Do you get spring fever? Oh man… the itch to run around outside in flowery prints and frilly laces gets greater and greater each passing day. To heck with chunky sweaters! This week we have a load of great spring style posts, Holier Than Now checks out cape coats, if you’re strapped for cash Out of Order gives the perfect 45min spring skirt tutorial, so cute! And girly clothes not your thing? The Demoiselles has a great homage to genderbending unisex looks. I’ve been thinking of doing a couple of days in menswear myself. Well, as soon as I learn how to tie the half Windsor knot.

There were so, so many great links this week, it really was hard to narrow it down to 2o. Check out the full listing of Links à la Mode here.

1. Boey-foam Cups: Illustrator Boey transforms plain styrofoam cups into works of art. (Via Lost At E Minor)

2. Human Cheese: Ok, I consider myself a pretty gung-ho when it comes to trying new food, but cheese made out of human breast milk makes me want to throw up in my mouth just a little.

3. Closet Home Offices: Design Sponge knocks one out of the park again with this great article featuring the best examples of tiny offices, and the materials to help you create one for yourself.

4. Fonts For Charity: I love this so much: In My Fonts “Font Aid” Collection is a design initiative to create a unique font collection whose proceeds benefit a charity. This great set of ampersands contributions benefit the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Great set for a great cause.

5. Shopping Goes Viral: Refinery 29 highlights 7 e-commerce sites that offer more than just shopping - fun to visit as to shop, these sticky pages lead to empty (but happy) pockets.

6. Penguin iPad: Penguin is about to set the book world on its head with its redefinition of books on the iPad. And can I take this moment to say how jealous I am of little kids these days? WHEN I WAS A CHILD WE HAD A NINTENDO YOU HAD TO BLOW INTO. FOR MINUTES.

7. Shaming the Famewhores: Meet Ann, a video and performance artist. As part of an art project, she wrangled her way onto the recent reality TV show, Frank the Entertainer…In a Basement Affair. Read all about her experiences playing the mole.

Finally, this video directed by Rogier van der Zwaag for the Dutch electro group, Nobody Beats the Drum, would be incredible in its own right. The fact that it is a compilation of 4,085 photos is freaking mind-blowing (via BOOOOOOOM)

1. Duo-Toned Lipstick: Paint your top and bottom lip two different but complementary colors. Look fab.

2. Pair a hearty red wine with a succulent dark chocolate; prepare yourself for a mind-altering experience.

3. Buy a cheap pair of pumps in two colors. Switch out one foot for a sweet pair of duo-toned kicks.

4. Part your hair on the opposite side.

5. Ask all your friend’s what their favorite song is. Then compile the songs as a mixtape, and present it to them as a fabulous and unique gift.

6. Add frozen fruit to your water bottle for a sweet, icy treat. (Thanks, Maggie!)

7. Make a necklace of acorns.

8. Bring spring inside - grow grasses in window boxes throughout your home.

9. Allow your grey hair to grow in.

10. Don’t just make peace with your demons; invite them over for tea.

This post has been brought to you by the color grey, and soft, luscious fabrics.

How great is the back of this da-nang top? I’ve also discovered you can wear the back frontwards with equal success.

THE GOODS:
Cardigan: Roxy
Top: da-nang
Tank: Target
Pants: Rych
Shoes: Bamboo

February 25, 2010 In the midst of a messy wintry mix pelting Manhattan, industry professionals and celebrities dashed nimbly from their cars and taxis into the inviting arms of the IAC Building, the location playing host to the second annual USA Network’s Character Approved Awards. Meant to honor individuals in the arts whose work has influenced and inspired our world and culture, the awards presentation was a lively, opulent affair that drew a remarkably large and impressive crowd despite the bad weather.

Story continued and photos after the cut…

Mark Feuerstein kicked off the event by introducing the honorees, a collection of individuals from a myriad of industries:

Art: Kehinde Wiley, revolutionary urban arts painter
Architecture: Angela Brooks, groundbreaking sustainable architect, principal of Pugh + Scarpa Architects
Design: Yves Behar, innovative industrial designer of the Jawbone Bluetooth headset and the $100 XO laptop
Fashion: Narciso Rodriguez, multiple award-winning American fashion designer
Film: Kathryn Bigelow, Academy Award-winning film director, “The Hurt Locker”
Food: Dan Barber, renowned restaurateur, Blue Hill and Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture
Giving: Jessica Jackley, social entrepreneur and microfinancier, co-founder Kiva.org
Music: Green Day, Grammy Award-winning rock band
New Media: Alex Rigopulos & Eran Egozy, game creators of Guitar Hero & Rock Band
Writing: Nora Ephron, best-selling novelist, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and playwright

After a video presentation celebrating the honorees, screened on enormous wall-screens throughout the room, the crowd was treated to a special treat as the cast of Green Day’s new “American Idiot” musical performed live for the first time in New York City. All in all, a truly glamorous, star-studded affair.

1. Minnie Mouse Makeup Tutorial: I have been a long time fan of Doe Deere’s makeup tutorials, but this Minnie Mouse one takes the cake. Cuteness!

2. IE6 Funeral: I know this isn’t polite to say about the deceased, but I have to be honest - he was crotchety, cruel, and incredibly corrupt. I’m glad he’s dead. They can’t dig a hole deep enough, IMO.

3. Magical Flowers: A rare Buddhist flower that blooms once every 3,000 years? Growing under your washing machine? That’s not news - THAT is the plot of a kung-fu movie.

4. Scarab Jewelry Keeps It Real: This Refinery 29 piece about the popularity of scarab-encrusted jewelry just leaves me itching to cover myself is decorative beetles. I will look like some kind of hot exterminator.

5. Debt Plagued Bite Back: When Craig Cunningham found himself being harassed by creditors, he started suing them. An interesting and controversial article about consumers’ rights and the sometimes illegal measures taken by debt collectors.

6. Polar Bears vs. Grizzlies = APOCALYPSE: Yeah, that’s right. There’s some freaking place in Canada where grizzly bears and polar bears are hanging out. This will obviously lead to one of two scenarios: either they will begin a bear world that will destroy the universe, or they will mate a super-bear that will destroy the universe. Either way, we are FUCKED, and it’s Canada’s fault. Figures.

7. Beautiful Bus Stop: There are few things I love more than someone pushing he boundaries of advertising design. This collection of unique, creative and playful bus stop advertisements do just that, and make a rather mundane activity a magical and surreal experience.

Finally, this whimsical short animation is up for an Oscar this week, and is also a lovely, humorous critique on health care.

La dama y la muerte de Javier Recio from Ventana Indiscreta on Vimeo.

1. If you had your own ship, what would you name it?

2. Learn how to make a house of cards.

3. If you could be a bird, which kind would you choose, and why?

4. Write a list of your vices.

5. In lieu of a toast, fill your champagne glasses with confetti. Raise your glass, and start a confetti shower!

6. Instead of baking 4 and twenty blackbirds into a pie, what adorable animal would you put into a confection?

7. Dress up in homage to your favorite fairy tale.

8. Practice your growl.

9. Keep a yearly countdown until your birthday.

10. Invent a new way to hold hands.

I wore this little number to the USA Character Approved Awards last week (article coming later this week in which I will dish). As the eastcoasters will know, it was rather horrible weather on Thursday, so I was looking for something warm and spiffy.

I adore this Mociun dress, which I grabbed up about a year ago. The cut of the dress is simply fantastic - it blossoms rather than hangs, and the tribal print is intriguing without being overt. It is rather short though, so I usually pop a skirt underneath it, lest I bend over and reveal my bum to the universe.

THE GOODS:
Dress: Mociun
Top: Gadzooks
Skirt: Thrifted
Tights: H&M
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell
Bangle: Etsy

Reading through the links this week, I realized that fashion week or no fashion week, fashion will most certainly go on! A winter snowstorm couldn’t even slow down New York Fashion Week, and the links below are testament to the wonderful style that exists beyond the runway, such as Ode to Awe’s jewelry discovery, how to look chic while lounging by Cafe Fashionista, and tips for vintage shoe shopping by Wicked Whimsy. Don’t get me wrong, I love being ‘in the know’ on runway looks and trends, but how you interpret them and work them into your personal style is so much more important than remembering which designers showed one-shoulder looks this season!

As expected, there was a fabulous round-up of links in the forum as well, all worthy of your eyeballs!

39th and Broadway - A Side of the Industry Unknown by Most: Life as a Corporate Fashion Designer
British Style Bloggers - Cherish forever what makes you unique, ‘cos you’re a yawn once it’s gone
Cafe Fashionista - A step-by-step guide to looking luxurious even when lounging
Clutch22 -Up close and personal with Vivienne Tam as she expands her fashion+tech innovations to a new category
CMYKaboom - Independent Fashion Bloggers (IFB) ‘Tweet Up in the Tents’ event
Debutante Clothing - Vintage Jewelry: Q&A with Lucite line Circa Sixty Three
Fabulous Finds Gal - Moonstuck at the opera with photographer Bersa
Fashion Pulse Daily - Sonia Rykiel Pour H&M; the debut and the review
Holier Than Now - New Take on Florals (5 Under $50)
Idiosyncratic Style - A Girl’s Guide to Maternity Style
Independent Fashion Bloggers : Evolving Influence Recap : Part One
Individual Chic: - Would you have wanted a Computer Engineer Barbie when you were smaller? Or would you love one now?
Night Watch - 10 Questions with Model Clara Zapffe
Ode to Awe - Denmark based Alidra Alic’s Alice-inspired jewelry
Oranges and Apples - Rules for advertising and sponsorship on blogs
Retro Chick - The Ethics of Blogging
Smiles Go with Everything -10 Tips for Shopping on Ebay: How to find great deals on awesome duds.
The Coveted - Visits Nine West HQ for a sneak peak of AW10 shoe collections!
The Style PA - Gives Henry Holland a grilling ahead of his House of Holland show.
The Sunday Best - Do men get better service when they shop?
Wicked Whimsy -What to look for when buying vintage shoes
Workchic - Fall 2010 NY Fashion week collections: recreated runway to the office outfits