Can’t login to your Gmail account?

It’s driving us crazy too.

But consider this your invitation from the Google Powers that Be to take that latte break, power nap, or much needed stroll down procrastination lane. In fact, we’ve rounded up a few great sites to browse that are just perfect for those days when Gmail tells you “enough is enough”, or, well, “could not complete your request”.

1. FFFOUND!!

Nice pictures of cool things.

2. Newser

My guilty pleasure. It’s a news aggregation service that provides mostly tabloid level stories– but with pictures!

3. Free Rice

Mindless. Free. Rice. And somehow you’re also helping to save the world.

4. FARK

An up to the minute compilation of hard-to-believe-they’re-true news articles from around the world.

5. Apartment Therapy

Inspiration for your home. It’s very DIY yet modern.

If these links just aren’t cutting it for you and you really, actually, do have something you’ve just gotta send out, here’s a way to get around the 502 error. Simply head over to iGoogle, and you can read and send messages via the dashboard’s gmail link. What do you do when your Gmail is down?

Avant Gaudy on The Coveted!

Jennine from The Coveted visited the Avant Gaudy showroom this week.  Check out an exerpt from her interview with Deborah and see a sneak peek of some of Avant Gaudy’s favorite fall looks:

One of the things I missed the most when I was abroad was easy access to vintage clothing. I missed some of my local shops, and online, well many of the ones I love are located stateside (though not all!) When I came to Chicago, honestly, there’s not been much time to visit shops, we’re looking for a place to live, and me, I’m looking for work… but luckily enough, we got in touch with Chicago-based online vintage retailer, Avant Gaudy. Founded by Deb Umunnabuike (pictured on the left) in 2005, Avant Gaudy started out from a love for vintage, for integrating found pieces and wearing them in modern ways. this has translated into her shop philosophy:

“modern vintage” clothing: garments with some history that represent the best of today’s fashion and trends. Our fashion philosophy is all-encompassing: anyone can look good, and looking good does not equate spending a lot of money nor a lot of time in a shopping mall.’

Behind the scenes the shop has grown, with two buyers searching high and low for great pieces, they pool their resources together to create ‘collections’  based on runway trends, magazines, and style blogs like Hel Looks and The Sartorialist and fashion news sites like WWD to find inspiration. One of the advantages of going to Avant Gaudy’s is to see the ways they interpret vintage and relate it to the most recent of today’s trends… and for pretty cheap too, most pieces run about the $25-$50 range which for edited vintage pieces is quite a steal!

Check out the rest of the article on The Coveted to see more photos of our fall looks and even an exclusive photo of our latest editorial photo shoot.

Fashion in My Eyes Interview with Deborah!

Check out this interview with Deborah, co-owner of Avant Gaudy, featured on Fashion in My Eyes.  Be sure to check out the amazing blog, or take a look at the interview reposted here:

Avant Gaudy is a chic online boutique, where you can find “vintage modern,modern vintage” clothes and accessories.
I asked Deb Umunnabuike, one of the Avant Gaudy founders, some questions about herself and about Avant Gaudy.

You are the co-founder of Avant Gaudy,tell us more about yourself.

I’m also a Political Science major at the University of Chicago, so I’ve often got a recent WWD and also something written by Foucault in my purse. My sister, Jessica, and I started Avant Gaudy in the summer of 2005 in order to keep ourselves busy. Beyond that, I really wanted to connect with and impact the lives of those who were as passionate about fashion as we were, and are. An online store seemed like a perfect way to reach fashionistas all over the world.

Why Avant Gaudy and not another name?

Avant Gaudy is a play off of the word avant garde, which was a movement that embraced forward thinking, literature, art, and fashion. We select clothing that is fashion forward and yet also has a tinge of gaudiness in the sense that an Avant Gaudy girl or guy is both modern and playful.

How do you pick the items for the store?

All items are sourced from across the United States. We have a full-time team of buyers who dedicate themselves to researching trends and matching these trends up with vintage fashion. Our buyers are intuitive and creative – they know a good find when they see one.

What are your favorite pieces on Avant Gaudy right now?
This silver lame dress was featured on NotCouture,as was this vintage Diane von Furstenberg one.Jumpsuits, meanwhile, are on trend right now, and are edgy yet feminine

What do you love most about fashion?

Fashion allows an ordinary day to be extraordinary. Even if a person does enjoy and choose to follow trends, there’s still so much room for individuality. Vintage fashion is the best way to express your individuality – because of its scarcity, every piece is a rare link to the past that fits easily into a modern wardrobe example:

How do you see yourself and Avant Gaudy 10 years for now?

I’d like Avant Gaudy to expand and become even more of an international business than it already has. With the social media explosion, we feel like the time is right to connect with as many people as possible who share our interest in modern vintage. Additionally, I’d eventually like for our brand to serve as a platform for up and coming designers from across the world to showcase their takes on vintage through reconstructions and vintage-inspired looks.

Avant Gaudy on Facebook and Twitter!

Are you a fan of Avant Gaudy on Facebook?  You should be!  Facebook fans daily updates about new merchandise, Avant Gaudy news, videos and blog posts.  Go to our fan page or text “fan avantgaudy” to FBOOK (32665) from your cell phone and  be added as a fan instantly (standard charges may apply).

Are you on Twitter? Then you should be following Avant Gaudy for up-to-the-minute updates on merchandise, Avant Gaudy news and all things fashion!

Are you already fans of Avant Gaudy on Facebook or Twitter?  Which site is your favorite?

“Cats and meaningless fluff”: A Fluffy Blog

A Fluffy Blog is (naturally) one of the most whimsical blogs we’ve reviewed. Eline Marie Renee is the nom de plume of a 20 year old student running her own blog, Etsy shop, and online gallery. Despite the blog’s name, her vintage style and Etsy store, however, can only be described as “hardcore.”

Eline recently highlighted Avant Gaudy on A Fluffy Blog. Below, she sums up Avant Gaudy. We couldn’t have said it better ourselves:

I feel as if I’m coming into this small shop tucked into an unknown corner of some hip town where you’d find either a hip young sales girl with a sweet sense of humour or the most awesome 50-year old with thousands of necklaces and a laugh that booms right through your body. In short, their store seems very personal and lovely to me.

The same could be said about her Etsy store. Everything is chic and unique, just like A Fluffy Blog.

Check This Out: Coco Perez

Today’s newest fashion icon: Coco Chanel Perez. The self-proclaimed “gossip gangsta” has recently launched a new edition to the Perez Hilton empire, Coco Perez.  According to the Coco Perez about page, the LA Times called Perez, “like US Weekly, the Star, the Enquirer and Life & Style all rolled into one sweet yet snarky, sagacious yet salacious gay man.” Perezhilton.com has becoming a leading celebrity news site since it was launched in 2004 and was named one of the top five Web sites checked by college-aged women in 2008, according to eMarketer.

This new blog is similar to his original celebrity gossip blog, yet focuses  completely on the fashion world.  The site will feature the latest news about upcoming spreads in your favorite magazines, street style looks, celebrities on the red carpet, where to find your favorite fashions from your favorite shows and movies, interviews with up-and-coming designers and more.

For those who are addicted to Perez’s sarcastic sense of humor featured in his daily gossip posts and looking for up-to-the minute fashion news, Coco Perez will definitely be a site to check out. As Perez would say, this site looks like its going to be “pure seks.”

Check Her Out: Saved for Best

There are dozens, if not hundreds of  popular personal style blogs online right now, with constant updates from “hipsters” talking about and showing off their favorite designer clothes and vintage finds.  Well, here’s another one to add to the list that’s different that we think you should take a look at.  UK blogger Alice just recently started her own style blog, Saved for Best, featuring daily photos of her unique outfits and a recent review of Avant Gaudy! Each day, Alice gives her readers a glimpse at her outfit for the day and a little story behind it.  Most of her favorite pieces are unique vintage finds, and she even reconstructs some of her own clothing.

Here’s how Alice describes her own unique style:

The problem, if you could ever call it that, is that my eyes are always drawn to a pattern, a colour, a cut, a cloth and sometimes clothes that are just downright funny-looking. I’m a spontaneous shopper; I take no pleasure in searching for the ‘perfect’ anything. I want glitter and glamour, flowers and frills, lace and luxury and I want it now. Hence a wardrobe heaving with sequins, netting, vintage dresses, giddy patterns, scarves, bags and shoes of all styles, yet nothing that makes any kind of concession to practicality or befits a specific occasion – unless that occasion calls for fancy dress.

Here’s a quick look at some of our favorite outfits from this month so far. 

Be sure to check out Saved for Best  for Alice’s daily style posts.

Steven Meisel’s Red Alert. Red Hot.

Courtesty of Steven Ignant, who has a wonderful “behind the blog” series, like this one about Jeff Hamada von Booooooooooooooom.

Miss Likey on Scarves

Miss Likey‘s motto is “where Edgy meets Couture and Street meets Catwalk.” Needless to say, her fashion philosophy aligns pretty closesly with Avant Gaudy’s.

One of her most recent posts focused on scarves. Because they’re an oft-ignored fashion accessory, I’ve included her thoughts on what a scarf can do for an outfit and how to wear it.

In some cultures symbolizes sanctity, character, modesty and religious attire. Fashionistas consider it as luxury and keep it in jewelery box. Lot of people wouldn’t borrow it to their best friend because there is story that is keeper of your personality and scent.
Even the simple outfit can be improved with neatly picked scarf. Since we lately love lot of long scarves, leopard print, McQueen’s skulls, Etro’s royalty bohemian rhapsody, seems that we forgot about Riviera chic; small silk scarf.
The distinction of the silk scarf is really in its size, so classic Hermès measures 90cm and weighs only 65 grams. Geometry on the side, small silk scarf really turns out that luxurious effect to make mystique diva of the girl. Since Hermès carré is nobility among the scarves, some believe that girl didn’t make in her life as long as she doesn’t own her own carre; picked in Hermes Paris. So you can touch it and feel it or smell it just like Vogue’s paper. Some are paraphrasing same story about Pucci cognizable prints on small piece of fabric.
What is common to scarves of Hermès, Pucci, Lacroix, Versace, Casol or Ferragamo is their uniqueness. Whether the story on the fabric or memories and moments you will create wearing the same fabric.
Some people frame their Hermes scarf like fait du art or sleep on it instead of pillow .I believe in more creative ways. Tres chic as headband, belt or enveloped around straps of your top or like a bow on the back, isn’t it?

Scarves are so verstatile that it’s sometimes difficult to figure out just how to wear them. Now that you’ve been inspired, check out Avant Gaudy’s selection of vintage scarves. Be sure to check out Miss Likey’s blog for continued inspiration on turning old into new.

Shiny Shiny Comments on Fashionistas’ Comments

I stumbled onto this comment recently about fashionistas:

“Fashionistas are always making comments like ‘bat-winged jackets are really cool’ and then inventing spurious reasons about sleeve-trends and how bat-wings/retro-tailoring/apricot leather captures the zeitgeist as proof for their statements.”

Well, it’s not really about us, but bat-wings are indeed very cool.