If last summer was The Great Surf Revival, this summer is primed to be the summer of The Great Tiki revival. Already thoroughly established in cocktail and bar culture, with infamous New York tiki bars such as Painkiller (PKNY) on Essex Street opening up in the last few years and influencers picking up old Bas Sheva tiki beats. The Spring Ready-To-Wear runways of Stella McCartney (above, center), Marc Jacobs (above, left) and Tory Burch (above, mid right) showed that fashion is now adopting the tiki trend. With hints of Havana (tropical floral prints), Hawaii (surf prints and raffia), and overall tropical euphoria, we expect to see more than one Hawaiian-shirted influencer in the coming months.

Tweet Birds of Youth, a work by New York artist Michael Waugh commissioned by T Magazine is one of the most timely works I have ever seen. What at first looks to be an etching of three Poe-esque eagles, in a tempestuous background, battling it out is actually thousands of intertwined twitter messages collected from the Egyptian Revolution in May. The design alone would have put the commission right in step with the rising Romantic Goth style trend for Fall; spurred by a series of lightly sadomasichistic runway collections from Louis Vuitton and others heavily influenced by Edwardian/Victorian dark romanticism, the enormous popularity of the Alexander McQueen retrospective this summer, and from what my astrological savante friend tells me, a shift into an era of Experimental Romanticism as we enter the Age of Pisces- convincing when she related that the last time we were in the Age of Pisces was Europe’s Spring of Nations in1848, or in the same year when other dark, intellectual works came into fruition such as Edgar Allan Poe’s Eureka. Similarly, we find ourselves in a revolutionary era, with art and fashion turning darker and more heady from seasons past’s minimalism. Yet another reason to worship T Mag editor-in-chief Sally Singer.

I hesitate to say this because I am sure that you already know, that Mad Men seasons one through four were added to the Netflix watch instantly roster two weeks ago. Which means that my roommate and I have been devouring episode after episode at a pace so fast, we are embarrassed to admit to each other which episode we are on (before disappearing into either side of our shared wall to blare the following episode).

After running into the fifth person over the weekend that had dedicated their entire weekend to reliving the days before Mad Men skipped a 2011 season, I started to realize that we were all itching to relive our 50’s style moments. Mad Men’s move to the Netflix instant queue, combined with Amy Winehouse’s death and maybe an urge to relive the American Golden Age (while the stock market dips into what some are calling the Double Dip we’ve been awaiting), has single-handily sparked an interest in late fifties/ early sixties style, culture, pastimes, etc. Just in time to prime everyone for the season five release in March 2012. Hold your breath, everyone.

This year’s resort wear/ summer collections have been completely dominated by lounge wear, as well as street fashion and leaked into mainstream labels  But now, the real question is which came first- Steve Madden introducing pony hair slippers mid-summer or the launch and quick unleashing of Celine’s street-ready silk pajama sets? Was is a bottomless Gwyneth, clothed solely in a classic Brooks Brothers’ boyfriend pajama shirt in that Vogue editorial last August? I like to think it’s all the meow meow people are taking, all that planking, that has people a little bit more hesitant to leave their bedclothes behind.

Labels shown clockwise,

Salvatore Farragamo Men’s Spring/Summer 2011

Celine Spring/Summer 2011

Karen Walker Spring/ Summer 2011

The Sartorialist 

Rochas Spring/Summer 2011

Bottega Veneta Slipper 

It seems that recently there has been a lot of talk about the ‘Modern Lady’ in style; shaking the boho trend (unless we are talking 20’s Bohemian) that has grown a little tired into a newly refined style sensibility. Fall 2011 fashion seems to be going that way as well, with designers from Alexander McQueen and Jason Wu coming out with prim pieces of lace and tweed—sometimes a little tongue-in-cheek like the McQueen clutch below. This is happening in the mainstream and in men’s fashion too, as J.Crew has just begun selling men’s pocket squares.

Personally, Tom Ford’s cat-eyed Nikita sunglasses have me convinced that this fall is going to be one fierce lady.

Five of my closest friends from college have bought LA designer Clare Vivier’s Messenger Bag within the last month. While having gotten a lot of press from design periodicals (T Magazine, the Daily Candy, etc), Clare Vivier is not a very well known designer- each of the women I know who’ve bought this bag probably found it by reading the paper.

Moreover from not actively advertising her brand, Clare Vivier continues this model of brandless in her design; the bags are completely exempt of any brand logo, not even a signature piping or pattern to identify the designer. Even the name of the model is left at “messenger bag.” Which is exactly why five of my smartest, most trend-forward girlfriends have bought-in to this level of brand/logo discretion. The “it” bag now proclaims its status as such silently. I just might have to become the sixth to follow the trend leaders.

Huh.com  just released pictures of celebrity stylist Robert Verdi’s custom vintage Hermes print Vans slip-ons. At the stylists’ request, Vans transferred the prints of Verdi’s Hermes vintage scarf collection to the white canvas slip on—no chance of wide distribution but boy can’t one dream. This is exactly the kind of high-end/low-end collaboration that I dream of- like the Missoni x Converse collaboration last year. Not the cheap-chic designer collaborations that everyone gets so hyped over and then usually fail so miserably on delivery (quality, fit, need I go on?). Dear God, please give me my Vans, and give me my vintage Hermes in one place.

Meet Allie. I met her in the Capitol Hill section of Seattle. I’d like to think we fell in love instantly. I loved her lace collar and little curls and that she told me where a good thrift store was. She told me she liked my new red corduroy pants and hopped into a car. I wonder if we will ever meet again?

FILED UNDER: LOS ANGELES STYLE

Los Angeles girls get to have all the fun with their extravagant high-heels (all the better not to walk in my dears), frilly socks, flat fresh-fruit diet bellies, and amazing hair (not the kind created by long subway rides). This is the kind of ’70s style resurgence I can get behind.