Our New Partnership

In case you haven't heard, we we are now carrying select styles of shoes because of a recent partnership with the shoes and accessories store, Deliciouz of Walnut Creek. Tamara, the owner, is providing iniam with shoes and we are providing her with another outlet for her gorgeous shoes. We only have about 11 styles currently, but are projecting more for the Fall...in the lineup now, are shoes by Chie Mihara, Rafe, Alberto Fermani, Argila, Repetto and more. The shoes are well made, stylish, comfortable - basically everything a woman could want in a shoe! If you don't see what you want at iniam, please visit her store on North Main Street in Walnut Creek; and for her loyal customers, seek out iniam at 5902 College Avenue for outfits to match all those shoes in your closet!

FEATURED DESIGNER: Bianca Nero

New for Summer! Maria Bianca Nero, an ex- model based in Milan, likely knows what it takes to look good. She is inspired by old fashioned glamour icons like Hepburn and Harlow and you can see that in the shapes and fabrics she chooses. But don't think her dresses are old fashioned themselves; on the contrary!

The three dresses we have on tap at iniam are completely different but perfect for that special date (even if it is with your husband), a summer wedding, an art opening, the prom, or a graduation or whatever excuse you need to have a new dress. Check out the lipstick red silk charmuese number with skinny black patent leather belt, or the iridescent blue dress with beaded waist, or the peacock chiffon one shoulder dress.

Earth Day

Earth Day puzzles me. Why is one day designated to be Earth Day? Shouldn't every day be Earth Day? I've just finished the April 21st issue of the New Yorker which featured eco-earth friendly writings. If you've got time to celebrate Earth Day, you should have time to read this issue. In it is "Letter From the Yangtze Delta - A journey through China's future" by Jonathan Franzen where he visits Chinese factories because of a plush puffin golf club cover he received as a gift (made in China naturally). His travels take lead him to unearth (no pun intended) why and how industry that created the fake bird was destroying real birds. Well-done Mr. Franzen and thanks for not waiting until Earth Day to write about environmental issues.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Blouse

Wenlan Chia, the influence behind Twinkle, is known for her feminine yet contemporary designs and look no further than our most recent shipment! The yellow and blue baby doll silk blouse (see photo) is deceivingly fitted because it's made with some kind of stretch silk that fits superbly around the torso. The colors are fun without being silly and the style is contemporary without being too trendy. Also, what I deem the "butterfly blouse" (see photo) makes you look like, well, a butterfly (only in a good way). It's also made of silk. We also received a cozy comfy dress made of white cotton lightweight waffle weave with a bit of black trim...it's running a little big, but we like it that way. Looks good with denim or leggings or a slightly longer black cotton or linen slip.

Time Out

Apologies for no new info on our Blog lately; I've had the last week off to noodle around the SF Bay area with my sister who was visiting from Maine before she jets off the Kazakhstan to adopt a baby. If any of my dear readers are going through an adoption, my sister maintains her own Blog on the process read by over 17,000 visitors! She's also a big knitter and offers up oodles of knitty resources (you can even see the sweater she made for me). See http://bychance.wordpress.com

During my absence, so many new things arrived I haven't even had the chance to try it all on yet! The store is packed with citrusy-goodness from Theory: a lightweight cotton top in orange and watermelon, just the thing for an easy breezy day in the East Bay. Also on tap, a strappy tangerine linen dress, white linen pants, white linen narrow bermudas, and a screaming orange blouse that will perk up your office outfits and keep eyes open across the boardroom table for hours on end. No need for coffee in the morning with this Theory delivery.

We also received a shipment from 3.1 Phillip Lim (did you know he named his line after his age of his first collection - 31?) and the colors just keep on getting bolder: try the peacock colored wide-leg pants or the sunset colored silk dress or top. To tone things down in the Lim line, you have got to see the detail on the cropped black pants.

...And the James Perse leaves the store as fast as it comes in! We got a whopping big box yesterday and after the end of the day tally, we realized over we sold 10 pieces of Perse. Must be the nice weather. Either that, or everyone is digging into last summer's t-shirts and realizing it's time to replace and replenish. If that's your story, you'd better get to iniam quickly to get your tops. We also got some cute shorty shorts in black.

Bianca Nero made her debut at iniam last week too. Three dressy numbers grace the racks for those special occassions; a one-shoulder teal chiffon dress, and another dress quite the opposite in a devil red silk charmeuse with a skinny black belt. Lastly, a silk taffeta tea length ballgown in iridescent blues with beading across the waist.

If that's not enough, we also received verdant green dresses and tops from Beth Bowley. The grass green crochet dress is the standout, comfy and drapey and gorgeous.

Trina-Fest continues

Last weekend's Trina Turk blowout was only missing one thing: this week's Trina Turk delivery! Hot off the UPS truck are some new early summer dresses, tops, and cool cotton pants. We've already sold two of the long green halter dress "Florencia" (shown here) so come try it on before it's gone. This dress also came in a short version in black, which is just as cute and extremely versatile.

Some summery pants came along for the ride: one pair of camel cuffed khaki's (say that three times fast!) and a pair of wide-legged white SHORT pants which look terribly cute with the wide-strap orange tank that came in.

And if you need a pair of shoes to go with that dress, we've got those too! If you don't already know, we've partnered with Deliciouz of Walnut Creek to supply you with their shoes in Oakland.

If you are still reading this post, stay tuned for Philip Lim, Beth Bowley, Theory, and Bianca Nero deliveries coming within the next week!

Trina seen in NYT Style Section

One of the Trina Turk dresses at iniam was featured in the New York Times Style section a few weeks ago...in swimming pool blues, the dress is just the thing to cool down on those yet to come hot summer days...

Besides the Trina-fest we are having this weekend (20% off all Trina Turk in case you haven't heard), we just got a boxful of Theory separates including a hot pink strapless dress; belted and prim on the outside, it's smoking on the inside, as is whoever wears this little number. Great for that daytime wedding or graduation or just for drinking cosmos with the girls. Keep your eyes peeled for Theory's new soft khaki pants and a great full zip short navy blue dress with short sleeves; also looks smart with pants as a top. Honestly looks odd on the hanger, but on your body, it makes sense. I'll get you in that dress no matter what!

Green with Envy

Goes with everything shoe

Orange you glad for shoes?

These are a few of my favorite things...

iniam is delighted to announce what promises to be a long lasting partnership with shoe store Deliciouz! We've got the clothes and they've got the shoes to match, so we thought, why not work together to bring a diverse and beautiful selection of contemporary shoes to Oakland? On tap are shoes by Chie Mihara, Pedro Garcia, Repetto, Eileen Shields, Costume National and so much more. But you would probably rather see some shoes than read about them. (All shoes are representative of what we may receive, however if we do not, Deliciouz is only a tunnel away). Plus the more you buy, the more we will receive!