A bow headband is an easy way to accessorize an otherwise basic outfit or detract from a borderline-bad hair day (you’ll probably want a hat for a full-on one). But bows are also a popular accent on other pieces of clothing, ranging from a bold accent bow on a heel to a more subtle graphic-print bow on a tank. This pretty, feminine detail adds visual interest to otherwise basic pieces. And even if you’re not into the whole “I look like a present all wrapped up” look of actual bows, there are lots of bow prints to choose from, including my personal favorite, the unexpected bow on the tights.

A bow detail is the perfect juxtaposition to the more masculine pieces popular right now. Bows are inherently girly (unless it’s a bow-tie!) and even the smallest one can soften the baggy silhouettes of boyfriend blazers or army jackets.

Still don’t have you sold? Here’s 15 pieces that should change your mind.

Sigh. So cute you just want it all, right?

Not gonna lie, I could literally write an entire book of how I think everything Sofia Coppola does is the coolest shizz ever.

No big deal, she was only the director of some of my favorite movies, like The Virgin Suicides and Marie Antoinette. She’s just the daughter of Francis Ford Coppola, the director of The Godfather, besides being related to some of the coolest people in Hollywood (like Jason Schwartzman, heyo!).

Besides those minor details, she quietly pursues another interest (that she is, unsurprisingly, awesome at) and that is fashion.  She created her own fashion line called Milkfed, unfortunately for me, sold only in Japan. She and Marc Jacobs are pretty much best friendz forever, considering she is also his muse for his ENTIRE BRAND.  Also, the woman interned at Chanel when she was 15-years-old for Christ’s sake.  Wanna know what I was doing when I was 15?  Taking MySpace mirror pictures in my bathroom wearing a “sweet new top*~!”  Therefore, Sofia: 1 million, Cristina: 0.

The things she creates and inspires are godly to me, including her style.  The confusing yet awesome part of Sofia’s style is that she sticks many times to classic feminine pieces but has still been known to have a sort-of androgynous style as well.  Sofia will rock anything from jeans and a t-shirt to a Marc Jacobs original and make it all look like it was made for her specifically.  She has been quoted as not liking anything too loud and flashy, but sticks to a style that represents her calm disposition.  Plus she made it socially acceptable to wear flats to red-carpet events.  Yep, she definitely knows how to get the ball rollin’.

So, yeah, who wouldn’t want to take a little inspiration from this fashion icon? And here’s how we can all channel Sofia through our own wardrobes.

Bag, Skirt, Shoes, Shirt, Sunglasses

Sofia is all about the classics and it doesn’t get more classic than a crisp white shirt. Add a little girly flair by tucking it in to the polka dot skirt and mix things up a little with the masculine styling on these ballet flats. It’s a combo that totally works and just oozes Sofia’s personal style.

The wayfarer sunglasses add a hint of laid-back cool that is so very Sofia, and the overly structured (and somewhat masculine) bag is just another way to make this look a little androgynous and a lot more interesting. It also happens to be a similar style to the bag that she helped Louis Vuitton create in honor of her personal style, for about an eighth of the price.

Yes, LV made a bag just for her.

Stop being cooler than me, Sofia.

But the article’s vocabulary isn’t the only baffling thing about it. In the piece, author Shane Watson proposes that all women have a “fashion sex,” a sort of gendered style that comes naturally to them.

Confused? So was I. Watson tries to explain herself by pinpointing the “fashion sexes” of some celebrities: “Anyone can see that Scarlett Johansson is a Girl, who should stick to asset-flaunting bodycon dresses” (whatever those are), she writes, while Kristen Stewart is “a tomboy through and through” whose outfits should never clash with her “natural urge to look a bit rough, undone, cool and … boyish.” Madonna is another celeb who Watson classifies as boyish: her “DNA is probably 12% bloke — in a good way. It’s the reason she looks like a man in drag in a pussy-bow blouse, but fabulously hot in a pair of chaps,” Watson writes.

I guess what this really means is that, according to Watson, women are innately either traditionally feminine, a little more hard-edged (read: manly), or androgynous. These traits are “non-negotiable,” she says, meaning that an inherently girly girl should never wear “the leather trousers, jacket and peaked-cap look” that serves Catherine Zeta-Jones so ill in the picture that accompanies the article.

Of course, the thing is that in that picture, Zeta-Jones doesn’t look uncomfortable or inappropriate. She’s Catherine-frickin’-Zeta-Jones—even if she hasn’t made a good movie since winning a Best Supporting Actress for Chicago, one thing she does have going for her is that she’s still one of the most beautiful women on the planet (and a very lucrative deal with T-Mobile). I think she would probably look smoking even if she was wearing a burlap sack and one of those big, furry Russian hats.

The notion of fashion sex is totally ludicrous; having short hair or, in Stewart’s case, a curiously surly demeanor (does that girl just not know how to smile?) doesn’t make a woman un-feminine—look at a pixie-haired Halle Berry in that famous Oscars dress, for just one example of why Watson is completely wrong. Hell, even K-Stew looked pretty, classy and, dare I say, comfortably girly at last week’s Oscars. So-called “boyish” types can look great wearing frilly dresses, and so-called “girly” types can look amazing in jeans and distressed Chucks.

Every girl should wear whatever she wants without fear that she’s somehow going against “type,” whatever that means. There’s no sense in pigeonholing yourself to just one kind of look, especially if you’re only doing it because some crazy British lady thinks you should.

• For 3 hours this Saturday there are going to be a lot of angry fat kids. We should probably be a little nervous. (MSNBC)

• Who needs a masculine jock-y boyfriend when you can just drink man-flavored sweat soda? Mmmm. (Business Week)

• Penn State is bullying little kids out of using their logo. Cause you know, using a dangerous looking animal as a mascot is an original PSU idea. (Fredericksburg.com)

• Going to attempt to cram 50 dressed-up classmates into your dorm this Halloween? Of course you are! Here, we did a little shopping for you! (NerdApproved.com)

Which brings me to this: gay or not (but totally gay), girls recently have been going for guys just like Zac.

Why, you ask? Why on EARTH would a normal, man-loving woman want a guy like Zac Efron?

Seriously, why?

Well, it’s not just because they’re pretty. It’s because, and get this – lots of women say that these “FemiMen” make better long-term partners!

Dailymail said, “A study found ‘masculine’ looking men were judged to be less faithful and worse parents. Similarly, psychologists found men with feminine facial features are seen as more committed and less likely to cheat on their partners.”

Wow! More committed? How ever would we spot one of these diamonds in the rough?

Apparently, these FemiMen have:

1) Fuller lips

2) Wider eyes

3) Thinner, curvier eyebrows

4) A nicer complexion

5) All-around girlier looking

So, basically, these studies are showing that women prefer guys who look more like girls – think “Metro,” but on a more scientific basis, of course.

This is stupid. I understand that meatheads make shitty boyfriends. Guys who come off and make the effort to appear all masculine and tough are usually just insecure douche bags unfit for relationships in the first place. But, come on! FEMIMEN??

Why would anyone want to be with a guy who has “thinner and curvier” eyebrows than ours – just because they look “healthier?” That difference of style and appearance is what makes the dynamics of male/female relationships work. There are actually guys out there who are guys – who look and act masculine, but make awesome long-term boyfriends, too!

These studies are just trying to make superficial excuses for women who go for those shitty, frat-tastic, meathead assholes, knowing they’re gonna get hurt in the end. It’s not about looks, it’s about genuine personality and finding some one who makes a good boyfriend/husband/dad no matter how thin his eyebrows may be.

I’m sorry, but as much as I don’t want to date a guy who thinks he’s all rough and tough, I don’t want to date a FemiMan, either. I want some one who will protect me, not some one who’s gonna guard his naturally luscious hair while I punch another guy in the face for grabbing my ass.

Like this guy. Yeah! He’ll protect me.