Mary's Fashion Diary

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I'm in for some gruelling weeks, it's my last occassion to prepare for the most important exams in my life. Therefore, I decided I need a mini holiday before everything so I left with my family for a couple of days to Iasi- my eternal love. I loved refreshing my wardrobe by shopping some summer basics, discovering the best hot chocolate (on a hot summer night, I know, but I got this terrible flu) and the best ice cream combination (called "Crazy Nuts"- clue: Snickers ice cream overload), reading the exquisite British Vogue number featuring Kate Upton on the cover while enjoying some Arizona Green Tea, chilling with my cousin and my friends who live there and last but not least, going to the "Edge of Tomorrow" movie. To elaborate, I've never been a Tom Cruise fan but I like Emily Blunt and my cousin insisted it would be a great action movie so I gave in. I went there, armed with my caramel popcorn and 3D glassses , without knowing anything about it except the main cast. And it was amazing! If I would have known the main topic was the battle between humans and aliens , I wouldn't have walked into that cinema! But the script was genuinely funny - it was an unexpected surprise.

Now, let's talk a little about fashion. That is a MOSCHINO bag, to address the obvious question! I have always loved the Italian brand and swore that I would buy an iconic bag when I would have a salary in the future. But I have a massive amount of luck- I follow Harvey Nichols on Instagram because I love their store and they were holding an exciting competition, in order to celebrate Moschino's 30th birthday. The prize? A classic mini leather bag, in a navy shade!

Ever since I got the bag, I have unconciously adjusted all my outfits to match it and this weekend, while I was walking into Otter looking for some new flats (I'm currently between sizes, bye bye my actual shoe collection!) I laid my eyes on the perfect baby blue flats. They are the perfect summer essential, so comfy and easy to match with pretty much everything.

The dress has another story- I'm all about finding some basic and comfy dresses for the hot summer we're in for. My aunt travelled to Athens recently and she found this beautiful, chic yet super casual Gap dress. I adore the soft cotton it's made of, Gap is all about excellent fabrics. She always surprises me with the most incredible gifts, I guess I've been really lucky lately!
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♪ Iggy Azalea - Impossible is nothing ♪

The last two weeks have been the busiest of this year so far! Two important exams, lots of trips, graduation, being valeditorian of my year and actually having to prepare a speech for the occasion, the prom and even a wedding in my family. Imagine how hard it was for me to find time to fit into my schedule the shoot for the dress I designed in collaboration with Fame&Partners! Every single day I would wake up and see the gourgeous powder peach gown hanging near my desk and I would say: "This is the day! I have to show my readers how it looks!", but then something terrible would happen like four days of straight rain or an unexpected departure.

We tried to capture all the little details you can't see on the site, like how the intricate lace has a 3D effect, with that extra layer of florals. Also, you can notice how the dress isn't actually see-through on the sides. When I started creating this dress I knew that I wanted an open back dress, but I was concerned about the bra situation. As always, the Fame&Partners team was amazing and ensured me they would do a special support thing in the front- similar to a corset. It turned out great, you can dance your heart out on your big night and not have to worry about anything falling out of place!

Now, a little bit about how I styled it: I chose some nude open-toe sandals because the summer vibes got to me, but you can easily match it with some elegant nude shoes (or something baby blue- like those Gianvito Rossi pumps that stole our hearts this season). My watch is a golden rose shade, but pure golden would work as well! As for the earrings, I have to admit I'm still on the quest for a statement pair! Any affordable suggestions anyone? So far I've only found Chanel earcuffs or J. Crew chandelier earrings online (a girl can dream). For the hair, I went for an easy peasy sock bun- why did no one tell me it only takes two minutes to make and yet it looks so fabulous?

I really look forward to hearing what you think about the concept of the dress and the collaboration, my dear readers! Brace yourselves for plenty of photos:
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MARYMANAILAXFAMEPARTNERS
♪ Lorde - Love Club ♪

How should I start this post? I must have erased ten senteces by now, this always happens to me when I'm euphoric! So, I'm just going to write it down: IT'S FINALLY HERE! My collaboration with the incredible brand Fame&Partners! When I started this blog, I had no idea I would ever get to design something on my own thanks to it. I still pinch myself everyday when I talk to the talented team behind the Fame&Partners brand. 

It all started back in December, a couple weeks before I left for Paris. I received a mail that sounded too good to be true: how I would like to design a prom dress? As I'm in my last year of highschool I was like: "I very much need a prom dress!" but I couldn't quite process the fact girls all over the world could choose this dress as their prom number as well. It has been by far the most exciting creative endeavour I've ever been involved in. It took a lot of dedication from both parts, sacrifices to meet via Skype because of the different timezones and even accepting to change the final colour of the dress you're looking at. How so?

My primary inspiration was a photo you can see below in the Polyvore collage, featuring the back of a beautiful salmon colored dress. That moment, I knew my dress would have a similar cut in the back and I was opting between peach and lavander for the color of the dress. I decided for lavander in the end, but the tricky lace changed everything a couple months ago. I say "tricky" because both myself and the Fame&Partners team thought the lace was essential for the dress, yet the right fabric was nowhere to be found. In March, I received a photo of the most delicate lace from the design team and I told myself: this is THE lace we need! The only thing about the fabric was the fact that it only came in peach, so we decided the dress had to be salmon/peach again. I am honestly really happy about how it all turned out, this is perhaps the Universe's way of telling me that the dress was meant to be in this shade and I cannot wait to receive mine (it's on its way) and try it on!

You can find the dress for sale here or in their Ebay store. I made this Polyvore collage to show you a way to style it ( I intend to make a couple more suggestions in the future). I believe you should wear this dress with nude pumps or sandals (although, let's face it : those Givenchy rose gold sandals are probably the ultimate match made in heaven, but we can't all be incredibly rich) and with statement earrings (perhaps an earcuff? ). No necklace should appear, in my opinion, because the details of the dress in the neck area shouldn't be hidden.  As for the clutch? You can either match it with your shoes, go for a bold tone like bordeaux or intense purple or choose the ultimate accessory: a book clutch.

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♪ Lorde- Buzzcut Season ♪

I hope everyone enjoyed Easter and the brief holiday! For me, this year it was emotional because there are only a few months left of my last year of highschool, so half of it I had to prepare for the final exams, and the other half I spent with my family, eating the best sweets brought from London, going to bowling, reading the American Vogue "Kimye issue" (yes, I love them as a couple and how Kim's style is completely different from her old days) and the British Vogue issue, which features a great editorial styled by Kate Moss.

I am so happy my cousins came back in time from their Liverpool-London trip to celebrate Easter, because I can't imagine this amazing holiday without them. As always, they brought me incredible souvenirs, my favourite one being this "C'est la vie" Next jersey. I'm a huge fan of this sweatshirt trend, but I couldn't find one to sum up all my needs: a thick fabric, a cool print, a color which would flatter me. Well, my aunt did! And I was over the moon, especially because the A is the Tour Eiffel (and I'm sure you can remember how much I adore it). Something from London which also reminds me of Paris? The perfect combination!
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In these past few fashion seasons, I developed a sort of love-hate relationship with my favourite brand, Zara. The collections are exquisite, but they don't flatter my type of body, plus the prices have gone up, which makes it nearly impossible for a teenager on a budget like me to shop there. Therefore, every time I enter a Zara store I promise I won't buy anything, but somehow this winter I couldn't help myself from buying an overpriced pair of black boots (that I'm wearing here) and a pink&bordeaux statement necklace.

I can truly say that I wouldn't be able to imagine my closet without these two items. I still wear the boots on a daily basis (because spring is refusing to come) and the necklace is probably the most complimented piece of jewellery I have ever worn.  I bought the necklace because you know I have this obsession for nude shades and I didn't have anything to match with my numerous nude sweaters and tops. I really love its craftmanship and the various type of beads that somehow go so well together. Plus, it can take a simple and casual look, like I am wearing in the photos, at a whole different level! I don't know if I'll ever buy clothes as I used to from Zara, but I will enter their store always to check for the statement necklaces. I just think they're an incredible investment for your closet!

How do you feel about this statement necklace fashion that has been trending for over two years? Do you think it's becoming an essential, like owning a little black dress?

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It's no secret that I don't know what I would do without my Iphone and Ipad. I try to limit the amount of time I use them though, now that I'm in my senior year.. That's why whenever I find a cool application I love to blog about it, because I noticed most of my readers are also tech savy (thank you for following me on Instagram & Facebook!).

A couple of days ago I discovered Poptalk and I just had to share it with you! Poptalk is an instant messaging app. So far so good, but I bet you're thinking "There are hundreds of them, why should I start using a new one?". If you are like me, then you will find it ideal because it literally shows your emotions. How many times did you find something funny and replied with "haha" and then you found out that the other person thought it was sarcasm? Or when you were anger with somebody, yet your answers didn't give anything away? I like the fact that by using Poptalk you can wear your heart on the sleeve! You must have noticed that I tend to overuse the "!!!" sign in my writing- my favourite author F. Scott Fitzgerald would strongly disagree- but I do it because I want to express my excitement somehow.  To put it in Poptalk emoticons , when I'm blogging about it I feel like :(dance) . 

There is one more aspect that made me start convincing my friends to start using it as well: it's an app worthy of a fashionista! Your avatar can have any hairstyle, you can buy clothes, even statement necklaces (they won my heart with this!) and you can choose a background.  You'll see in the next photos that my avatar has some sleek nude shoes, I would love to own them in real life! And speaking about nude shades, I love my new sweater from H&M, the one that I'm wearing in the pictures. It's so comfortable and easy to wear with both jeans and skirts, and perfect for this weather as well.
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Photo Credit: Cristian Alexandrescu Photography

Although I had one major exam this week and I still have another coming up on Tuesday, I decided to take a break from the exhausting life as a highschool student in her final year. Therefore, I'm in my favourite city in the world (sorry Paris, I love you, but I wouldn't be able to live as a Parisian!): IaÈ™i. There is a certain serenity and peace here. Whenever I feel lost, sad or have a writer's block, I feel the urge to visit this beautiful city. The truly exciting part is that if I get admitted into the university I want, I will live here. 

Most of the times, I dream and make plans about moving. But I just came across these beautiful pictures Cristi took of me a couple of weeks ago in my little city and I'm thinking: will I ever be able to do this? I know this is the most natural thing that comes with growing up: moving. But for me this change also means staying away from most of my friends, because they will attend universities in other cities (and even countries!). I'm conflicted: on one hand, as I'm looking through the window right now in Iasi I'm thinking: "Yes! I want to live my whole life here!" , and on the other hand, as I'm looking at these photos I wonder how will I be able to keep in touch with some people who are really important in my life (especially mom & dad, I can't imagine waking up and not finding them in the house). I guess in the end I have to accept these major changes and hope that I will make new friends in this beautiful city while still reconnecting with my highschool mates.

Oh well, I still have three full months left until that turning point, so let's talk about fashion ( cause this is what the blog's about, right?). I may haven't had time to post outfit photos this winter, but I will tell you what I wore mostly: SWEATER DRESSES. So comfy while still tight, they always keep you warm, they go great with boots: what not to love? My favourite one is from Zara ( you may have seen it on my Instagram) and as spring arrived I was sad I couldn't wear it anymore. My mom surprised me and got me another sweater dress , the one I am wearing in this post, only the fabric is lighter and it has these cool epaulettes. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to shoot it properly because of the texture of the fabric: you know when people wear small stripes on TV? That's how awful my dress looked in photos taken from distance. Therefore, I leave you with a few portraits so you can at least see the details:
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Here comes the bride

One of the things I love about blogging is the fact that after I post something me and my friends create a whole chat offline about it. Therefore, after my recent post about bridesmaid dresses, we started talking about how much should this kind of dress cost, as you're paying for it. We came to the conclusion it's worth to opt for cheap bridesmaids dresses, especially since there's a big selection on the Internet. One thing led to another and we ended up talking about how much should the bride spend on her dress. 

Being a fan of "Say yes to the dress" show back when I was younger, I noticed how brides who had a 2000$ budget could barely find their dream dress, so I got the idea that you should have some money put aside for your big day. One of my best friends think you should have even the double, because it's an unique day and you want to cherish its memory forever. Others think you can use the money in a better way and spend it on your honeymoon, so both you and your soulmate can benefit (or buy some Louboutin shoes you can wear also after the wedding, the options are endless).

In the end, we all agreed there should be a cutback on the wedding dress budget, but how big? I started searching out of curiosity online and I found some incredibly cheap wedding dresses  at DressDressy that I included in the sets in this post: I just can't believe they're under 300$ (hello, you can't even buy a designer bag at this price!). Where have I been living in this past few years, thinking that you should have at least 3K put aside for your dream wedding dress? That's the great thing about internet, you never know what marvel you may come across!

How do you feel about wedding dresses: would you recycle your mom's dress, buy one on sale or go completely over the top and choose an expensive designer one?
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Photo Credit: Cristian Alexandrescu Photography

I can't believe I still haven't shared with you all the photos I took in Paris back in December! This is a very emotional post for me, because The Eiffel Tower is proof there still are things which can surprise you in an overhelming way.

We've seen it from far away many times while we stayed in Paris, and in our final night we wanted to go visit the entire Rive Gauche , including Le Cartier Latin, Saint-Germain-des-Prés etc. and end our tour at the base of the Eiffel Tower. Due to the fact that from our hotel there was no good connection to the left bank by metro and we walked in circles for more than an hour looking for the bus station., we weren't able to complete our plan. We got all upset and disappointed that our last night was wasted in such a terrible way. Thank God I'm one of those people who use their anger to get out of a critical situation. I remembered how easy was to get from the Champs Elysees to Place du Trocadero by subway. Therefore, I even persuaded  Cristi to stop for half an hour to walk on the Champs Elysees again ( just to soak it all in- the pretty Louis Vuitton windows, the fancy bistros) and then we went to see the Eiffel Tower.

 We had low expectations because we were tired, we heard that it was an overrated sight , plus we were told we should see the tower from its base. There were also all sorts of weird people, as it was Sunday, very late at night. And then WE SAW IT! Imense, imposing, a true work of art! I suddenly felt blessed that we had this change of plans, because the lights were incredible and I felt like the tiny tower we've seen from far in the last days had nothing in common with the architectural marvel I had in front of my eyes. The photos don't do it justice, trust me, it's even more imposing seen from the Trocadero! You have to visit it yourself (at night) to understand my feelings of excitement and love.

I can't understand why Parisians hated La Tour Eiffel so much at first- Guy de Maupassant went as far as eating every meal in the tower because it was the only place he would not see the 'hideous' creation on the window in Paris. Maybe it was the idea of change that scared them. When I was little, I used to cry every time we got new furniture or a new car, although it was an obvious upgrade. I would make a scene and call it horrible and then, after some time, I would have become so attached to it my parents would be completely shocked.

It was love at first sight and that's when I decided that one day I will visit Paris again and I will take my time to study the tower from all the recommended angles and lights (plus, I still haven't seen Le Cartier Latin, Disneyland and Versailles). I don't think you can ever say you've seen everything worth to be visited in Paris, it's such a magical city, one where I felt genuinely happy and blessed!
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Bridemaids Dress

♪ Gotye- Heart's a mess ♪

I've blogged about weddings and the perfect dress to wear on your special day many times before. But what I've forgot to question is bridesmaid duty! It crossed my mind recently, since I'm finishing highschool and all of my best friends will attend university in different cities.Will we be able to keep in touch? Will we still feel the same connection, that strong that when the time comes we would ask each other to be a bridesmaid? Obviously, this issue has been illustrated with humour in a douzen of famous comedies, like Bridesmaids, Bachelorette or my favourite, 27 dresses (this made me particularly emotional).

I get all nervous only when I think about how me and my friends are going to look in 10 years, let alone the idea of one of us getting married. Still, there is still one bright aspect about it: the outfit. Most bridesmaids dread it, then there is also the issue of color: should the maid of honour pull a Pippa Middleton and wear white at the ceremony? What about the lenght? While searching online, I have found an amazing selection of  2014 bridesmaid dresses at MillyBridalShop. They have all sorts of designs, which come in all sorts of colours. My favourites are the one shown in the first set, which I would describe 'urban ballerina' style and the one with a single shoulder strap- so chic and elegant!

Now- how to accessorize a bridesmaids outfit?

Light Accents- You can see it in the first set: light tones, nude shoes, a pink nail polish perhaps. It will complement your look while keeping it low profile.
Bold Colors- Whether we're talking about statement shoes of colorful clutches, it's nice to wear a chic accent that will make your look light and fun! See my take on this alternative in the second set.
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Good Vibes Only

Okay, so I have been on a social hiatus for the last couple of months! I made this decision based on the fact that I have the most important exam of my life in July, so I now it's the time for me to study more than ever. I have missed blogging dearly and free time in general: I only allowed myself to watch my favourite TV shows (gotta keep my sanity in order somehow) and indulged in some occasional reading.

It's the first fashion season that I did not show interest to the trend report...until last night. I came home late after a very sweet evening out with my friends ( we had three major exams this week so we allowed ourselves a celebration) and I was sleepless. I saw an email in my inbox from the Net-a-Porter newsletter and I thought I should check the new collections they have online. I INSTANTLY FELL IN LOVE! With everything: I was craving baby blue high heels (both Gianvito Rossi and Fendi offer a great selection),  a Balmain light denim skirt (it was a huge surprise for me, as Balmain is knows for darker tones) and pretty much everything else, when it hit me: "I have to share my discoveries with someone, this fashion season is insanely genius!" . And who else is a better choice than you, dear reader?

So, here we go, the highlights of the season I have noticed in a brief visit on Net-a-porter:
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MARY MANAILA

I'm a fashion addict& blogger from Romania. Send questions, love or just a simple e-mail at:
marymeetsfashion@gmail.com


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About me

All the pictures with my outfits are taken by me, with my camera and they are strictly copyrighted!


Possible runway and other collection photos are taken from style.com, or TUMBLR, and I usually post the source.

My inspirational posts contains photos from TUMBLR , and I credit the blog that I found them on. However, if you own any of them, please contact me so I can remove it/credit properly.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
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