Following her own style

Raleigh native Emily Procter might be a TV star, but when it comes down to it, she's still just one of the girls.

She loves shoe shopping. She's into vintage anything -- handkerchiefs to handbags. And she's all about classic couture -- Valentino, Escada and Christian Dior.

And when it comes to finding the right dress for a special event? Yeah, she's still like the rest of us, waiting until the last minute, until she has done all the shopping she can, before picking a dress.

At least, that's the case for Friday's Mannequin Ball at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh. As of last Wednesday, Procter, who is best known for her role as Calleigh Duquesne on CBS' "CSI: Miami," still wasn't sure what she'll wear to the ball, thrown by Metro Magazine. Maybe a tea-length dress? Maybe a long gown?

"I have a couple of ideas for a couple of things," she said during a telephone interview from Los Angeles.

Unlike so many of Hollywood's red carpet beauties, Procter doesn't rely on a stylist to pick out what she wears to award shows -- something she wished other actresses did.

"I really miss seeing people's true style," she said. "You don't have a concept of what their style is. ... I think it's important to follow you own sense of style and not be influenced by what other people think."

The dress she wore on Tuesday's People's Choice Awards show was her own find. A two-women design team called Curve, which also has a Los Angeles boutique, created the daringly sexy minidress with silver and purple vertical stripes. She said when she tried the dress on before the show, it seemed to fit just right. But it wasn't until she was watching a rerun with a friend the next day that she saw just how revealing it was.

"I did not expect it to be that low-cut," she said with a laugh.

Rules? She has a few. Like any old-school Southern girl, she won't wear white before Memorial Day. She's such a stickler about it, she put her foot down when the crew on "CSI: Miami" wanted her to wear white in a recent episode. Winter white? Yes. Cream? Yes. But never white white out of season.

There's more of that Southern charm. She also always carries a handkerchief. She's got one in each of her handbags. And she thinks every girl should have a good knit black dress. "Because it travels well," she said.

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Proenza Schouler for $30?

Leave it to Target to score that kind of fashion coup.

As the latest designer in the company's GO International series, the new Proenza Schouler for Target will hit stores for a limited run in February.

No doubt, it's the biggest name yet for the GO program, which for the last year has been tapping the brightest, up-and-coming stars in the business to do limited collections for the store. The latest was Behnaz Sarafpour, who followed other notable designers such as Luella Bartley and Tara Jarmon.

Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough said in press materials that this latest Target collection will allow them to bring their "fresh take on fashion to women everywhere."

Proenza Schouler -- named after Hernandez and McCollough's mother's maiden names -- was formed in 1999, when the two designers met at Parsons School of Design. Before they even graduated, their youthful, edgy line with a strong focus on detailing and construction was picked up by Barneys. Since then, they've become fashion industry darlings, in part because of the backing of Vogue editor Anna Wintour.

Proenza is among the most expensive and exclusive designers sold in the Triangle. The line is available only at Vermillion in North Hills.

Their look for Target doesn't stray too far from their usual catwalk couture. Sure hits: A button-front belted denim miniskirt ($29.99); the skinny jeans with dark wash ($34.99); and the bubble-print swing coat in purple ($44.99).