Nail Polish for Guys: The New It Trend for The Modern Male?

I know I'm a bit late with the whole nail polish for guys trend, but being a busy college student it's sometimes hard to keep up. In the past few weeks, there have been many online posts covering the topic of nail polish for guys. Racked, Allure and Fashionista have all covered this topic but since most of these reviews were written by women I figured I would give my own take on it since I'm actually a guy therefore I'm the target these companies are trying to reach. I for one am really really excited about this new trend. I have always been fascinated with nail polish. I legit die!!! for the Chanel nail polishes and am always slightly jealous that girls can rock them and guys can't. I'm glad that guys (well some) are starting to become more adventurous and daring. Guys have been getting manicures for quite some time so it seems logical that nail polish would be the next step. I for one have always wanted to rock nail polish but its hard to pull of manly when your nails are bright pink or neon yellow so I'm glad companies are designing nail polishes specifically for men. After reading the posts, I went and did some research on the two brands mentioned, Alpha Nail and EvolutionMan.

Alpha Nail is a men's only nail polish brand with the tagline "Designed for Men. Worn by Warriors." What's really interesting about this brand is its applicator, which looks more like a marker than a typical nail polish thereby making it more practical and easier to apply anywhere. I have yet to try out the product but it reminded me of my high school days when I would get bored and start doodling on my nails with sharpie (yes I was that kid). This brand also has their own nail polish remover so guys won't have to endure the shame of going out to purchase the pink acetone nail polish remover. Their colors vary from typical black to pirate gold (think burnt mustardy color, not something I would ever wear) and benjamins (a pale jade green color, really quite interesting). Their ad explaining their product is quite odd and the entire time I kept thinking really? your going to put on that bright/borderline flaming color instead of just a basic black and couldn't they find a better looking girl to put in their video.

The second brand is EvolutionMan; this is a men's cosmetics brand that carries everything from nail polish to concealer, something I must definitely try. This brand is much more traditional both in the shape of their product (typical nail polish bottle) and color choices but I'm dying to try their alter ego nail paint (kind of like a dark purple metallic). One nifty thing about this brand is that their products are all eco-friendly (not that I really care but in case you do you"ll be glad to know their tubing is made from post-consumer recycled materials) and their products are never tested on animals.

Both brands sound really great and I'm looking forward to ordering this stuff as my nails are feeling quite naked.

Alter Ego Nail Polish

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Carine Roitfeld Book Signing at Bookmarc!

Last night I was lucky (and smart) enough to head to Bookmarc in the West Village for the Carine Roitfeld book signing. If you know anything about fashion you know that Carine is an icon/god in fashion. I was like borderline hyperventilating as I approached her to get my copy of her book Irreverent signed but she was so sweet and beyond nice. And her shoes, which just so happened to be next season Sergio Rossi, were beyond amazing. The book itself is kind of pricey at $100 (if you order it on amazon its only $63) but I was definitely willing to splurge on a personalized copy considering a well thought out investment. I haven't had the chance to look through the book yet being a très busy college student but one of my favorite images so far is this picture of Crystal Renn and the description is "Crystal with an untrimmed pussy". My only regret of the night was showing up early and missing Marc Jacobs who showed up later in the evening.

Carine and Myself

The Aforementioned Amazing Shoes

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Marc Jacobs and Carine

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Crystal with an untrimmed pussy

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The Scene at Bookmarc

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Happy Birthday Anna!!

I can't believe I almost forgot about Anna's birthday. What kind of unofficial protege would I be if I forgot my own role model's/mentor's/hero's birthday, not a very good one. If you've seen any of my other posts you know I'm obsessed with Anna, like legit borderline stalkerish obsessed (but I mean that in the best way possible). Today the lovely Vogue editrix/queen of the fashion kingdom turns 62 but still looks as fabulous as ever. Always the workaholic, she's in Japan gracing them with her presence.

Just throwing this out there, but I think her cake should definitely look something like this:

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Here are some cute blog posts about the editrix birthday:

- http://fashionista.com/2011/11/in-honor-of-her-birthday-here-are-62-pictures-of-anna-wintour-in-sunglasses/

- http://www.styleite.com/media/anna-wintour-birthday/

I'll leave you with this image from her WSJ Magazine Cover.

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You Are Not The 99%

I normally don't post anything non-fashion related cause I don't actually care about things that aren't fashion related (jk but not really) but this whole occupy wall street stuff is just so pointless. Before I go on a rant about the evils of liberalness I would like to say that I may not agree with the methods used by the occupy wall street protestors but I do support their overall message/enthusiasm for change. My real issue is not with the real protestors who are actually part of the 99% but the hipsters who are parading around downtown speaking out against capitalism and the evils of wall street meanwhile they are twittering and updating their facebook statuses on their blackberries and iPhones.

Fact: If you go to a school whose yearly tuition sans room and board is only a few thousand less than the median household income, you are not part of the 99%.

Just cause you live in brooklyn does not give you the right to compare yourself to the hundreds of people who struggle everyday to feed their children or put a roof over their heads.

I'm Back Bitches!

We'll I didn't actually go anywhere, I've just been to lazy to actually post anything but that's all going to change. Just started a new school year and so pumped!!! (forgive my inner bro) But seriously I have so many awesome ideas for this blog and I really want to make it amazing.

Boys Who Play With Dolls

If you read my blog you know I'm obsessed with Anna Wintour but I do know that there are other amazing Annas out there, specifically Anna Dello Russo (aka ADR or as I like to call her "the other Anna"). Well ADR has gone where no fashion editor has gone (at least not yet I think). She has her own barbie! It's the most stylish and fashionable Barbie I've ever seen. Definitely one doll I'd love to get my hands on.

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Just In Time For Easter!

These are the most fabulous eggs you'll ever find. So amazing! They may not all be edible but they're all pretty to look it and isn't that the most important anyway? My favorites are the ones from Rag & Bone, Jason Wu and Eddie Borgo. Have a fabulous and fashionable Easter!

All images courtesy of vogue.com

Anyone out there?

To anyone who reads or happens to come across my blog:

Thanks so much for taking a look! I haven't been blogging for much time and I would love any feedback, positive or negative. Love it or hate it I would appreciate any input whatsoever. My email is cruzgranados@gmail.com thanks so much!

- Fashion Cruzader

Mini Anna

I'm in love with this print of Anna as a cyclops with her signature bob by artist Craig Redman. It's the most adorable thing I have ever seen. I can't believe I just came across it. I'm like so in love, it's bananas! The series also has other fashion icons such as Carine Roitfeld and Karl Lagerfeld.

Image from Giovanna Battaglia's twitter

Happy Birthday Grace!

Vogue creative director, Grace Coddington, turned 70 yesterday and celebrated it with fashion's elite at Indochine. I knew of Grace before "The September Issue" but truly fell in love with her after watching the film. She's an amazing stylist and has decades of experience. She is truly gifted when it comes to putting clothes together and creating a fantasy. Her spreads in Vogue are one of the reason why I feel in love with fashion especially Vogue. She really is an inspiration for me and I hope I can one day have a fraction of the talent Grace has.

Love Marc's kilt. I'm obsessed with him and his kilts!

Anna's smiling!

All images courtesy of Vogue.com

Anna Wears Jeans!

I've never seen an image of Anna in jeans so to me this was quite the shock. I always picture her in Chanel dresses and skirts but it's nice to know she's a normal person (if you count the most powerful woman in the entire fashion industry as a "normal" person) who wears jeans.

Image via nymag.com

Anna's Winter Wonderland

Ok this post is a little late considering how warm it's getting but I love anything related to Anna so I'm also loving this picture of her. The Vogue editrix looks stunning. The snow, the hair, the fur, loving it all!!! Just beautiful! J'adore!

Images via Now Manifest

Fiery Grace

In addition to my obsession with Anna Wintour, I have a love for anything Vogue so when I came across these images of creative director, Grace Coddington, I went bananas. I mean they're just crazy (the good kind). Her hair is just sick and I mean like who takes pictures of the back of someone's head but these images are just amazing. Much love to Bryan Boy!

Images via Bryan Boy

My Take on Galliano

I was completely speechless when I read that Galliano was fired from Dior, I mean the man is brilliant. His designs are breathtaking and each gown is a work of art. His remarks towards those people were highly inappropriate but did not warrant his firing. I mean he certainly should have been reprimanded because he is a public figure and represents the Dior brand but his firing seems much to extreme. A man should be able to have his own opinions, if he hates Jews then let him hate Jews, of course he should keep those views to himself. I truly do believe that the Dior brand will suffer because Galliano brought a sense of romance and fantasy that not many other designers can achieve. I really hope he doesn't get fired from his own brand cause I'm obsessed with his menswear. If I had the money I would wear Galliano every day!

Below are two looks from Dior's Fall 2010 Couture collection courtesy of nymag.com

The Anna Files

Now that I'm blogging again I thought it was time for something new to keep up with my re-found passion for fashion, so that's why tonight I'm introducing "The Anna Files". The title is tentative and I would love to hear input and recommendations on it. For those of you who don't know, I'm obsessed with Anna Wintour, truly one hundred percent obsessed. I refer to myself as her unofficial protege in the hopes that one day I'll finally be worthy enough of the Vogue editrix, so that she can take me under her Chanel clad wing. So I'm dedicating this section of my blog to my life role model Anna Wintour. This is where I'll post all things related to the amazing editor-in-chief of Vogue.

I love this picture of her from The Sartorialist's blog! I think it truly captures the essence of Anna which is stylish, powerful and chic. It's truly breathtaking for an Anna lover such as myself.

Another favorite image of mine is this one from NY Magazine. It's Anna in her natural setting just stunning. She's so poised and stunning I just j'adore it!

I'm Back

Apologies my dear loves, I know I've been rather delinquent with my poor blog. I haven't been giving it the attention it deserves but I promise that from now I am going to be much more active and post entries that are much more frequent and less sporadic. I've strayed from the fashion path but have finally found my way again.