Supersize Deluxe

Is the fashion industry trying to pull a frog in boiling water trick on us? I'd sort of suspected that prices were rising gradually over the past few years. I even remember a few years ago my friend Janice asking "remember when we thought that $800 was really expensive for a bag?" Well, $800 IS actually really expensive for a bag - but you are not going to find anything designer under $1,000 nowadays - even in a recession!! And probably not even on sale!!! What's going on here? Are they offering us more for our money? Prada, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Hermes all have moved some of their manufacturing to China, India, and Mauritius where labor is cheaper, so what's the deal?

Well, in my unscientific study, surveying my own purchases made over the years, I can say: yes, they are offering us more. We're being supersized! Bags have noticeably grown bigger - what used to be my work bag size is now my going out bag size (bag on left)


















.. and has anyone noticed heel height? I think that they are rising in step with prices.

I picked a few shoes to illustrate this argument.. they are arranged in chronological order of purchase, from left to right. Amusingly, I had thought that shoes on the left (Sigerson Morrison sling backs) were the perfect pair of heels - today, I consider them flats! And, aside from the two strappy pairs, I purchased them with work wardrobe in mind (though I admit that the furthest right pair has occasionally defeated me and I now bring a back-up pair of shoes when I wear them.)






Where can we go from here? How much higher can we get? My nephew, Soren, told me over the summer that the pair of wedge heel sandals that I was wearing were heels not shoes, since they are 80% heel. Can we go to 90%? 95%??

Well, here's one suggestion for the next direction from my sister-in-law, Erika (and Soren's mom).. They're Alexander McQueen's "lobster claw" heels.



Prepare yourselves!

Going flat out.. (Going out flat?)

Style and comfort are not always incompatible, it just requires some forethought to get them both right.. and maybe a looser definition of comfort.

One of the things that stumps me most in trying to get the style/comfort ratio right is shoes. I wear heels most of the time since I think most outfits look better with heels. And I've loosened my definition of comfort enough so I can wear them at a 12-18 hour stretch and can avoid this quandary most of the time. But, just as I shouldn't eat really spicy food at every meal, I also shouldn't always wear heels. Sometimes your body needs a break from pain. Even if it tastes good..or looks good.

I wrote a few weeks ago that I didn't like brogues. My friend Doreen asked how I could not like that classic Katherine Hepburn menswear look? Well, that's a fair question and this post comes from my thinking about it. I do like that Hepburn/Marlene Dietrich look and oxfords are so much better than so many of the other flat shoes I see women wearing (running shoes, UGG boots, crocs, slippers, yes, slippers!!..on Park Ave!!! I mean, is life that bad that you've just given up?) But anyhow, I still think that those long loose trousers look so much better with a high heel..your legs look endless. And, as any good tailor will tell you, you can't hem a pair of pants for both a flat shoe and a 4" heel. You either walk on the hem or look like you're preparing for a flood. So, do you want to tell the tailor to hem short and commit to stumpy wide legs when you can have willowy long ones? Not me.. (By the way, I do think that there is a fantastic opportunity for a new kind of adjustable cuff so you can wear the same pants with heels or flats. Does this exist? It should!!)

I do think that oxfords look cute with short skirts, maybe even with a menswear styled jacket with strong shoulders too.. Wait a minute, I have worn that exact outfit! That was one of my first work outfits I bought myself after college.. ummm.. must have been 5 years ago.. yeah, that's riiight... So here we have another instance of the "no trend left behind" trend. It must be so easy to be a trend setter. Well, folks - short-sleeved turtlenecks, A-line mini skirts, and square toed, lace-up chunky heels. Think "early Friends". Buy them now and wear them first. I don't know.. Maybe in 2 weeks, I'll have a "Eureka!" moment when I visualize that oxfords are the missing element from my wardrobe and I'll run out and buy them in some obsessive frenzy. But for the moment, I'm letting that trend pass.

But, as I said, I do feel like my body needs a break from heels now and then. Since I find ballerinas torture to walk in for more than a couple hours and I'm just not a sneaker kind of girl unless I'm doing a sport, my solution is boots. So, here are two examples below. Both totally comfortable solutions that will let me run around all day Saturday to do whatever I need to do and look presentable enough to meet for early drinks. Or even stay out all night if the momentum is there...


oh, and I'm smiling, as per reader request... :)

These are a few of my favorite things (clothing-wise, anyway)

With apologies to Julie Andrews, Rogers and Hammerstein....

When the alarm sounds, when the time's short, when I'm feeling sad(ly confused about what to wear), I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so bad(ly dressed)...

Big belts: my go-to solution to pull an outfit together.. Literally. I have a few big belts now: a couple obi styled ones (Kaj Ani, who was waaayy ahead of Marc Jacobs' obis for Louis Vuitton, and another suede one I picked up in the young designer's market on Elizabeth St.. Plus a great big black one from Ter et Bantine that is made out of quite thick, stiff leather, so I wear that one when I'm feeling thin and want good posture. I have another black one, but elastic, from Hache (when I'm feeling not as thin, or have more layers to deal with). I saw some black elastic belts at American Apparel, if you want to get one at a low cost. I talked my friend Maria into getting one in Miami. (Hope you like it, Maria!) And I added a dove gray one this year from Hache that looks really good with springier floaty layers. I wear them with everything - over cardigans with jeans so I don't look too much like I'm dressed for doing laundry, and to give blousy, volume-y dresses a slimmer silhouette, or to convert a dress into a tunic by hiking it up and draping it around the belt. Even my ski jacket has a belt. When I like something, I like something.. what can I say? Plus, it makes your waist look smaller. Or maybe it just stops you from eating much. But that also makes your waist look smaller..


High heels: pretty self explanatory this one, so will leave it short except to state the obvious: high heels make pretty much every outfit look better. As a side benefit, I also think that they are better for you than flats. I am currently working on my theory that high heels provide essential health benefits, along with hot peppers and alcohol. The experiments are going well, but inconclusive so far, so I will need to continue this study. Volunteers are welcome to join. I'm getting a little tired of big platforms, though. I like a little heft to some shoes - and a bit of platform does further distance your feet from city sidewalks, but the row of $800 stripper shoes (SALE PRICE!!) that I saw at Bergdorf Goodman and Saks just leaves me cold. Then again, maybe my eye/brain connection is a little bit off. I walked by a bakery this evening and saw that one of the giant cookies on display had I. O. U. in icing. Strange sentiment for a cookie, but one never knows nowadays... (it was I *heart* U, I realized later).


Jumpsuits: I don't agree with the "rule" that you shouldn't wear a style if you wore if the first time. Okay, some trends should never return, and I'm not going to wear pre-teen clothes again, but I felt incredibly cool and fashion forward when I wore my jumpsuit the first time around and I am enjoying their return. My friend Ann wrote about her experience with harem pants in New York and Paris (she stayed with me in NY and looked super cute and stylish in them!) and I think jumpsuits can be a bit similar. Some are definitely easier to wear than others. They are a strong statement - the look is very different from the low-rise skinny jeans that are still the current uniform - and fit is key. I have three now - I've worn the Sue Elen one a few times, it's easy as it's sort of a "cool girl casual" skinny cut. I just wore the long sleeved blouse/shorts jumpsuit, but haven't yet gone out in the harem-pants/plunge neckline yet (the last two both Ter et Bantine). But I'm looking forward to it!!


Structure: I guess this is sort of related to big belts, in terms of pulling things together. On hot summer days, especially on the beach, I do definitely like floaty and loose, but most of the time for work or going out, I prefer looking like I'm not an amorphous blob. And the nice thing about structured clothes is that you can hide some amorphous blobbiness if you wear something that's cut well. And I just think those clothes are beautiful. I'm not going to lie and say they're the most comfortable, but they do look good. And just think of the beautiful relief you'll feel when you're out of them! (same goes for heels, really, and big belts!) This dress is my Bottega Veneta sale find, by the way. Think it's appropriate for a wedding? It's not a good photo, but maybe you can see how it's constructed...?


I have more wardrobe favorites: boots, scarves, cardigans, the right jacket, shirtdresses, and layered necklaces, but I'll leave those for another time... How about you, stylish readers?

Mix and Match

I thought I'd do something a little different this time since my last few blogs have had more words than pictures and been more broadly about style. This time I thought I'd be a little more specific and a bit more personal.

I've mentioned before that wearing something that I like really does affect my mood and can cheer me up as I'm getting dressed for work. (I may also have mentioned before that I get dressed for work at the ungodly hour between 5-6am, so cheering myself up is no mean feat!) I get a kick out of mixing things up like you'd think they weren't supposed to be (such as wearing two different tweed patterns together), or repeating a pattern (like the green circle pendant with the jacket that has green circles on it, or the iguana maryjanes with fishnet hose), or really layering it on (multiple necklaces and brooches) to offset a men's style suit. (I took the jacket off in the photo.)

Now here's the other thing I'm doing differently this time... I know that all of you reading this are very stylish - I'd love to hear your thoughts! Is there anything you like as your personal style? Or, maybe something that you like on someone else, or like from magazines and want to wear? Other things I like to wear - or are looking forward to wearing are big belts, jumpuits, and really high heels, and I'm trying to figure out how I'll approach the return of the shoulder.. What about you? Love them? Hate them? I'll post your photos if you want to send them to me :)