Crocolicious handbags by Adriana Castro

As we all know, purses and shoes are universal fetish items of many women as shopping for these is equally passionate experience for women of all sizes and ages, which makes this market fruitful and ever growing! 


Recently I find out about an amazing young handbag and accessory designer - Adriana Castro. Columbian native, living in US has not only a great talent in designing gorgeous, exotic skins accessories but also a great story behind creating her brand - Adriana Castro. 


Adriana is using various exotic skins for her designs such as crocodile, eel, lizard, ostrich, python, leather and water snake. Skins are also processed in different ways which makes them glazed, matte, metallic or stone washed.

Growing up at fathers crocodile farm in Columbia young Adriana got inspiration from the natural beauty and color palettes surrounding the Amazon for creating her  crocodile accessories designs. Smarty she first went to study business to be able to run a successful brand, after which she continued her accessory design education at Art Institute of Miami International University.


Adriana launched her first handbag collection in SS 2007. and instantly got recognized by prestigious media worldwide such as WWD, Vogue, People, In-Touch, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Style.com, Grazia etc.

Castro's handbags are loved and carried by celebrities and fashion influencers including Sarah Jessica Parker, Jennifer Lopez, Eva Longoria, Kim Kardashian, Heidi Klum and Audrina Patridge. Five Adriana Castro bags were also featured in the movie Sex and the City 2. and her exotic collection is available exclusively at specialty retailers worldwide including Henri Bendel in New York City, Saks Fifth Avenue in Dubai, Harvey Nichols in Hong Kong as well as select boutiques in Russia and Mexico.


Photos of my very favorite Castro pieces from her SS 2012. and FW 2012. collections are bellow. In terms of prices (cc $1000), as these are genuine exotic skins I can say that prices are high but match the items quality for sure. Adriana's handbags are made in trendy colors but they are not one season wonders by no means, each of these pieces can easily be worn for years as your closets signature item.

You can see more of Adriana Castro's purses by following her blog, Facebook, Twitter and website. Soon you will be able to read the short interview I did with Adriana, please post your question in the comment if you would like to ask her a question and I will include it in my interview.

Suitcase full of summer!

Being the last minute, at the speer of the moment kinda girl I am, July is here and I still don't have my vacation planned. I am trying to cater to so many people that I fail to take care od my own needs and wants.

I have added this to my TO DO "personal improvement list" right after the "find the man stronger than you" point. If I will try to complete this TO DO list in a numerical order, I shall never even think about the "taking care of my own needs first" point. Note to self - start from the bottom of the list.

Anyways, bellow you can see my list of  "Can't live without this summer" items. Enjoy!

1. Maxi dresses and a sheer cover up are an apsolute must have and great for a vacation dinner and going to beach. The blue sequin Georgete cover up, white belted Jane Norman maxi dress for the day and royal blue one shoulder also Jane Norman dress for the night are my top picks.

        

2. Grace ivory fedora hat is a must have for summer as well. Not only it protects your face from sun but it is also super stylish. White tank is great cover up for any bikini. I adore the Mellisa coral jelly flats which helps you stay fabulous in and out of the water. Jean shorts are must have and a staple for each fashionistas summer vacation suitcase.

3. In addition to fabuous summer clothes, you can really have fun with jewelry and wear a lot of it without it looking over the top. Bellow are some fabulous and spiritual Harajuku pieces I feel in love with and will totally get!

                             

    

4. Perfect bikini is indeed hard to find, because in it there is nothing you can really hide. I suggest to get one which is going to compliment your skin tone and body shape with its color and pattern and emphasize your bodies best attributes. 

Whenever I shop for bikinis I try to get two models that fit each other and which I can mix and match. One is usually more sporty and classic, while the other one is more elaborative with pattern and thinner straps like this Diane Von Furstenberg love knot one. I am also into sexy one piece swimsuits like this Reef Santiago one.

                              

                 

                     

            

5. One of my pet peeves are rubber flip flops. It is simply a sin to wear those simple rubber shoes (outside of the house) when you can wear one of these fabulous summer sandals posted bellow: Endless strappy sandals, Miu Miu gladiators, Oasis net gladiators and pink strappy low wedges.

               

6. I wear dresses year around but summer dresses are my favorite, right after coming from spending all day at the beach my friends and I are getting ready to go out. Five girls to one or two bathrooms can be a recipe for next world war so having couple of statement piece dresses to throw on real quick is vital! 

My favorites are: Kerry Pogson diagonal ruffle scoop neck dress, Jane Normal quilted peplum dress and Mirabella from Japan light and fluffy red summer strappy dress.

7. Here are the perfect summer heels to go with those dresses! I have choosen several super hot sandals :Versus suede platforms, Balmain calf velvet and silk sandals, Gianmarko Lorenzi fucsia/violet suade ones, the fabulous Balmain lether and olive canvas sandals and Marc Jacobs varnished leather and velvet black sandals.

    

        

8.You also need an appropriate purse for summer heat. It should be small, because you don't need much more than a lipgloss, parfume and a wallet in it.

Here are the cutest purses for this season! D&G woven tote is great for the beach, Straw studio wicker clutch you can wear day to night and for more of a glam look choose Stella McCartney's cream flap bag.

 

9. Do not forget to protect the skin you are in :) Personally, during the summer on top of the olive and almond oil organic sunscreen lotion, I mostly use light parfumed body milk. My favorites are Philosophy Coconut frosting and Dalmatika by Rosal olive scented body milk - these leave your skin with healthy shine (not to greasy as body oil would be) and they moisturize your skin and recover it from daily sun exposure.

10. The last but not the least! Don't forget to relax and enjoy this summer to the fullest! Try one of the extreme sports (I will do bungee jumping) , travel to the new destination for this years vacation and have a summer fling and you will have a happy memory  to keep your spirits up for the rest of the year, and it will make next summer come by quicker! :)

  

Let me know what your plans for summer are and what you can't live without during summer!

Xoxo,

   Kat

   "A life without love is like a year without summer."