RUFFLES! (And I'm not talking about the Potato Chip) ... Another fashion How-To

So a trend has resurfaced that I am just in love with ..... 

Ruffles are just so feminine and fun with a touch of whimsy. That being said ...... as with most trends (as we covered in the infamous JORT post) .... there are rules. 

The ruffle can be gorgeous .... but placed in the wrong area .... they are ooooh sooooo unforgiving. 

Uhh...... what? Better question... why?

Or worse, too many ruffles in one look you can give the impression that you moonlight as a Colonial dinner theater actor 

So without further ado here are Kendallina's rules on....

HOW TO WEAR RUFFLES

1. BALANCE

Ruffles are pretty .... but they add volume to your look .... and therefore your body shape. So it's safe to say one size ruffle does NOT fit all. Wherever you are biggest..... a ruffle should not go. 

BUSTY 

If you are "blessed" with a bigger bust, wearing ruffles will only draw more attention to the girls and probably make you look much larger than you really are .... and I'm talking in a "I ate too many Big Macs" look vs. an Instant Implant way. Instead try a ruffled skirt or something with ruffles on or skimming the shoulder. 

Shoshonna

PEAR SHAPED

If you have good "birthing hips", avoid skirts with big ruffles at the waist. Instead opt for a ruffled top, a skirt with a ruffle at the hem, or down the center. 

 

Rebecca Taylor   

SMALL BUST/BOYISH

You lucky ducks can pretty much ruffle it up wherever you want. If you want, you can even strategically ruffle the bust area for a boost. 

Betsy Johnson

FULL FIGURED

A streamlined neck to hem ruffle like this is very flattering on a plus gal. This look in particular is even slimming since it goes bigger on top and then slims down as it skims the silhouette. 

Baby Phat

*Note: Plus sized ladies, you in particular should be wary of the "Overall" ruffle look. You should highlight your curves, NOT tent them.... and when you tent them in ruffle... it's just not good

Ruffle mumu? 

2. MODERATION

Ruffles are supposed to be an accent... overdoing it is bad. Think of the ruffle as your accessory. Your jewelry should be understated. Also one ruffle at a time ladies. Ruffled top? Hold off on the ruffled skirt and shoes. The ruffle should highlight the outfit .... not take it over. 

Ahhh Quinceniera gone wrong. NO ME GUSTA NO ME GUSTA

3. PAIR WITH STRAIGHT LINES
If you are wearing ruffled separates, pair pieces with tailored and tighter pieces. It streamlines the look.

4. LADIES ONLY
Under no circumstances should men wear ruffles.

What is Chinese for OH HELL NO?

Unless you are....

A PIRATE

SEINFELD IN THE RUFFLE SHIRT EPISODE

or 

LIBERACE

Hope my little how-to has helped! And now for the Grand Finale .... well maybe more like a epilouge.... cause really who can beat Liberace for a Grand Finale?.... Here are some of my favorite ruffly pieces in general. Enjoy! Xoxo

Mini Skirts by Bebe
Sandals by Nine West

Better than the annoying Taylor Swift song: Movie Review for "Letters to Juliet"

So the latest chick flick to hit the screen is the much advertised (Seriously how many times can they advertise one movie on Bravo?) LETTERS TO JULIET. To keep my record of seeing every Romantic Comedy that has come out in the past 10 years .... I of course Fandangoed my way right to the theater.

So the questions remains.....

The basic premise (if you live in Zimbabwe and haven't seen the trailer yet) is that 20-something Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) and her fiancee (Gael Garcia Bernal) go on a 'pre-honeymoon' trip to the infamous city of of Romeo and Juliet, Verona, Italy. Sophie's "I'm hot-shit-and-totally-into-myself-NY-chef" fiancee seems to be interested in everything except her, giving her a lot of free time to wander around. Of course she is drawn to Verona's most reknowed Tourist Trap .... Juliet's House. A mecca for lovers all around the world and where the love lorn leave notes to Shakespeare's heroine asking for her help.

Now why people think that a girl that had less years on her than Taylor Swift and ended up stabbing herself is a good person to ask for love advice.... well that's another issue all together.

But this is besides the point... Sophie stumbles upon a letter lost in the cracks of the wall for decades and brings it to the "Secretaries of Juliet" ... a real group that collects the letters and writes back to each person a reply. To amuse herself while her fiancee is off being a jackass somewhere, she joins the writing brigade and writes a belated reply to Claire (Vanessa Redgrave), which prompts the near instant arrival (which is LAUGHABLE if you know anything about the speed of Italian post) of the woman and her yummy yet snotty grandson, Charlie (Chris Egan).

Much to the dismay of Charlie, the three of them go on a seemingly wild-goose chase around Tuscany to find Claire's lost love, Lorenzo.

Now we all know how it's going to end. We know that despite the odds she will find her Lorenzo. We know that Sophie will wise up that her fiancee is a tool and end up with the snobby Brit who is really a sweetheart underneath his "Oh I'm so jaded by my past wah wah wah" shield.

But dammit,  when Lorenzo rides up on the stupid cliche white horse you cry anyways.

So in conclusion ..... the movie is ooey-gooey romantic drivel. Completely predictable and saturated with saccharine.... But I ate it up. Come on, you do not go to a Romantic Comedy to ponder the deeper meaning of life and be shocked and awed with creativity. You go to there to cry and to leave the theater telling your girlfriend "I want to find my Lorenzo!! Let's go to Verona! God why do our lives suck?".

No one is doubting the complex subtleties of a 1982 Bordeaux ..... but sometimes all you want is a Sunkist ... in all its cheap, bad for you, sugary goodness.

Although this particular flick has two unique things going for it.

1. The scenery and cinematography are GORGEOUS. If you leave the theater not considering quitting your job and running off to Italy this summer for one fleeting moment.... well there is something wrong with you.

Italy is prettier than your country

2. The casting of Vanessa Redgrave as Claire and Franco Nero as her long lost love Lorenzo. This is a little Art Imitating Life. Vanessa and Franco actually just got married a few years ago. They met on the set of CAMELOT in 1967, the same year the Oscar-winner divorced her first husband. But they split up soon after the birth of their son Carlos in 1968. 36 years later they rekindled the romance after Redgrave insisted she couldn't imagine spending her life with anyone else and they married in 2006. 

Alright you can say it:

AWWWWWWWWWWWWW

So Letters to Juliet gets a thumbs up from Kendallina. No it won't change your life... but it will leave you with a smile on your face. 

And if you are heartbroken and wish you could write Juliet for advice..... I have some good news for you. You don't have to go to Verona. She emails. Not a joke. And she WRITES BACK! 

How do I know this? I may have written her before ......... (yes, I'm lame)......  And I got a incredibly sweet email back in broken English. God bless the Italians and their quest to keep the romance alive. 

WRITE OR EMAIL JULIET

So dear readers, I bid you Buona Notte ....

.... If not 'morrow' whenever I feel like blogging next. 

P.S.  Do y'all like the new blog layout?? :)

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Mmmmm yummy: Kendallina's Shrimp Linguine in a White Wine Lemon Sauce Recipe

This is a little recipe I whipped up one cold desolate winter when I had the misfortune of living in the middle of nowhere Indiana .... where they actually have abominable institutions where you can order "Spaghetti and Meatballs" through a drive-thru window. Needless to say, a girl with an Italian background (such as myself) is starved for decent pasta dish unless she makes it herself ..... so I went to the store, bought what was available and invented this yummy little number. Simple and fresh. Delightful then and certainly now. Enjoy!

KENDALLINA'S SHRIMP LINGUINE IN A WHITE WINE LEMON SAUCE

Serves 3-4

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound medium uncooked shrimp, shelled and deveined

5 Tablespoons olive oil

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 large shallot, minced

2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1 teaspoon dried 

2/3 cup dry white wine

2 tablespoons butter

Juice of half a small lemon 

1 pound fresh linguine

1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Chopped fresh Italian parsley

Crushed Red Pepper flakes

Toasted pine nuts (optional)

1. Prepare your ingredients, chop shallot, garlic, parsley.

2. Measure out the wine .... and pour yourself a glass to enjoy while cooking ;)

3. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and saute until opaque, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or spatula, transfer to medium bowl.

4. Reduce heat to low. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to same skillet. Add garlic and shallots and saute until soft, about 1 minute. Stir in dash of red pepper flakes* and oregano. Add wine, lemon juice**, a butter. Increase heat to high and boil until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

*I added the red pepper in the end this time because I had a 3 year old niece with a persnickity diet dining with us that evening!

**Make sure you use a SMALL lemon. Those giant lemons.... you will have way too much juice and lemon will overpower the dish. The lemon is meant to give a splash of bright freshness ... always easy to add more if you want .... but impossible to take out if you use too much!

4. While wine is reducing, cook pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. 
P.S. Do yourself a favor and get fresh pasta ... so much better ... especially in this recipe

5. Drain, reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid. Add pasta and shrimp to skillet with sauce and toss to coat. Add enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten if necessary. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

6. While pasta is still hot (but with the heat off) add in 3/4 cup of Parmigiano and stir to distribute evenly. 

7. Add parsley and toss. 

9. Transfer to bowls and garnish with additional Parmigiano and salt/pepper or toasted pine nuts if desired. And... Voila!!

Buon appetito!