We were a little short on Inspiration Boards this year first due to the demise of polyvore (I’m still crying)  and my search to find a replacement and then my epidemic lack of time (much sorries, loves…I have some new plans for next year to hopefully remedy that!), but there were a handful that still got your creative juices flowing!
1. Nikki – Camo Color Story…the runaway fave of the year, with five times the views of the runner up. Dang – y’all love you some camo! :) I loved the way Nikki combined brilliant color with the classic, tough print. Firing it up with red or giving it a dose of sweetener with still-everywhere blush seemed a rather amazing thought to me…and you agreed :)
2. Alicia – Gray & Blush …the first of our Sport Up series that accompanied the Olympics was your fave, as we brought Foxy’s casual take on style into the cool seasons. Contrasting cool shades with warm tones is a color story I always love. Here, blush acted as the yummy shot of warmth that fired up a chill look, accented with an outfit-making pair of earrings.
3. Charlotte – Transitional Florals…hot on the heels of Alicia’s look was one that rocked my world: Char’s paring of a floaty floral wrap dress toughened up with a fab pair of biker boots for a femme-grunge take on style that kept me living.
4. Brandi – Physically Fierce…the second look from the Sport Up series that earned your love, this rendition of Brandi’s sleek graphic skirt+sweatshirt combo was the perfect cataclysm of athleisure and sophistication. Oh so right for oh so many occasions, it just needed a cute pair of boots and a backpack to go from lunch dates to day classes to shopping excursions to movie nights. On-trend themes done in neutrals = style winning!
5. Cathy – Fancy Blouse, Chill Everything Else…the last of the Sport Up series to capture your fashionable hearts was this fun look from Cathy that elevated a relaxed outfit of leggings and sneakers with a formal blouse. Cathy’s version included a glitter-embellished bodysuit; we envisioned it with gardeny, on-trend florals  or crisp stripes. You envisioned it as one of your faves. Cheers to your good taste, loves!
And here’s to a fierce 2019! :)

Spring brought us a look at Katarina’s style for her return to Impact. This simple, sexy biker-chick look takes me back the accessible, straightforward attitude of her days as Katie Lea Burchill in WWE. The leather vest paired with black skinny denim and knee-high boots appears to be very much in Katarina’s comfort zone. I love how she threw in a sporty touch with her baseball cap; it’s a great way to update this look! We saw her push the envelope in a lot of fun ways as Winter, exploring gothic fashion. I’d love to see her use that same creativity as she evolves her street style.
Gail was looking as gorgeous as ever as she spent time with husband Robert Irvine. The magnificent plum hue makes this dress an immediate standout, and the cutaway at the bust only heightens the effect. I absolutely love this shade on Gail! Although she chose it for spring, it would be equally at home now, paired with other jewel tones – teal or gold spring to mind!
Lana was out and about in April wearing a fierce combination of a black crop top and red latex pencil skirt. I love the way the red and latex take this simple pairing and kick it into overdrive! The latex makes a major statement and Lana carries it off flawlessly. If shining plastic seems a little of your wheelhouse (with you!), try a less bold textural contrast: suede, velvet, corduroy, or a floral print. Pro tip: the ctop isn’t crucial to making this work – any slim fitting top will do nicely. Lana added a gold pendant and completed the look with black ankle strap sandals that have my 100% approval.  She literally shone at the ACM Awards in a metallic gold gown by Anya Leisnick! It definitely did not follow the legs or décolleté rule, as it combined an on-trend thigh-high slit with a daring plunge neckline. This could easily get over-the-top, but Lana wisely kept the rest of the styling simple – I love love her stud earrings and tiny pendant! – and that, along with the single, cohesive fabric, allows this look to work. Her dark eyed+flushed cheek make-up look is one of my faves; that classic natural-kicked-up-a-notch vibe always looks amazing! Lana reprised the silhouette in a white midi dress, paired with strappy gold sandals and her shorter hair. The slightly less extreme neckline is more appropriate for day wear and brings a fresh sophistication to this rendition.  I love how her black nails add punch to this much more pared-down look.

I can’t resist the buoyant spirit of this spring look from Alicia, which pairs a black tulle skirt with a multi-glittered star-embellished tank.  The dark main hue prevents the look from feeling too youthful or silly; instead, it comes off quirky and fun! With the shot’s forest backdrop and her free-spirited pose, Foxy reminds me of a modern sprite, frolicking about in her woodland home. This kind of expressive risk-taking is something I absolutely adore about her style! From there, she swings into 70’s summer style, pairing cut-off jean shorts first with a graphic tank and leather vest and then with a caramel patched and fur-trimmed one. In each case, she add interest to the mix with a colorful printed silk scarf and layers of accessories: multiple pendant necklaces, oversize sunnies, a statement ring. Her reading of the genre feels both authentic and modern at the same time – a real fashion feat!  She follows the current trend loosely, but her personal sense of artistic expression predominates and here, as elsewhere, it keeps me endlessly fascinated and appreciative. I particularly love her layering of accessories, as that aspect of the look could easily translate to other genres, from boho, to minimalist to being the twist in a classic look.

Cathy went for denim-on-denim in this December snap, pairing a button-down in a medium wash with dark skinny bottoms. She connected the two with a black leather belt and completed the look with banana yellow pumps, which naturally I love :). That said, the styling feels like it’s missing a little something. I would have liked her shoes and belt to be matchy-er ( a classic interpretation that’s very effective), or the addition of an accessory in a light shade to connect the whole look. She utilizes the belt again for her next look, this time connecting dark skinny denim to a shoulder-baring striped top. Here, her black wedge sandals make the look feel quite cohesive, while her burgundy tasseled bag adds a fun touch of whimsy.
We saw Charlotte do a very similar look to this back in September, except that here she went with wide leg pants instead of skinnies. I like the change and the very sophisticated vibe of the duster coat with the flowing pants. The one small tweak I would make is to do a full tuck with her blouse (or add a belt) to define her waist more. It would have pulled the look together, given it a solid focal point amid all the pieces with movement and made it feel a shade more polished and chic.
Sadly, we don’t get a really good look at this ensemble from Alicia, worn during her visit to Iraq this winter, but frankly when I see a studded jacket and OTK boots, I’m generally in right there. It looks like Foxy added a black top beneath all that fierceness and then threw in her customary fabulous twist by adding a floppy fedora. The color unites the look, while the variety of elements and unexpected accessory keep it fresh and intriguing. Trademark Foxy slayage. She was at it again, albeit with a much more casual take, in her next outfit, which paired a white tee with leather leggings, topped with a striped scarf and a faux-fur trimmed cropped moto jacket in a natural canvas-tone. She completed the look with fur-lined mid-calf boots and added a baseball cap in coordinating hue for good measure. I love how this look feels so easy and unstudied and yet retains a quiet glamour at the same time. It also happens to be a flawless use of winter white shades.  

I was going through some of my archived folders and I discovered a bunch of images and collages from Melange that I re-fell in love with and wanted to share with you all :). Right now, Melange denotes special, capsule-type posts with a particular theme, but originally Melange was conceived as an online magazine, with three articles presented each month, as well as a cover. We started it with a Prom issue, about nine months after Diva-Fierce.com was born and it was so much fun! I have tons of great memories surrounding the brainstorming and collaborations that took place to bring it together each month. These colls are from a feature called Art Major which married several Divas' photoshoots with art, such as the one above of SoCalVal edited into my vision of a Helen Frankenthaller piece. We intended to present it in March of 2013, but it proved to be trickier to execute than we originally envisioned and it ended up not getting released until August. It still one of my favorite concepts that we did...although, that could be said about a lot of the content ;). I hope you enjoy!

Alicia put together what amounts to a mini gear photoshoot on her Instagram, showcasing this gorgeous scarlet and black version of her gear against a simple backdrop that lets it have center stage. First, I have to thank her for doing this little series – it’s so much fun to review an actual ‘shoot again and the Big Dub seems to have cast them by the wayside. I’m really not sure why – if Ronda Rousey, Lindsey Vonn and Nastia Liukin can be in Vogue, I don’t see why we can’t be treated to some photoshoots now and again. I love the ladies in the ring, but I love seeing other sides of them and their creativity too; it helps me feel like I can really connect to them. Ok, rant over. I’ve made no secret of how much I love this design of Foxy’s gear. It’s literal perfection: functional, sexy, interesting and oh so cool! I go wild every time she comes out with a new version, whether it incorporates new colors or new materials.  We don’t see her reach for red very often, but it is absolutely stunning on her! She adds an even more fabulous twist to this look by topping it with a flower and feather covered captain’s hat. The way that the hat adds depth, color and opulence to the gear is just tremendous! I love how artistic and dramatic this is! She’s mixed so many stunning colors: burgundy, orange, marigold yellow, and they all play perfectly off the red of her gear and the coordinating feathers. It’s a glorious way of adding spark to a gear ‘shoot and making it memorable. It kind of gives me Paradise-era Lana del Rey vibes, with Foxy’s own special twist. On top of that, we get a display of her considerable talent for unique poses. I love them all and, in combination, they really pack a punch!

Alicia can slay sporty looks of all kinds from daring and fierce to totally chill. This snap from one of her WWE photoshoots represents the latter vibe and incorporates one of my fave color combinations: gray and blush. Since the Olympics are underway, all things sporty are taking over our brain and this look came to mind immediately. It was created for warmer weather, so we’ve re-envisioned it with cooler temps in mind. Foxy’s heathered tank becomes a basic sweatshirt, while her flirty brassiere becomes a comfy blush thermal. Roll the cuffs of the sweatshirt back about two inches and let the tee’s sleeves show underneath to carry the color through the outfit. Alternatively, layer a lightweight hoodie underneath and let the hood show above the top sweatshirt’s collar. (Same drill with the cuffs 100% recommended :)). Need to fancy it up a bit more? No prob - add a button-down underneath instead.  Same drill with the cuffs...except crank the je ne se quoi into over-drive by unbuttoning them and flipping them back over the sweatshirt's sleeve ends. Next up: sneakers that coordinate with your underlayer – you can go totally matchy-matchy or  do similar-family shades (with say a brighter pink or magenta pair) – or your top layer (think metallic silver or carbon gray). To elevate this look above the just-threw-this-on-pitfall, add statement earrings: consider a star-themed pair in rose gold or a bright Lucite pair that brings in a pop of color. If blush and gray isn’t your thing, swap in a different contrast color, or do this in all-neutrals: mixed grays, navy and beige, olive and taupe. Don’t forget about the crisp graphic vibe of black white either! It’s an iconic combo that brings extra intensity to any pairing!
Stick around, athleisure-lovers: we have a whole run of sporty Inspiration Boards on deck in honor of the PyeongChang Games :)