Posted by
Dain,
Friday, August 24, 2007
6:14 AM (Eastern)
So. It's easy to naysay, but from here on out, things get more difficult. I know what works for me, but beyond that my expertise is limited. Much depends on personality, body type, and lifestyle. There are some things, however, that everyone should have in her wardrobe, which helpfully eliminates "lifestyle" from our consideration, as these pieces are useful pieces no matter what you do or what you like to do. The archetypes alone won't determine "chic" (chicness? chicitude?), because the details depend greatly on body type and personal taste. Additionally, please keep in mind that the ultimate goal is, as ever, minimalism. I loathe clutter, and yet there's no virtue to a streamlined wardrobe if it is boring—I like everything unique and beautiful, because what else will hold your interest beyond a season or two? To ensure optimum satisfaction, it must be a marriage of minimalism and consumerism both. My stash is well in hand, barring a few gaps, so I'm eager to move onto my wardrobe.
Now that I've gotten the proverbial grain o' salt out of the way...
Every woman needs a suit, right? If you work in a conservative corporate environment, it's a necessity, and you probably need several. I don't, so the finer points of the aesthetic are lost on me. Above, a perfect Armani (saksfifthavenue.com), possibly a platonic ideal of a suit if ever there was one. The elements of suiting: a tailored jacket, tailored trousers, a skirt, and sometimes a shift. In my imperfect experience, suiting is a worthy splurge, because cheap tailoring shows more visibly than with, say, flirty tops, but I don't think mass-market brands are necessarily such a huge step down, and there are many mid-level brands that may be even nicer.
Lucky for me, I found this Stella McCartney jacket at deep discount ($159 from $1135), in my favorite neutral (striped off white, if you are blind). I only need one, as I rarely touch tailored jackets, but perhaps a grey is also a good idea.
If you want to go the top, I'd recommend Balenciaga, but I know from past experience that wool trousers from J. Crew are very nice indeed (click on the links below, they have close-ups), they flatter the butt, and drape beautifully over thigh—not too tight nor too baggy. The price is extraordinarily decent for such useful pants that'll last you years. I also like the Express Editors, but the quality is somewhat better with J. Crew. I'd buy two pairs: one in lightweight navy ($130) and another in a warmer, thicker grey-brown herringbone ($135). Navy is a woefully underappreciated classic: it pairs with almost any color (especially crisp with white), and navy trousers can easily replace the role of jeans in your wardrobe without the stigma of casual wear. Alternatively, I also like grey and brown herringbone—like "pewter" for eyeshadows the color is extraordinarily versatile—and it's as good an opportunity as any to take advantage of the lovely (and warm!) textures that suiting demonstrates so very well.
I'd rather not have pants to match my jacket, but for a uniform look, I don't mind a skirt. For work, a pencil skirt (rather than an a-line) seems more appropriate, so I found this Lanvin silk skirt ($220), about which I'm on the fence. It's one of those misleadingly simple things, but it's got some subtle details that make it quite special: washed silk, slightly gathered at the waist, and the naughtily exposed zipper on the back. Some tips on buying a pencil skirt: make sure the fit is tight rather than loose ("hugs your curves"), and wear them with heels because flats will make you look stumpy. Banana Republic makes really nice pencil skirts, and you can usually find them on sale.
I buy jackets the way most people buy dresses, like they're some sorta showpiece. Why buy a a black wool ladycoat (mine's cream/brown/blue tweed) when a brilliant emerald trench from Banana Republic ($188) is so much more fun? It's a classic trench (albeit shortened), so it's not wacky, but it has plenty of the personality you're not allowed to express in a corporate environment. If you're more traditional, feel free to Burberry yourself out.
You can never go wrong with a pair of classic black pumps, now can you? Wear them with everything, absolutely everything. What an elegant shoe! [sighs] This is on my wishlist. Though they're expensive, I know now that cheap shoes just aren't worth it, particularly when the shoes in question will be worn all the time.
Ok, I admit I already own a bag that's perfect for work, roomy in a rich brown (more versatile than black, believe it or not), but my dream bag is a white Kelly. It's well out of my price range (I think these go for $5000 last time I checked), to be sure, but this is honestly the last word in bags. The classic Hermès Kelly is a little more prim n' proper than the Birkin, the rare "obvious designer bag" I needn't spurn as overly ostentatious, and there just couldn't be anything more exquisite than pristine white leather. Though, is this all too much white? Eh, it's like black, you can't really have too much of it.
Here is I got the idea to be on the lookout for a white jacket in the first place.
One thing I like about your style, is that you take expected items, and find unexpected versions of them. I'd never in a million years think of a green trench coat. You always see neutral-colored ones. Yet it looks terrific.
Thanks. : ) I think it's because I always work around white and navy as my neutral. Most people think in terms of black and brown, I look really dead in brown, so I have to think a little differently about color choices. And grey works on everyone. White and green is a natural pairing (I have lots of green shoes, and shoes are supposed to be versatile, right? So I realized that green is a sleeper neutral, one step below navy). Raspberry and lilac also work excellently with white.
That's even more interesting then...the idea of finding "your" neutrals, and then choosing colors to go with those.
I look great in brown, even though I hated brown for no real reason for a very long time. During my youth, brown was somehow quite "out"--I suppose it was the punk aesthetic, black and white.
Colleen Shirazi
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August 24, 2007 3:18 PM,
Those are beautiful clothes.
One thing I like about your style, is that you take expected items, and find unexpected versions of them. I'd never in a million years think of a green trench coat. You always see neutral-colored ones. Yet it looks terrific.
August 24, 2007 3:48 PM,
Thanks. : ) I think it's because I always work around white and navy as my neutral. Most people think in terms of black and brown, I look really dead in brown, so I have to think a little differently about color choices. And grey works on everyone. White and green is a natural pairing (I have lots of green shoes, and shoes are supposed to be versatile, right? So I realized that green is a sleeper neutral, one step below navy). Raspberry and lilac also work excellently with white.
August 25, 2007 1:43 PM,
That's even more interesting then...the idea of finding "your" neutrals, and then choosing colors to go with those.
I look great in brown, even though I hated brown for no real reason for a very long time. During my youth, brown was somehow quite "out"--I suppose it was the punk aesthetic, black and white.
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