Today’s entry is written by fabulously funky Antje, a good friend and long time member of the YLF community.

As some of you have already experienced, clothes swapping can be frugal and fun. JuliJuli, Marianne and I put this to the test last Saturday when we hosted the first Seattle YLF clothing swap. JuliJuli opened her beautiful house to eleven YLF blog readers and forum members who arrived with armfuls of clothes and plenty of hugs and smiles to greet old friends and make new connections. And of course everyone was fabulously dressed!

After setting up and enjoying a mimosa or a cup of tea, we started to look through the colorful array of clothes, shoes and accessories. In no time, we were busily slipping into skirts, blouses, dresses and jackets, crowding the mirror, and modeling outfits for each other.

Angie generously provided expert feedback on what worked and what didn’t, and nudged us to try things that we might have overlooked because they were out of our comfort zone – like bright colors for Marianne, who now owns a green cardigan, the cutest kelly green flats and a fiery red blouse.

Jane left the swap meet in her new military jacket over an Ann Taylor animal print shell, layered over her own white button down shirt. Laurel found a black and white tie neck top from Anthropologie. Daphne delighted in the orange and red scarf Angie had bought in Amsterdam years ago. And Amanda rocked the teal Boden coat that Marianne contributed to the swap because the fit wasn’t perfect on her.

These are just a few of the many successful swaps that took place. We also admired Sinead in her new red and white wrap dress, Nafisa in a “perfect fit” hounds tooth pencil skirt, JuliJuli in melon and pink tops, and Cheryl in a black and white Express cardigan.

As for me, I was thrilled to pick up a fabulous wrap dress in a black and white graphic print, which I can wear with jeans or on its own; a black stretch pencil skirt; a cheetah print top (can’t have enough animal print, right?); and best of all, a bright yellow Nanette Lepore jacket with short sleeves and interesting tie detailing at the neck. I can’t wait to wear these wonderful “new” pieces, and I’m so grateful to those who contributed them!

But I took as much pleasure in seeing how some of the clothes I added to the swap came to life on others. Amanda rocked two of the skirts I brought as well as a blue summer dress; her body shape was just different enough from mine that the items fit her perfectly. Jennifer looked super in a Banana Republic denim skirt that always looked too short on me, and Anya left with yet another skirt of mine that looked fun and edgy on her and perfectly complemented the rest of the outfit she came in. It’s a really good feeling to see iffy pieces from your wardrobe work well on other people: It validates your vague sense of “this just isn’t flattering on me” and you rejoice in others breathing new life into the items.

The swap was so successful that we’re already talking about an encore, maybe six months from now at the beginning of the fall season. Stay tuned, and tuck away things that don’t work for you. One woman’s discards may become another one’s treasures!

Angie was photographer for the day, but came out from behind the camera long enough for us to get these photos.

What a night for the motion picture “Slumdog Millionaire”. They cleaned up! Of all the fashions last night, I enjoyed seeing the ensembles of the Indian male talent of this movie crew the most. Their ethnic Nehru suits rocked. Uber stylish.

I was generally disappointed with the selection of frocks and tuxes last night. Oscar night is as glamorous and stylish as it gets and I’m usually jumping up and down with excitement, cheering and waiting for the next celebrity to look even better than the one before. Somehow, my expectations for an abundance of breathtaking and flawless looks was not met. I wasn’t a fan of the asymmetrical necklines, oversized bows, messy hairdo’s and nude lipstick. Here’s my rundown of the evening:

The best dressed lasses:

• Angelina Jolie comes is first which surprised me. She made my worst dressed list at the Golden Globes but this time her black gown was killer. It was superbly cut and draped impeccably well. Matching it with bold green jewelry gave the seemingly classic frock a different spin. It was hands down my favourite look of the night.
• Evan Rachel Ward was my best at the Golden Globes but comes in second this time round. Nude is difficult to wear, but when you have perfect white milky skin and red hair, it works. I loved the way this dress draped too.
• Taraji P. Henson looked modern yet romantic in her ingenious ruffled gown. I loved everything about this dress. Her modern bob and dramatic, antique-looking necklace sealed the deal. Fabulous.
• Natalie Portman was pretty and perfectly petite in her beautiful Grecian frock. The colour stood out and I liked that.
• Meryl Streep looked alluring yet age-appropriate in her gorgeous grey gown. Her hair looked great up and she was elegant from top to toe.

Actresses like Anne Hathaway, Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry, Penelope Cruz and Kate Winslet looked lovely, but didn’t blow me away. Frieda Pinto and Marisa Tomei are so pretty, but their frocks left me cold.

The best dressed blokes:

• Hugh Jackman was flawless in all his outfits.
• Eddie Murphy rocked an all black shirt and tux with bling.
• Daniel Craig looked as good as James Bond.

The best hair:

• Marion Cotillard sported a French roll like a true French gal.
• Taraji P. Henson‘s modern bob was textured sleek perfection.

The worst dressed stars:

• Phillip Seymour Hoffman looked ridiculous with a beanie.
• Mickey Rourke was scary.
• Heidi Klum looked like Grace Jones gone wrong. I did not like this ultra-modern dress at all.
• Jessica Beale’s oversized front dress folds were unflattering and did nothing for her figure.
• Amanda Seyfried looked like a Christmas present. The bow was too much.

I’m excited to compare Oscar fashion notes so over to you. Who made your best and worst list?

My favourites. Click the thumbnails to see the full pictures on Yahoo’s coverage of the Academy Awards.

There is a lot I’d like to see changed in the world of fashion retail, but if I had to pick one area to focus on it would be footwear. It’s simply not up to scratch. I and most of my clients have some sort of foot and shoe challenge that’s only getting worse as we get older. It’s completely unacceptable that it’s SO HARD to find a good looking AND comfortable pair of shoes.

Yes, there are comfort footwear lines, but I haven’t found one that delivers. Many of them have shoes that are indeed comfortable, but just plain ugly. Others, like the exorbitant Taryn Rose, are beautiful, but hit and miss on the comfort dimension. And I’m not just talking about my fussy feet – this is based on my experience with many clients. There is no single range that is universally comfortable. The shoes that combine style and comfort are isolated surprises from the ranges of many different brands.

This challenge requires thinking outside the box. I don’t think the aesthetics of the shoe are the crux of the problem. That’s pretty well covered. Also, preferences are very subjective and there should always be a range of brands and styles to choose from. Comfort is where we should focus our attention. The thing I do notice is that there seems to be a set of characteristics that are common to the shoes that I find comfortable. Perhaps the answer is a range of shoes that are tailored to my specific needs.

In a perfect world where budget is no object, I see an online foot store that gives me the option to specify everything about the shoe that would make it perfect for my foot. At the touch of a button I would select my preferred style and colour, and then perfect the fit and performance of the shoe by specifying inner width and length, heel height, overall dimensions, arch support, inner cushioning details and fabrication. The shoes would magically appear on my doorstep in a couple of days.

How would you go about improving the state of retail footwear?

Friday fun: these fashion professionals have their own footwear challenges (no runway models were hurt in the filming of this video).

It’s true. The Fall 2009 collections on the runway at Fashion Week are full of outfits showcasing shoulder pads. This brings back all sorts of memories for those of us who wore them in the 80’s.

But the shoulder-pad trend that’s on the runways at the moment is different to the looks we coveted back in the days of Dynasty. The aesthetic is more sculptured and streamlined. It’s as if the modern shoulder pad is molded into the design and fabric of the garment. Sort of space-age looking. Back in 1983, you shoved huge spongy triangular shoulder pads under the shoulder seams of an oversized top and you could often see the actual outline of the pads. I remember thinking that I looked and felt slimmer in the waist and hips when my shoulders were all padded up, which is why I wore multiple shoulder pads under one garment.

I’m pretty sure that shoulder pads will find their way back into clothing. In fact, I saw a longer length 80’s style blazer with one-inch shoulder pads at Club Monaco yesterday. The effect was subtle but definitely there. Whether shoulder pads make it back into mainstream fashion remains to be seen. But the next question is whether you’ll wear the look if it does make a comeback. Before you answer, think back to how you vowed you would NEVER wear skinny jeans again. I was one of those people. Now I wear skinny jeans all the time. So maybe shoulder pads are in my future after all. Time will tell.