Meet Katie - my faux fashionista friend.  By "faux fashionista" I mean shopper turned lawyer, to fund her expensive tastes.  Katie has been in the sartorial know since middle school.  A voracious reader, Katie adds Vogue and W to her reading queue on a monthly basis.  When Poisonwood Bible and Everything is Illuminated are among your favorite books, the eloquent prose of those two leaders in the publication industry, serves as a light read.  Katie's style mantra is easy dressing and exquisite taste.  She always looks impeccably put together, but never over done.  Whether it's a simple tee, perfect fitting jeans, flats, and a silk scarf to tie the look together, or a graphic sundress and strappy shoes, her look is unfailingly complete.  Shoes are her weakness, so she tends to let them take outfit center stage.  By 10th grade Katie had accumulated enough designer footwear to take up an entire 4x6 foot wall of her closet.  No style slouch, Katie has always been my go to shopping partner.  That's no small feat; in case you haven't noticed, when it comes to shopping I don't mess around!

I rescued/kidnapped Katie from the monotony of studying for the bar exam for a much needed day or rest and relaxation.  R&R by our definition was brunch at The Place in the West Village, followed by shopping in SoHo and a drink to take the edge off at NoLiTa's Cafe Noir.  Here we are outside of Chanel, where I almost convinced myself I did need one of their classic cocktail rings, and did not need any money in my savings account.  Fortunately, I came to my senses.  To distract myself from my latest loss, I caught Katie candid-style for a blogpost.  Katie was looking easy-chic and mixing high street/high fashion and wearing Forever21 denim leggings, a TOPSHOP tunic in lavender plaid, matching Tom Ford sunglasses, Pour la Victoire wedges, a Botkier bag, and a Michael Kors menswear inspired watch.

You can find this foxy financier scooping up fun finds at NYC's department stores, and the occasional sample sale.  She's always had a head for math and an eye for fashion.  It makes for an interesting combination. She's not one to read a fashion magazine from cover to cover, so she pulls inspiration from movies, TV and surfing the web.  She takes something she's seen that she likes and puts her own little spin on it.  To achieve her personal aesthetic, she mixes unexpectedly feminine pieces and tomboy cool to eclectic perfection.   The result - a totally unique-chic look that is on trend without being overtly trendy.

I snapped a candid of this cool girl as we walked through the West Village after a record release party for our friends, the Kovak Brothers.  She's sporting a Theory boyfriend blazer that doubles as a work-week staple, a Marc by Marc Jacobs silk tank, Hue brand "jeggings" (a fantastic find at $34 that we think rivals J Brand's at $140) and J. Crew patent leather flip flops.

Meet the ultra chic Julia Wilde, a long time friend of mine.  The singer/song writer grew up in a "fashion house," so to speak, with her mom, noted designer Kathryn Conover. I will never forget playing dress up in Julia's attic bedroom, literally tossing around labels like Dior and Prada (and at the age of 9 having NO idea what that meant).  Needless to say, "dress up" at Julia's was a game we never grew out of.

I've always been impressed by her eye for style.  She's a natural and it's always fun to see what she wears next.  Where she finds inspiration for her version of "off duty model" cool is mostly in her own imagination.  She likes to set the trends not follow them, so to achieve her style sensibility flip through magazines from every month and year, not just the recent ones.  Pick and choose elements of various trends and play around to put your own stamp on it.

I snapped this shot just before grabbing drinks at one of our favorite Lower East Side haunts.  Fortunately for me, it didn't take too much convincing to get the former model to pose for a quick pic while wearing a dress by her mom, Kathryn Conover, Club Monacco striped cardigan, J. Crew flower embellished flip flops, a classic straw tote, and Vintage Dior sunglasses.

I am always impressed by Sarah's innate ability to put together eclectic and chic looks.  Her go to spots for inspirations?  People StyleWatch and WhoWhatWear where she pulls tips from the best dressed celebs. Sarah and I got together tonight to catch up over sangria and tapas at Sala, in Chelsea.  After a few drinks, I convinced my fellow fashionista to let me get a shot of her looking chic and wearing an American Apparel slouchy sweatshirt top, ADAM Lippes silk georgette shorts, and carrying a Foley + Corinna tote.  Bonus, her necklaces were layered gold tone strands that looked expensive, but came from the ever budget friendly H&M.