StyleSpy with Katrina Szish

Legendary home to all things retro-hip, Screaming Mimi's (est. 1978)  renowned vintage boutique in New York City has also earned the impressive accolade as THE place to go for haute haunting garb.  A special team of stylists hunts for the best costumes year round, and the shop boasts endless archives and a staff well-versed in all things pop culture.  They have tricked out trick-or-treaters from Chloe Sevigny to Tatum O'Neil to Trudi Styler to supermodel (and bride of the White Stripes' Jack White) Keren Elson.

Known for getting in the holiday spirit via their kitschy-cool window displays (Simon Doonan eat your heart out), this year is no exception.  The theme?   

HALLOWEEN IN OUTER SPACE

Laura Wills, the boutique's owner and founder, explains:

"We chose this theme because it is the 50th anniversary of Sputnik and
the dawning of the space age which made us think of all kinds of characters
from films and tv of the past decades inspired by space fantasies...
Barbarella, the Jetsons, Star Trek, even David Bowie in the movie the The
Man Who Fell to Earth as well as Ziggy Stardust. Astronauts, aliens and now
that water has been found on Mars, maybe there's an Elvis character out there
somewhere?  It's a good time to offer a fun escape and let people masquerade as something far from planet Earth." 

Despite an out-of-this-world theme, Screaming Mimi's is always down-to-earth.  Prices are not astronomical, and you don't need an appointment to launch your costume search.  They make everyone feel like a star. (har har har)

Screaming Mimi’s is located at 382 Lafayette Street in New York’s NoHo neighborhood.

Scents, like songs, can transport you to a distant time or place.

One of the best souvenirs to score from a favorite destination -- especially a beachy one -- is a fragrance that sparks your senses and takes you back to that cherished place with a single sniff.

Whenever I long for Rehoboth Beach (my childhood seaside paradise), I splash on a few drops of the rugged Chesapeake Bay Spyce men's cologne that I bought at Carlton's, the old-school resort clothier on Rehoboth Avenue.  (The same company, Coastal Fragrance, also offers a version called Seaport, which does wonders reminding me of home when I'm away from home).

Chesapeake Bay Spyce cologne, $30 at Sportys.com

Bond No. 9 bottles the essence of the Hamptons, Fire Island (my pick for sexiest scent!), Coney Island and Manhattan (dubbed Eau de New York), in their New York beaches collection (they recommend storing the bottle in the fridge for maximum cooling sensation).

Bond No. 9 beaches collection, $125 per 50ml bottle at BondNo9.com

Even if you're landlocked, pretend you're not with Restoration Hardware's "shore" cleaning collection.  I use the laundry softener and surface cleaner all year long, and it makes household chores less of a chore.

Shore cleaning collection, from $9 at Restoration Hardware

And leave it to Jonathan Adler to conjure a series of candles inspired by some of his most beloved getaways (and mine!  Mr. Husband and I have spent many a lazy afternoon sipping Domaines Ott at Sunset Beach on Shelter Island!)...

Jonathan Adler Sunset Beach candle, $38 at  Candledelirium.com

What's your favorite scent memory?  If you've found it bottled or in wax form, let me know!

STYLE SPY RECOMMENDS: 
A ROMANTIC DINNER WITH YOUR SWEETIE AT NYC'S NOBLE

What:  A cozy, gourmet eatery and wine/liquor bar

Where:  7 Spring Street (just West of Bowery), 212.777.0874

Why:  Besides gourmet comfort food (lobster bisque, roasted chicken with mashed potatoes, foie gras-stuffed burgers, and warm chocolate cake), this tiny gem boasts an enomatic wine serving system (revolutionary technology that preserves the integrity of opened bottles of wine) stocked with rare offerings you're likely never to see served by the glass again.   Worth a trip just for the vino. 

Tips:

-Try the Gevrey-Chambertin, a stunning Burgundy, if they have any left!

-Make a point to ask for Chris, Noble's wine guru -- his extensive knowledge of wine and food-pairing suggestions is part of the charm

Mr. Husband, formerly the wine director at the famed Spotted Pig gastropub, gives the wine list a rave review

Leave it to Vans to make Christmas extra cool.

Not just skulls, but SANTA SKULLS ($50 at Vans.com). Perfect for kicking back and sipping some spiked 'nog.  It's no surprise that Jessica Biel, Ashlee Simpson and Lindsay Lohan trust their chic feet to this classic surfer shoemaker.

MERRY MERRY!

Champagne is always appropriate.  But this holiday season the bubbly stuff is making an especially toast-worthy style statement.

In NYC, Moët & Chandon has opened its first-ever pop-up champagne crystallization boutique in SoHo (455 West Broadway between Prince and Houston).   So chic!  So sultry!

For a flat fee of $30, you can have any bottle of Moët (pre-purchased -- the shop doesn't sell bottles of the good stuff) personalized with Swarovski crystals -- names, dates, monograms, anything up to seven letters. The bedazzling will be done in two days or less.

But be sure to pop in soon.  Boutique Moët is open only Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays throughout December from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm.  The doors will close for good on December 30th.  For more info visit www.moetsoho.com.
 

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Two of my favorite designers, Victor & Rolf, lent their quirky creativity to a limited edition bottle of Piper-Heidsieck Rose Sauvage, along with a flute and  champagne bucket -- all crafted to appear "upside down." 

According to the design duo: “When we were contacted by Piper-Heidsieck the first question we asked ourselves was how can we make this bottle, which we think of as iconic, look a little bit like us?  How can we make something new out of something eternal?” 

The result?  They turned a classic icon on its head...literally. 

Get your piece of fashion history for $90, and celebrate New Year's Eve in style (I welcomed the millenium with a bottle of Piper-Heidsieck decked out in full red patent leather corset regalia, designed by Jean Paul Gaultier, and it was a very good year).

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Karl Lagerfeld designed this perch skin guitar case for Dom Perignon when he shot the champagne legend's recent rosé campaign with Eva Herzigova.  The case holds half a dozen bottles of the house's rarest rosé vintages, plus three flutes.

Dom Pérignon Rosé Guitar Case, Limited Edition
$150,000
Available by special order
212.251.8247

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And then I got this from my trainer Alicia at Complete Body:

A literal buzz kill, but hey, that's what kick-butt trainers are for...sigh...

Nu-Kitchen's Nutrition Director Penny Geller shares her tips for successfully navigating holiday treat temptations:

BEFORE THE PARTY
Eat smaller meals during the day so that you can splurge a little more during the holiday meal without overdoing it for the day. DO NOT SKIP MEALS!!!

Eat a small, low-fat snack before holiday functions to take the edge off your hunger.

Bring a low calorie/low-fat dish to the party to offer to the host.

AT THE PARTY
Drink water or other non-caloric drinks while waiting to sit down to eat.  If you want to have ONE glass of wine/alcoholic drink, save it to drink at dinner.

Stand far away from buffet table.

Eat Holiday foods and stay away from "everyday foods". Since these special items are only available this time of the year, indulge a little in those while avoiding the calories from foods that you can have anytime.

Eat half the amount of each food group that you KNOW you are supposed to have. This allows you to go back for seconds for the remaining amount.

Limit yourself to your favorite two starches or grains, and then split your allotted servings in half.

Stay away from added fats (i.e. dressings, gravy, butter). If you must have something, limit it to 1 teaspoon. Use less fattening toppings (i.e. cranberry relish on top of the turkey or holiday ham).

Wear something you look and feel amazing in -- not necessarily tight, but something that if you were to overdo it in, you know you wouldn’t feel great about the way you look anymore –- tent dresses hide everything and may lead to overindulgence.

AFTER THE PARTY
Take a nice long walk after the big meal. Feeling really ambitious? Take a 30-60 minute jog. (You can also take a walk or jog before the meal. No one said you can't do them both).

InStyle features 179 gifts ideas in the December issue, but this morning on The CBS Early Show Julie Chen and I chatted about the dozen must-haves for the women on your list. 



Use as inspiration or at least for hint-dropping... 

WATCH THE CLIP HERE!

Yesterday morning we woke up to SNOW (yay!) in Manhattan.  Mr. Husband suggested hitting the rooftop and sipping hot chocolate.  Excellent idea. 

But instead of grabbing just any old mugs and scarves, we chose to turn our "outing" into a mini-event complete with white cafe chairs, Pucci boots, fur-trimmed metallic leather gloves, silver-glitter Urban Decay eyeliner (you'll have to trust me on that detail),silver-trimmed snowflake mugs and Jacques Torres hot chocolate (get some at MrChocolate.com).  The Brooklyn Bridge just happened to be there already.

The point?  To inspire you!  Add a touch of personal style to everything you do; even the simplest moments will become ones to remember.

HAPPY DECEMBER!!

Last night's New York Supper Club holiday party met my (high) expectations.  A great space (the ground floor of Starck on Gramercy); an entire table piled high with chocolate treats; artisenal cheeses from around the globe; a vintage bathtub filled with icy champagne bottles; rockin' tunes; and superbly-dressed revelers (if I do say so myself).

Here I am -- wearing Reem Acra's velvet dress as planned -- with Julie Haus (in her own design). 



'Tis officially the party season!

I am suddenly loving velvet again.  I know it's a holiday wardrobe staple, but for some reason it has felt stale the past few years.

Now I want to swath myself in it.

I wore this black velvet Tory Burch Riella tunic on the CBS Early Show yesterday morning (we did a segment on what to wear to a holiday work party).

Riella Tunic, $695 at ToryBurch.com

I'm also drooling over these gorgeous gowns from the Fall collections:

ELIE SAAB
Biasion Studio/WireImage

OSCAR DE LA RENTA
Michelle Leung/WireImage

I have also made a personal decree that I will wear some form of the smooth stuff --  preferably in bright hues, even if just in the form of a shoe or a bag -- to every holiday event I attend this season.

Case in point:  I plan to sport this crushed velvet, chartreuse Reem Acra dress to the New York Supper Club holiday party tonight.

REEM ACRA
Thomas Concordia/WireImage

Check back tomorrow for stylish snaps from the event!