Gen Art hosts its ShopSF event tonight at the SF Design Center. The night will include cocktails, food, fashion show and of course, an abundant amount of opportunity to spend money on tons of clothes from local Bay Area designers.

I, unfortunately will not be able to attend because I have a date with the prancing hopefuls of “So You Think You Can Dance.” Plus, if I go, I will spend money - and spending money requires you to actually have money to spend.

Here’s the 4-1-1 on the event:

Thursday, May 31st
6:00 - 10:00pm

The Galleria | San Francisco Design Center
101 Henry Adams St
San Francisco, CA

Cost is $10. Click here for complete details!

The next stop on my San Diego romp was in the quaint trendy neighborhood of Hillcrest…

This is where the hardcore shopping started to blossom. Filled with boutiques and cafes, the neighborhood had this warm sheen as the beautiful weather made it easy to navigate through tree-lined streets.

Along with my friends Jaimee and Arnold (our resident tour guide), we warmed up our exploratory muscles by popping in and out of stores casually - and for some odd reason, our shopping interest started to ignite when we spent an unnecessary hour in American Apparel. I love this store, but they are in great abundance in the Bay Area, so there wasn’t a need to browse the color-coded racks of basics for 60 minutes.

Nonetheless, it was our wallet warm-up and we were on our way to explore the local shops - but first we stopped for a quick bite at a local Thai restaurant with a very ornate ceiling:

After being recharged with Thai iced teas and very spicy cuisine, we popped into Fresh:

The shop only had womenswear, so I really didn’t have anything to look for. The clothing was affordable for being a boutique and it was nicely organized by color. The green exterior matched the personality of the store which had some funky jewelry of skulls and clunky plastics. It made me feel like I was in Forever 21 but it was much, much, much more chic. I absolutely adored the Americana-chic looks on display in the window. You can’t see them in the pic, but they were very fun!

Right across the street from Fresh was Flashbacks, a vintage store stocked with leisure suits, polyesther disco shirts and kitschy jewelry. At first, I was blinded by the selection of costumey stuff they had, but then I started looking through the actual clothes. I found a pair of Roberto Cavalli slacks for $38! They weren’t exactly my style (they were too dirtied and deconstructed for me), so I decided to pass. Knowing my affinity for scarves and pocket squares, Jaimee found a blue Burberry scarf for $16 which opened a gateway for me to sort through their selection - I walked out with two new pocket squares to add to my ever-growing collection. One was black with white polka dots, the other an orange gingham - I passed on the Burberry because it was too large for my taste.

Mint was the final stop in Hillcrest. The sneaker head boutique was the first of many that we visited in our San Diego journey. The store had a fine selection of Gola, Converse, Puma and many others plastering the walls of the “mint” colored space.

I had no idea who Beth Ditto (she’s the gal in the above picture with her band “The Gossip”) was until I ran across this interesting article on AZCentral.com:

Beth Ditto says gay men ruin fashion industry
BANG Showbiz

The Gossip singer Beth Ditto says gay men in the fashion industry are to blame for the worrying size zero trend.

Plus-sized Beth, who has posed naked for this month’s cover of NME magazine, slammed homosexual designers for putting unrealistic pressure on women to be skinny.

Beth told the music publication, “If there’s anyone to blame for size zero, it’s not women. Blame gay men who work in the fashion industry and want these women as dolls.

“Men don’t know what it feels like to be a woman and be expected to look a particular way. The Beckhams are part of the machine, Paris Hilton is part of the machine.

“There’s that thing Paris Hilton said about Lindsay Lohan, ‘You’re poor, ugly and fat.’ It’s always women who are victims.”

The openly lesbian singer - who is 5-feet tall and weighs around 15 stones (210 pounds) - insists her supermodel pal Kate Moss understands what it’s like for women to be persecuted for being large, and is not to blame for the alarming skinny trend.

She said, “I spent one night talking to Kate Moss and she said the most amazing things about bodies. I didn’t think I was going to like her, but she said, ‘Do you know what I hate, Beth? When people tell my big girlfriends, ‘You have a beautiful face.’ That’s a really radical concept.”

The ‘Standing in the Way of Control’ singer was named the coolest person in rock by NME last year, and has posed in her underwear for Vogue magazine.

I am sure Ditto is a nice lady, but to blame gay designers for anorexic-looking models? That’s kind of a stretch. It’s just like that time those fools tried to sue McDonald’s for making them fat.

Just as I thought the whole skinny model ordeal was over, this news pops up. I mean c’mon on now - how much more do we have to hear about this malarkey? When it comes down to it, it’s all about a disoriented view on how these girls view their bodies (Ditto has no problem with that - she posed in the buff for NME Magazine click here if you want to see it). No one holds a gun to their head and tells them to not eat. Sure, the pressures are out there, but it’s up to the models to react on that.

Not everyone has the self-confidence that you have Ditto, so just give them a break a let them figure out things on their own - and I don’t think there is a need to blame anyone. Let’s just focus on the more important issues in life like global warming, healthcare and why the CW decided to have a second season of “The Search for the Next Pussycat Doll.”

As for the comment about Lindsay, Paris and all those other over-publicized people - I am just so over that. People can say that Paris has grown male genitals and Lindsay is pregnant with octuplets and I still wouldn’t care.

I know I have been gone for a while and I know everyone is DYING to know about my little vacate to San Diego! It was full of fun, food, friends and of course, SHOPPING.

Upon my visit to our exotic sunny neighbors to the south, I noticed a much more laid back beachy vibe - which was expected. The style was L.A. with a lot less plastic pretension.

I got to see some cool shops and sites in the various little neighborhoods - starting off with Ocean Beach:

When I first set foot in Ocean Beach I felt as though I was in SF’s Haight, but it was by the beach and there wasn’t that curious smell of incense and cannibus. The palm trees were swaying in the air, the people were laid back and had a friendly surfer dude vibe. I didn’t get to pop into many of the stores (most of them were closed because it was Sunday), but having the ocean breeze fill the air was pure enjoyment.

People were dressed in breezy summer-ready garb: lightweight hoodies, windbreakers, shorts, bikinis, trunks - it was an inevitable puupuu platter of everything from tourists donned with fanny packs to locals in hardcore beach-ready biker wear.

I also caught my first glimpse of San Diego’s affinity for urban mural wall art:

I liked the b-boy demeanor of the art and it fit in nicely with the surroundings.

This was only the beginning of my San Diego adventures - I’ll definitely write more later. I know this is a fashion blog, but what’s the use of going on a vacation without sharing annoying sightseeing pictures? Plus, I will get to some really good shopping stories in a bit…and it will get exciting…at least I think so.

Before I go off on a mini-vacate to San Diego, I decided to talk about a trend that has been looming in the fashion atmosphere for a while: popped collars.

When hip-hop maven and producer extraordinaire, Pharell first swam in the river of mainstream pop, I often saw him with a Lacoste top (or something similar to) with the collar popped (i.e. folded up). Soonafter, everyone started doing this.

However, being the non-conformist I am, I refused to pop the collar on my vintage ’80s shirt - but I did fold the collars up on my trench coat and peacoat for some winter flair. I didn’t necessarily have a problem with this until it started to become a widespread epidemic and everyone was covering their neck with sherbert colored collars.

I haven’t seen this action for a while until today while I was getting my ritual Friday morning latte and apple fritter from Starbucks. A twentysomething gentleman was hanging out in the parking lot with spiky gellatinous hair, dirty denim, flip-flops and a baby blue American Eagle polo with his collar at full attention. There was an air of Don Johnson a la Miami Vice around him which reintroduced me to the world of my popped collar fascination.

Do guys do this because it looks “cool?” Or is it a hollow trend that has fizzled out in metropolitan areas but is still alive and well in suburbia? Does it protect your neck from hazardous toxins blowing through the air? Or is it a way to hide embarrassing hickeys from the world?

I don’t really understand this popped collar ordeal nor do I understand my obsession with it. Maybe it is slight detail that makes you look cool. If that is the case, then I guess I’m not.

I love Amy Winehouse’s music. I love her overall “bad-girl-I-don’t-give-a-f*ck” attitude and her soul-driven character delivered through her voice. All of this translates to a very one-of-a-kind look that only Winehouse can pull off.

I love her waify figure and her Cleopatra eyes - as for her beehive ‘do, I am still kind of on the fence with it. Some days she rocks it, other days, I am just “eh” about it. What do you think?

Sans Beehive?

Or do you prefer her with the toppling hairdo?

And is it me or are there some similarities between her and “OH….MY….GOD” Janice from Friends (mainly in the second picture above)?

You tell me…

Wearing the same outfit two days in a row isn’t necessarily ideal for me…unless you are going to a different place each day where there are two totally different groups of people - actually, that’s kind of unhygienic.

Anyways…I just realized that I wore the same brand two days in a row. But don’t get the wrong idea - I am not a big label whore. Of course, having a high-end piece of clothing is fabulous (once in a while), but being obsessive over a $400 tank top that has the letters D & G is stupid.

Yesterday, I wore a red Original Penguin polo-type shirt. Without thinking, I wore a long sleeve tan and blue striped button down from the same brand.

I love the Original Penguin brand. It has this All-American charm to it that is sophisticated, has a dash of European appeal and still maintains an air of urban-osity. It’s the kind of clothing you would see on a professional gentleman who has one of those dens with forest green walls, leather bound chairs, faux mallards, shelves of antique books and a bar stocked with carafes of finely aged Brandy and Cognac - but all of this is set to a soundtrack by the Sex Pistols. All in all, he’s a gentleman with a hidden devious edge.

So the point I am trying to make is…there actually isnt one. I just wanted to write a random self-indulgent blog post about what I was wearing today. Plus, I wanted to say that I got the polo shirt for $20 at a Barney’s Outlet store in Dallas and the other one from Jeremys for $8.

There’s just something about that little penguin that appeals to me…

This picture is so out of focus.

Now that San Francisco’s time-honored rambunctious romp called Bay to Breakers is done, many people have some sneakers that they probably won’t use anymore. The sneakers may be permanently infused with sweat and alcohol - or they might’ve been solely purchased with the intent of immediate disposal by a person who makes Bay to Breakers their yearly ritual of excercise.

Whether or not you participated in this frenzied race around the city, it is said that the average lifespan for a pair of sneakers is 350 to 550 miles (depending on the quality and style of the sneaker). For some this mileage count means nothing, but for avid runners, it’s a good rule to live by.

Ok…so the point I am trying to make is that Niketown in San Francisco is collecting old sneaks of any kind to construct playing surfaces such as a Hunter’s Point basketball court and the first tee at Harding Park golf course - how “green” of them.

This whole ordeal is in honor of “Reuse a shoe month” - I didn’t even know such a thing existed. Nonetheless, it is a very admirable thing the people at Nike are doing - and it’s not only in SF. They are also collecting kicks in in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York. Now that’s a lot of sweaty shoes. Even though I cringe to think of the stench, the resulting project would benefit many.

You can drop off your old sneakers to NIKETOWN San Francisco’s Union Square location at 278 Post Street (corner of Stockton) before May 30.

P.S. Here’s a quick tip: If you do run everyday, it is good to change your sneakers about every 4 to 5 months because all of the wear and tear of the heavy usage. You can keep track of this by writing the date you started using them on the inside of the shoe with a Sharpie. This can serve as a starting point for an expiration date. After that, it’s time for a new pair. With the old ones, feel free to donate them, use them as a planter or bronze them - I am sure there are thousands of things you can do with an old shoe.

I am not a woman so I can’t relate to the burden of high-heels. All I know is that they are fabulous and make everything from an evening gown to a pair of jeans unbelievably hot and sexy.

But then there is the issue of picking the perfect height of the heel - do you want a stilleto? a pump? a kitten heel? Well, thanks to a label called CAMiLEON, you can have all heels in all heights - all in one shoe:

Well, you can’t have a heel in ALL sizes but you can have an adjustable heel that can give you a one or three inch heel and everything in between (which is basically just two inches).

With it’s convenient concealed flip down stainless steel heel, you can make your gadgety shoe look a bit more…normal.

In 23 different styles, these shoes dig a $300 hole into your wallet and are available at Zappos.com.

Hmmm. This is a very curious shoe. It’s a great idea, but I honestly think it leans more towards the function side than fashion. In a way, it’s a bit kitschy and looks like something that would be sold in a late night informercial after Ron Popeil teaches us to “Set it and forget it!”

Yesterday, I had the chance to see a pre-screening of the latest Johnny Depp treat, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. Ever since the days of “21 Jump Street” I have been a Depp-a-holic. He is truly my idol. If I ever met him, I probably would get arrested for being an obsessive fan a la Kathy Bates in “Misery.”

Needless to say, I am a “Pirates” fan and I was uber excited to see thie 167-minute extravaganza of Depp’s swaggering flamboyance, fantastical ships, multimillion digital effects, the mist of accents from Orlando and Keira, the grotesque charm of Geoffery Rush’s Captain Barbosa and most of all, I was hoping to catch a glimpse of the much talked-about “Keith-Richards-as-Jack-Sparrow’s-dad” mumbo jumbo.

Just as I was getting into the movie (about halfway through), the FILM WENT OUT and my LIFE WAS RUINED! Ok, that’s a bit melodramatic, but it was a big bummer that I didn’t get to finish it. The people at the theatre apologized, but it didn’t solve my dangling urge to finish my pirate’s journey. They offered another screening today and Wednesday, but I just figured I’d wait for it in the theatre. Sucks to be me.

All that aside - I was noticing how ornate and intricate these pirate costumes are. Then I thought about cinema’s influence on fashion and vice versa.

(from left)Geoffrey Rush, Keira Knightley and Johnny Depp strut their stuff down the pirate runway in some fashionable garb.

As I was watching the film, I couldn’t help but remember the uber-costumey walking-the-plank designs by John Galliano in his Spring 2005 collection. Set to the backdrop of an elaborate shipwrecked stage, some of the grimey, grease-smeared tattered garments shadowed those of the gold-toothed, bumbling Captain Jack Sparrow:

Captain Galliano himself(pictured) always makes his presence known at his own shows.

Long before Galliano set sail and even before Depp got dreads, Vivienne Westwood was traveling to World’s End…really. Her 1981 collection of pirate-inspired garb was dubbed “World’s End.”

Viv’s swashbuckling collection

She gave her own twist on the theme of pirates the only way she knew how - with a dash of playful charm and a whole lot of punk. This just proves that Westwood, as always was WAY ahead of her time.

So this poses the question - “Will pirate-mania visit the runway again? Or will it just remain on the screen?” Who knows? My guess is that there will be some pirate nuances this summer. I know that I’ll be sporting an eye patch.