I hate to be the latest voice in a chorus saying that “print is dead,” but here I go. By the time my copies of Vogue and Bazaar show up in my mailbox, I feel like it will take a minor miracle to actually crack the things open.
I just don’t consume fashion the way I once did — I don’t just want to see a fantasy dreamed up by a small editorial team (no matter how sophisticated). I want to know the prices of all the clothes, right that second. I want to know if there are versions of the best looks available on eBay or TheRealReal for a fraction of the cost. I want to pinch-and-zoom the photos to see more detail. And I want this information throughout the day — when I’m waiting in line for coffee or gasping for air on the treadmill — and fashion magazines aren’t exactly portable. (Call me a wimp, but those things are heavy.)
That’s why my gaze has shifted to the realm of the blog, where the image is just the start of a multi-click journey. (I normally have dozens of browser windows open, from Fashion Week archives to Google image searches.) Blogs are often the underpinning — my first stop on this voyage of product discovery.
Today, I want to share one of my favorite style inspirations: Amanda Brooks, the writer behind the blog I Love Your Style. I prefer my fashion blogs with a side of aspirational snob appeal, and Brooks has both preppy good looks (hatched during her years at boarding school) and fashion forward chops (thanks to her stint as the fashion director at Barney’s).
She also happens to lend credence to my “print is dead” argument. Brooks once wrote that she applied for a job as Fashion Director at Vanity Fair — only to be crushed when Graydon Carter hired someone else. With many magazines’ circulations dropping — including Vanity Fair’s — her reinvention as a blogger and retail executive is the ultimate post-Recession fairytale.
I adore Brooks’ look because individually, each outfit component is attainable, even if the label is designer. (Her sweater may be Celine, but you can find the same thing at Zara.)
Not only are these outfits classic, they are easy to re-create, either with stuff in your own closet or with a few keystrokes.
Most of these photos are a few years old — yet the outfits are completely relevant now. And trust me — if an outfit still resonates in the frenetic digital age, you know you’ve discovered a style icon.
