park your DeLorean?" ....not everything comes back in style....

A couple of years ago there was a commercial on TLC of a woman getting dressed in a yellow power suit with big shoulder pads. This trend was so bad that they made a satire commercial about it. Maybe they knew something we didn’t at the time. Maybe they were giving us the heads up of this impending fashion disaster trying to make a comeback. Not everything should come back into fashion. It was bad then and its even worse now. I mean with people scrambling to save their homes and their jobs is this really the time to be splurging on clothes that make you look like a linebacker?

Style on the other hand is something that you develop over time. It is truly timeless and effortless. An expression of you not confined to the trend of the season or that year. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with trendy clothes, but a woman with style is someone who speaks in her own voice.

Fess up and tell us what fashion trend you’re guilty of wearing and wish you hadn’t.

If you’re like me, you’re probably a big Sophie Kinsella fan. Her latest chick lit, Twenties Girl, is Style it You September book of the month. Join me and other readers as we indulge in the witty and always hilarious literary style of Sophie Kinsella.

If you haven’t heard of this book, here is a brief synopsis to get you started.

Lara Lington has always had an overactive imagination, but suddenly that imagination seems to be in overdrive. Normal professional twenty-something young women don’t get visited by ghosts. Or do they?

When the spirit of Lara’s great-aunt Sadie–a feisty, demanding girl with firm ideas about fashion, love, and the right way to dance–mysteriously appears, she has one last request: Lara must find a missing necklace that had been in Sadie’s possession for more than seventy-five years, and Sadie cannot rest without it. Lara, on the other hand, has a number of ongoing distractions. Her best friend and business partner has run off to Goa, her start-up company is floundering, and she’s just been dumped by the “perfect” man.

Sadie, however, could care less.

Lara and Sadie make a hilarious sparring duo, and at first it seems as though they have nothing in common. But as the mission to find Sadie’s necklace leads to intrigue and a new romance for Lara, these very different “twenties” girls learn some surprising truths from each other along the way. Written with all the irrepressible charm and humor that have made Sophie Kinsella’s books beloved by millions, Twenties Girl is also a deeply moving testament to the transcendent bonds of friendship and family.

Intrigued? I thought you would be! Sp what are you waiting for? Go grab a copy at your local library, Ebay, Barnes and Noble or Amazon. More info will be posted soon on how we will navigate through the book week by week. I look forward to seeing you on the forum!

Anna Sui is one of fashion’s most notable designers known for her ability to mix art into fashion. Her patchwork chic boho aesthetic designs is one of the trademarks synonymous with her clothing line. Her ability to fuse beautiful bold patterns and colors make her pieces the perfect compliment to edgier rocker boots and jackets. Her Fall 2009 has not failed to disappoint and has been described as wearable art. Looking at this collection you can’t help but to “ooo” and “ahhh” and want every piece! For those of us who need to remain a bit more budget conscious in these economic times, Anna Sui has launched a Gossip Girl inspired collection at Target which is set to release on September 13th, 2009. Ladies mark your calendars because I’m sure this collection will sell out within a matter of hours.