During a recent discussion over at my latest internet addiction Jezebel.com, a conversation about snotty salespeople at New York's Prada boutique turned into a debate as to what designers were worthy of one's (or mom and dad's) hard-earned dollar as well as what constituted a "bargain". One gal bragged about wearing "Chloe's $1200 coveted Paddington boot" which she picked up for the bargain sum of $600. Another wanted us to thank her for tipping us off to a pair of Jimmy Choo boots found online for a mere $400. It made me feel like the $250 I dropped last year for a pair of slouchy Michael Kors boots (and only dropped after stalking them for 2 months as well as comparing prices online and off and paid for with the aid of a Macy's coupon) to be quite a preschool purchase. But after feeling like the only poor kid in the classroom, thankfully, others chimned in who agreed that even the discounted prices are unreachable for most of us (and possibly unreasonable as well). Luckily, though, limitations breed creativity and even if one doesn't have a lot of bread, it is not impossible to cultivate sassy personal style; it's no coincidence that many broke art students and musicians look so much better than, say, the Lindsays, Paris', and Britneys of the world. Fashion should be about having a fun outlet to express ones individuality, not being the 100th person on a waiting list for this season's ridiculous Balenciaga jophurs (yes, I mean YOU, Anne Slowey). Because let's face it, if you're number 100, that means that by the time you get your pair, there will already be 99 people running around town wearing the same exact ugly-ass pants as you are. And nothing is more uncool than that (remember that episode of "Beverly Hills 90210" when Brenda and Kelly had the same prom dress and how super embarrassing it was?). And thus, the direction for our Fall 2007 fashion story was born: we're going to prove that with just a little work, you can build a wardrobe that looks straight off the pages of any glossy magazine currently on the newsstand. If you didn't already know, this year we expanded our Hipsterville vintage clothing boutique and gave it a new focus. We wanted to spotlight not only quirky rock star-inspired threads but also to showcase pieces that look incredibly modern and on-trend, because wearing vintage doesn't have to mean looking like you crawled out of the Salvation Army's reject bin. And since much of what the designers parade on the runways is inspired by fashions from the past, it's not impossible to find much of the season's more desirable trends in vintage versions. So what you'll find on the next few pages are looks from our favorite designers, the most wearable visions, and proof positive that it can be found for less without even having to hit knock-off chains like H&M and Forever 21 (not that there's anything wrong with those places but you won't exactly find one-of-a-kind gems on any of those racks).
Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl For the past few seasons, fashions have been positively girly with prim little mod babydolls and shapeless trapeze dresses. Those of us with tomboy hearts were pluck outta luck finding anything even remotely to our liking on the racks. But with trousers being more ubiquitous this fall than they have been in years, menswear styles-for-ladies have also grown in popularity. Piped blazers atop sweater vests atop cropped pants recall 20's-era newsboys (see Lacoste and Phillip Lim). The key to making this look work is for the silhouette to be streamlined to show that although the look is boyish, the body underneath it is not.

All That Glitters There's something about sequins that makes us all a'giggle. Maybe it's because they've always conveyed jet-setting and disco dancing and Olivia Newton-John, all things we've been obsessed since we were tiny tots. What we liked most about how the designers used is that you don't need to be attending a black tie even to indulge your inner glam rock goddess. Sequins of all colors were abundant and could be found in the form of tunics, skirts, and bags. Sass it up like Pucci's feather trim sheath but we prefer to dial-it down Benjamin Cho-style by pairing a crazy multi-hued tunic with jeans or a mini.