Style Snapshot: Gala, Fashion Blogger Extraordinaire

[gala darling in NYC.
coordinating one's ears with one's shoes is always chic.]

I am SUPER SUPER EXTRA EXCITED to be posting this week's Style Snapshot, since it's been graciously provided by the fabulous Gala Darling! Gala is grande dame of the thoughtful, intelligent and eye-candy-ful site iCing, and her fashion sense is always refreshing. She periodically posts snapshots of her delightful outfits (I actually started reading her blog because when you google "daily outfit photos," iCing comes up at the top of the list), but today, especially for A Material World, she goes a bit more in depth than usual. The Australia resident sported this very American (mouse ears, hel-LO!) ensemble soon after her recent arrival in NYC. Gala says:

I'm wearing...
* Silver sequinned mouse ears from Disneyworld
* Earrings from Sportsgirl (Australia)
* Grey American Apparel sweater
* Black & white skirt from Ricochet (NZ)
* Heels from Nine West
* Tarina Tarantino ring & diamante initial rings (they spell out 'GALA') from Girl Props

This is the outfit I wore to hang out with my friend Craig, who is a street fashion photographer operating under the name Altamira NYC. At the time we took this shot, we had spent the last 3 Saturdays together scouting the streets of Manhattan for well-dressed people. My style was in a state of evolution too, because firstly I was living out of a suitcase -- otherwise known as working with approximately one millionth my normal amount of clothing -- & secondly the weather was insanely hot -- which I had not at all packed for!

I got dressed in the morning, Craig showed up & we trawled my neighbourhood for some good photography spots. One of those pictures was taken on the rooftop of my building, the other a few streets over from where I'm living.

Secret admission: After these photos were taken, we came back to my apartment & I changed my shoes. We were about to scout for fashionable people on the street, & unfortunately while those shoes are very cool-looking, they absolutely *kill* if you wear them for too long!

Later on that day, after we had taken lots of photos & critiqued lots of outfits & gulped plenty of coffee, we saw Marc Jacobs at an intersection across the road from my house. I shook his hand & he told me he loved my hair! It was a pretty exciting moment for a girl from New Zealand! (He is beautiful in person, with the most sparkly eyes I've ever seen.)

I love how Gala's street-style pic was taken while scoping streets for others' street style! How very meta. (I get skewered for saying that too often. It really is an obnoxiously college-class-ish thing to say, but how else does one say "metaphysical" other than, well, "metaphysical"?) These photos seem SO New York to me, and you'd never guess that she was scraping the bottom of her suitcase for the outfit. Maybe it's just that shiny purple hair makes any girl look impossibly chic! (Guess Marc Jacobs agrees...Gala, you totally were ahead of MJ on the violet-hair front.)

NOTE: Even if you don't often find yourselves hanging out with professional photographers and running into Marc Jacobs, I'd love your style snapshots too! It's always fascinating to find out what was behind people's outfit choices. Just email me at amaterialworld[at]gmail.com if you'd like to give it a whirl!