The emergence of 90s nostalgia was mildly tolerable when it first reappeared: The 2012 Urban Outfitters x Lisa Frank collabo was cute enough, and I was delighted with the resurgence of “every day” leather pants. Then… things got weird. Anything with a sniff of 90s sentiment was suddenly hotter than a Ricky Martin single. Prices rocketed for the […]
nyc street style
Making a Summer Dress Work for Fall
This creamy eyelet dress was one of the smarter purchases I made in 2012, thanks to its reasonable price tag (well under $100) and its versatility in straddling two summertime trends: the lace dress and the long-sleeved shirt-dress. Typically, I interpret this as a casual dress, pairing it with nude ballet flats, a cognac belt and a […]
Reinventing the Button-Up Shirt: A No Sew Solution
A few days ago, I took stock of my entire wardrobe, culling items for donation and color-coding the rest. During my closet clean-out, I realized I had managed to acquire at least a dozen button-ups in varying shades of plaid, polka dot and chambray. The vast collection irked my frugal side: aside from my solid white and black […]
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Can a White Shirt Transform Your Look?
There are the fashionista factions who will advise you to spend as much as you can on your wardrobe basics. I am not one of them. Today’s theme is the white shirt, the queen of all wardrobe basics. The variety in price is astounding. First up is the white Oxford, a working woman’s uniform. At the high-end of the spectrum is Carven’s version for […]
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Don’t Make Excuses for Summer Dresses
Sometimes it’s easy to feel guilty when you opt for yet another summer dress. Women often feel like sophisticated style should be opaque to all but Vogue editors — and a dress just seems TOO easy. My inner-critic is fond of chanting, “Oh. A dress. How original.” But let’s be practical: Choosing a dress over separates means less time stranded in front of an […]
Tweed Dreams Are Made of These
I don’t consider myself a slave to fashion — I’m really more of a student. It all started when I received a subscription to W at the frighteningly young age of 10. In the years since, I’ve pored over hundreds of fashion magazines with all the seriousness of a monk studying a religious text. For the last 16 […]
The Ring of Fire
Some clothes just scream for attention, and this Issey Miyake piece is a YELLER. The collar is constructed like origami, fades from black to red and ends in stiffened silk that’s been micro-lasered to resemble tiny flames – or perhaps thorns. The effect is beguiling, but mildly threatening – like the gaping maw of a Venus […]
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Does Beige Have to Be Boring? Not if it’s McQueen
When I think beige, I think blah. You know what’s beige? Corrugated cardboard. Manilla envelopes. Best Buy employee chinos. But what if that something beige is by Alexander McQueen? This McQueen blouse was a rare find at a consignment store. The McQueen exhibit at the Met boosted the designer’s cachet — and since his suicide, his designs are now “collectible,” with […]