Winks

One of the highlights of the Fall/Winter 2011 season was the kink-laced Louis Vuitton collection filled with glamorous cuffs that secured the girls to their clutches, miniature masks that sat atop all of their heads and a feather duster one girl held (almost) daintily behind her back.

For Resort 2012, the Louis Vuitton girl was ready for a vacation. Overnight bag and towel and swimsuit were all at the ready.

As well as a cocktail dress for nights on the town.

A shorts suit.

And a day dress that fell below the knees.

Yet when one examined everything more closely, the elements that were so prevalent in the fall collection still hung in the air. The cocktail dress was accented with shots of leather. The shorts suit was made of a royal blue lace that left one with a hazy picture of what lived underneath. The lattice-like weaving of the day dress revealed patches of skin to the observant eye.

It was, as Resort so often is, a compromise and a bridge.


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Daylight Saving

Before diving into four weeks worth of fashion week pictures, I decided to take a break. I've been writing about non-fashion subjects. And reading books. And looking forward to spring.

Of course, all of this thinking of spring led me right back to the topic of clothes. We've seen the last of the cold, or the worst of it at any rate. I've stopped having to wear argyle knee highs to extend the life of my ballet flats. Tights are on the verge of being packed away. When I look out of window at 5:30 PM, the sun is still shining. Today while deep in the haze that I sometimes fall into when listening to my iPod, I stopped to touch a bud on a tree.

I am fully ready for the change of seasons.

So while planning three days in advance what I'm going to wear when it's near 60 degrees this weekend, I took to the internet for some browsing.

There was a lightweight, chambray blazer by Cartonnier's at Anthropologie.

And a Lili's Closet breezy top in what is once again becoming my favorite accent color.

Slim, ankle length jeans by Rag & Bone/JEAN.

Sweet, bow mary janes from Marais USA.

And a bright, frame bag by Cynthia Rowley.

None of the pieces that caught my eye epitomize spring, but I'm not one of those people who smells the first hint of warmth and jumps into shorts and espadrilles and floppy beach hats.

They simply reminded me that the time for sweaters and wool coats and flannels and equestrian style boots is coming to an end. And with that reminder came excitement.


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Wear & Tear

Today I settled into my spot at the café as I always do. Purse down on the windowsill next to the table. Coat on the back of the chair. The Laptop Bag on the opposite seat. Then I run off to grab my tea or coffee or sandwich before removing my computer from its sheath and getting to the work of finding work. But when I pulled off The Laptop Bag today, I noticed a red smudge.

I keep the strap of the bag long so that I can wear it across my body. This configuration leads the loop of fabric where the strap hooks onto the right side of the bag to bounce against my upper thigh. There it often meets the vivid red of my peacoat, and the fibers have begun to transfer from one to the other.

There are, of course, clothes and shoes and bags that I hope to keep in immaculate condition. That are perfectly cared for and for which the appearance of a small hole or stain or streak would lead to severe devastation on my part. But for most pieces, such wounds are to be worn as badges.

The peacoat in question is missing the button of its right epaulet. Forced off by repeated tugging on the purse that I carry on that shoulder, I've never felt the need to replace it or complain about its absence. The button's loss was my own fault. When there is no purse to hold it in place, the epaulet flaps mildly in the breeze. It shows how much I care for the coat. Shows that it rarely left me last winter.

Long jeans that are not rolled or cuffed begin to fray at the bottom. The leather of boots goes from smooth to rough, changed by rain and snow and occasional mud. Headbands stretch and appear misshapen in my hands but sit perfectly once placed on my head.

In the end, clothes are meant to be lived in, and each of their imperfections tells a story.

The Laptop Bag

In college, I never owned a bag for my laptop. It was carelessly thrown into my backpack with Locke and Rich and Organic Chemistry textbooks. Power cords tangled with headphone cords. Scratches and pen marks littered the casing. It wasn’t until I started to commute from Brooklyn to Greenwich, CT in the winter of 2006 that I bought a real one. Gotten at a proper office store, it was pink and resembled a large, structured purse. It knocked into people on the 4 train. It sat on the floor of the Metro North. Its straps dug into my shoulder. I loved it. It made me feel like the grownup I barely was.

But it always seemed a bit fake to me. I was playing at a game. And when that job ended, the bag settled into the corner of my apartment stowing bills and miscellaneous papers. It has continued to do so for over two and a half years. It wasn’t until the early months of 2008 that I found its more appropriate replacement.


Yes, it is sitting atop The Coat. It's having an early showing due to the unseasonably warm weather. My green, swing coat peeked out briefly on Sunday.

Like almost all of the favorites, I happened upon this bag by chance. Temping in Manhattan, I had been sent on an errand to pick up a package at the post office. Through no fault of my own, I had to return to our office sans package and then once again head out to the post office. I was annoyed by the second trip, and on my way back with package finally in tow, I naughtily stopped into Brooklyn Industries.

The Laptop Bag was on final sale, and so I spent a good ten minutes considering it. Did I need it? I had a perfectly good laptop bag collecting dust next to my slowly growing mountain of fashion magazines. But the strap on this one looked more comfortable. The pockets were more accessible. Its slimness would make knocking people out on the subway virtually impossible, but it could probably still pack a punch if the need ever arose to use it in such a way. And the pattern made it youthful. I wouldn’t appear to be quite so serious. I tended to have a problem with that.

I still do.

I bought it and snuck back into the office where I hid the shopping bag in the bottom of a desk drawer. I carried the new bag out as if I had had it with me the entire time. No one noticed a thing.

Come Again Another Day

It feels like it's been raining forever.

One of my friend's looked at me this weekend and said I don't know how to say this, but that's a Fall bag.

I smiled and told her that I knew before explaining that I didn't feel like switching everything I own from one bag to another and so had brought the brown, suede Coach shoulder bag along on my trip. This was partly true. I left out that it's felt like Fall. Or at least that nasty part of late Winter/early Spring when the rain is cold and you shiver all the way down to the bone. And for this reason, I keep reaching for the bag.

Considering the style mood I've been in lately, the weather is not helping my recent bout of wanderlust. Nothing makes you want to fly off somewhere with sunshine and beaches like rain in mid-June. Since my move back to Boston over two weeks ago, my dresses have stayed packed away in a suitcase. I look at them everyday, sadly folded and waiting for the sun to return. I could unpack them. Air them out and place them on hangers. But that would just be teasing them. And myself.

I spent most of March and April waiting for the rain to stop. Reminding myself that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. That April showers bring May flowers. And then I spent the week of my birthday waiting for the rain to disappear. Hoping that my newly straightened hair wouldn't be ruined. That I wouldn't have to dig up some pair of rain proof shoes to wear in place of my bejeweled golden flats. The rain finally fled the day before my celebration. But it didn't stay away for long.

And it doesn't seem to plan on going away anytime soon.

Vacation Days

I spent part of this weekend dipping into impossibly cold water, soaking in the sun and swinging in a hammock while writing in my journal. And it was perfection. I've recently been fighting the urge to flit off somewhere. It's monetarily impossible at the moment and I'm not really a risk taker, but whenever the thought crosses my mind these days, my chest fills with excitement and fear. The presentation of the resort collections only compounds these feelings. All I want right now is the freedom of the beach and a boat and all of the beautiful clothes that such a life would entail.

Today, unable to focus on the task at hand, I found myself browsing online for those types of clothes. Easy pieces that one can just throw on. Items meant for lounging. Sweet dresses and cute espadrilles and simple denim. This has been a theme with me recently, as should be obvious if you've read my past few posts. But today I took it a bit further. Instead of a piece here and a piece there, I constructed a whole vacation wardrobe. And yes, sometimes one needs a vacation from the drudgery and frustration and heartache of being unemployed for a long stretch of time.

A fantasy warm weather vacation can't exist without a bit of Pucci. Or a caftan, for that matter. This dress covers both categories.


And of course I'll need a minidress.


And one that grazes the knee.


And a necklace that melds perfectly with all three.


But occasionally I might crave a little nighttime sparkle. Especially when it involves no zippers or buttons.


I wouldn't be able to live on dresses alone. Well I could, but there would be days when hammock napping or quick jaunts to the beach would be called for. And none of those dresses would really do for any of that.

This top, however, is perfect for wearing over my bathing suit.


With these shorts.


And both would easily fit into my beach bag when I finally decided to trade sand for surf.


For quick trips into town to buy supplies, this top has the ease I'm looking for without the boredom.


And these jeans could go everywhere with everything.


I'm having a big Phillip Lim moment currently. I could live in his line and T by Alexander Wang and Current/Elliott and Ella Moss and Loomstate through my whole non-fantasy vacation summer.


Oh, and Thakoon.


I chose simple shoes. Shoes that would go with many different outfits. Shoes good for walking around old cities with cobblestones and winding streets. Shoes that can be carried as you walk by the beach. Nothing with too high a heel. Practicality above all else.

And since we're discussing practicality, we'll begin with the flats...


And the sandals.


Nothing quite says summer like a pair of espadrilles...


Or two.


And after they all arrived from their various stores and online homes, I would throw them in here with other necessities, perfume, that copy of Madame Bovary I have yet to finish and one PowerBook.


And then I would flit.


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Homework

I'm in the midst of a task for a job that I'm interested in, and I find myself up to my ears in pictures of shoes and bags and dresses and distressed jeans. But through all of the muddle, I found the perfect Spring outfit for me.


It's perfect for brunch. For all of those wonderful dates that I go on. For a day of window shopping with a friend. I'm especially in love with the flats. They and I are meant to be together forever. Or at least until I find someone younger and a bit flashier.


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Spring Forward

Because the change of seasons is always a good time to add new pieces to your wardrobe and the sales continue unabated, I bring you, without much comment and in no particular order, Things I Want for Spring And Could Maybe, Kinda Afford If I Had a Job Right Now.

Dresses

One:


Two:


Three:


Four:


Bottoms

One:


Two:


Three:


Tops

One:


Two:


Three:


Sweaters

One:


Two:


Three:


Shoes/Bags

One:


Two:


Three:


Four:


Five:


Paris is next. I cross my heart.


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