You could call it the Hanes Principle. The staple of all wardrobe staples, the tee shirt, has undergone a subtle loosening up this summer with a fit that's closer to a men's classic 3-pack than the baby tees (that never looked good on anyone but Kate Moss) or the cropped and sprayed-on fit of the last decade. Or you could call it the Alexander Wang effect. The CFDA nominee for 2010 Womenswear Designer of the Year has re-worked the tee to reflect a 'boyfriend fit' and the average-woman-on-the-street has taken notice.
BelowT by Alexander Wang tee shirt in lightweight rayon jersey $78 lagarconne.com
The shape starts with a skim fit that's flattering to the average female midriff. Time to weed out anything tight or very stretchy. Nothing emphasizes rolls of any variety like lots of elastin. Lightweight cotton, rayon jersey, tencel. modal and silk blends are fabrics that create
drape over feminine curves and smooth over bra bulge. The shoulder has changed subtly from high and tight to a slightly dropped line with short sleeves that are a little longer.
This is a visual improvement over cap sleeves which cut into the fullest part of a woman's upper arm. The longer line of the boyfriend fit is
elongating and flattering when it hits at just above the low hip. Pass on any tee that rides up above your belly button. So, there are three reasons and here are two more. A tee shirt that is shrunken and too tight looks dated and is a look-blower. When you keep your tees modern-looking, you 'll look modern in what you pair them with. And nothing gives a girl more high/low versatility than a good old white tee paired with anything from denim to an evening skirt. This season's statement necklaces look glam not precious with a tee shirt. So look around for a style that works for you.
I recently conducted a workshop and among the most frequently asked questions was " What kind of tee shirts should I buy?" " Should I tuck them in? Leave them out? " "How do I wear longer tee shirts?" Which brings us to tucked vs. untucked. Tucking your tee into low waisted pants and blousing it slightly provides waist definition without any clinging. The half-tuck ( below left) is kid's stuff and looks too sloppy for grownups. If you leave your tee untucked, the hem should reach no longer than low hip or it can have a widening, blocky effect. Choose a bottom that won't look bulky underneath.
Left to Right: Michael Michael Kors plus flutter sleeve tee $69.50 nordstrom.com. J.Crew softspun cotton tee on sale for $24.50 jcrew.com. James Perse pocket tee on sale $49.50
If a slouchy boyfriend tee isn't your look then go with a trim boat neck tee and a v-neck or u-neck that is just slightly more fitted. And a here's a tip: if you happen to find your best fit in a long sleeve style ( check out the Gap and lines like 3 Dots, for example) then buy a few colors and have the sleeves hemmed to your perfect short sleeve length. It's a simple cut and sew job that the drycleaner can handle.
Left to Right: Kain silk and modal tee $90 and Kenneth Jay Lane necklace netaporter.com. J Crew Collection sequin sailor tee in neon rose $ 78 jcrew.com.
The Oscars of fashion is the annual
Vogue-sponsored red carpet fete for the
Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute. But this year's show
"American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity" happens to
run concurrently with an exhibit at the
Brooklyn Museum "
American High Style: Fashioning a National Collection featuring a beautifully curated 85 masterpieces of couture. Along with Elsa Schiaparelli pieces like the surrealist plastic disk necklace crawling with toy insects ( below left) and elegant, here-and-now-looking pieces by Norman Norell (below right), the show has an interesting focus on the forties-a pivotal time in American fashion. Couture customers stranded stateside by Germans in Paris discovered a talented group of American women designers. Claire McCardell, Bonnie Cashin, Valentina (whose designs were worn in films by Garbo and Kathryn Hepburn),Carolyn Schnurer and Vera Maxwell had the business incentive and freedom to express a "national identity' with their designs. Enamored of Schiaparelli's surrealist sportswear like divided tennis skirts and one of the first (if not the first) pant suits they created clothes that broke with the formality and rigor of French fashion.
Claire McCardell had an especially modern design sensibility. With casual and uncomplicated silhouettes, her 'play clothes' pioneered a distinctly American style that broke ranks with the fussiness of many French clothes. We can credit her and Bonnie Cashin ( among others) for the American ideal of sportswear.
You don't have to live in New York to experience some of the collection. The Brooklyn show has a virtual/interactive element too. The museum has partnered with Polyvore, the social networking site where members create and share collages of fashion pictures. Visitors to the
museum's website or to
Polyvore will be able to mix and match the museum's fashions with any image on Polyvore. This should thrill the world's aspiring Anna Wintours to create clever mash-ups of the iconic with the right now. Those who want to see more of the museum's 4000 holdings which include Balanciaga and Yves St. Laurent as well as Americans Scassi and Geoffrey Beene can view them on the
ARTstor digital library.
A few weeks ago, I listened to a panel of fashion and beauty seers assembled by The Fashion Group International. Sarah Brown, senior beauty editor at Vogue had an interesting take on one of the hottest accessories for spring/summer. Nails. In a recession economy sales of nail polish have soared with an interesting mix of colors that are classic and irreverent.
Along with variations on summer classics like peach, coral and shell pinks there are tough, futuristic colors like dark blue, hunter green and silver bullet gray that suggest an auto assembly line more than a bottle of lacquer. Neon yellows and hottest pinks are inspired by fashion's infatuation with sport clothes like neoprene surf gear. They have a New Wave 1982 look and are purely kid stuff. The ageless and modern look? Color with sophistication. There is nothing cooler-looking than a simply dressed woman with an unexpected color on her nails. Well, toes anyway. Some of these colors can be pretty rough on mature hands but toes are an age-free zone so let it rip. The other day I spotted a good looking, 50ish woman on Madison Avenue wearing a very deep blue polish on her hands and feet as an accent to a minimalist outfit. She looked great. Experiment.
My current favorites fall into two camps: Incendiary orange reds and the kind of taupe-gray mashups that looked so great on the spring runways at Chanel and Marc Jacobs. I love the way a fiery red lights up white and a pair of tan feet. And taupe adds edge to any look and toughens up soft colored clothes.
LEFT TO RIGHT:
I have always loved the spectator shoes and sandals of summer. Any graphic combination of chalk white paired with bright color and you've got my attention. Not to mention the appeal of the Chanel ballet flat. The feminine proportion and that black cap toe have a 'forever ingénue' quality that appeals to the inner Bardot in ever woman. For summer I've been spotting many two-tone and color blocked riffs on the theme that are more cheeky than classic. How better to spark neutrals like white, khaki and black in your wardrobe? And in a season of pattern mixes, wearing a print something with a color-blocked shoe (that share at least one color in common) looks style savvy.
1.Kate Spade's sandal combines cream and caramel with fiery orange red $298 couturezappos.com. 2.Barneys New York COOP simple camel suede and gold leather sandal has a two-toned perfection that will elevate any outfit $295 barneysnewyork.com . 3.Could have knocked me over when I found this shoe from Camper - a line known best for sturdier shoes. Nude and black suede combine with a light wedge heel for tri-colored chic. Great with silk cropped pants. Walkable and $149.99 endless.com. 4. I 'll confess I am exhausted by shoe styes that suggests gladiator anything. But this style's sculpted heel, minimal platform and combination of straw textured fabric and cream leather piping reminds me of Manolo Blahnik. Expensive looking but $120 ninewest.com. 5. Okay these sandals from Loeffler Randall are patterned and not color blocked but they have a low 1 inch wood wedge heel and it's easy to see how they'll enhance neutrals and hot colored solids alike. $399 couturezappos.com. 6. J.Crew's versatile two -toned satin ballet flats are dip dyed by hand $118 jcrew.com.
Shorts are everywhere or maybe I am looking at them more closely after reading an article in the Wall Street Journal about how shorts ( especially in lightweight leather) have been given a huge retail push. Why? Because designers hope they might just be the one thing most of us don't have in our closets. For anything but weekends, anyway.
Utility chic describes the new breed of shorts cut in fabrics like tissue weight leather at Celine (above left). Cotton satine and silk blends are refined enough to wear to work with a jacket or out in the evening with a dressed top like Pringle's metallic knit above (right). Finding the right length short is just like finding your ideal skirt length. You want the length that makes your legs look well proportioned; their longest and leanest. For most grown-up ladies this means an inseam of about 11 inches. But finding longer length shorts that look here and now can be tough in a season of rompers, bum-grazing bloomers and rolled and cuffed styles hemmed at the upper thigh. Enter the classic Bermuda updated two ways: with a slim shape and a tapered hem or with a pleated waist and a slightly fuller leg for a slouchy boy-meets-girl look. Legs look better in longer length shorts with a bit of a heel. Nothing towering required but even a one or two inch wedge heel will flatter.
LEFT TO RIGHT
DKNY pleated walking shorts $145. Runway images from style.com.
When rainy days meet hot weather women face a real style challenge. Few things are more uncomfortable than bare feet and legs shod in rubber rain boots. A less sticky but unsavory alternative can be seen when legions of flip-flop-wearing girls navigate the soaking streets of New York. Ack!
Fortunately, a few labels are offering an antidote in lightweight rubber ballet flats and more. Let it rain!
1. Vivienne Westwood Anglomania & Melissa UltraGirl 1V ballet flat with wax seal detail $134. Lady like and the Chanel-esque color combination has a graphic appeal. Want ankle booties or peep toe pumps in rubber? Viv makes those too. couturezappos.com. 2. J. Crew Rainy Day Ballet Flat $55 and available in more colors jcrew.com. 3. Kate Spade Obi sandal $60 for those 'chance of afternoon showers days'. couturezappos.com.
Utility has replaced Flash. So, for now anyway, it's time to pack away anything tight and excessively girly and to embrace an easy going and 'effortless' mix: dressed with casual, masculine with feminine. It's a look that says " This old thing? I just threw it on with these safari pants and six-inch platforms and I was out the door." Of course, 'effortless' is a fashion myth. It takes some effort to look good whatever your personal style.
During a recent radio interview I was asked to describe what 'effortless style' means. Yipes. Whole articles have been written on the subject, illustrated with the usual photos of Kate Moss and Charlotte Gainsbourgh. My answer: " 'Effortless' describes the woman whose ability to put herself together in the right looks appears to be as reflexive as breathing. She knows herself and dresses for her body." Okay, so it was a start but it doesn't entirely define ES. Lately, I've watched a lot of women in airports, lobbies, stores, restaurants and the street and I've come up with six things that are constants in a seemingly 'effortless' look.
Have a few uniforms
Know your body. If you look best in the structure of a jacket or a lightweight 'signature' coat or in a particular dress shape then go with it. Designer Carolina Herrera wears a white shirt most days. The bottoms vary but the crisp white shirt is a constant. Singer Patti Smith, now in her sixth decade, is never without one of Ann Demeulemeester's mannish, tailored black jackets to add definition to her slight frame. Or legendary Vogue editor Diana Vreeland (above) whose uniforms included black cashmere cardigan's worn backwards and matching cuffs on each wrist. It is less labor intensive to shop for updated versions of the proven winners in your wardrobe. It's not limiting. It's liberating.
Above L-R Carolina Herrera takes a bow after her F/W 2010 show. A blazer from Ann Demeulemeester's F/W 2010 show. Both images from style.com.
Embrace evolution. Keep your look evolving. For those of you who've read my book Style Evolution you know I am a big believer in steady, incremental change. Small seasonal tweaks here and there keep a woman looking plugged in to now. The french describe someone who is plugged in as trés branché. This doesn't necessarily mean faddish or trendy to the extreme but rather observant, adaptable and youthful.
Opposites Do Attract - Masculine with feminine is a timeless combination. Menswear inspired tailoring will always look great paired with a soft blouse and statement jewelry. Wear dressed-up pieces with shine with utilitarian classics like the trench coat, pea coat, anorak or leather jacket. Jeans, khakis, white shirts and tee shirts worn with dressier pieces strike an easy-going balance between day and evening clothes.
Below L and R Two images from Tory Burch S/S 2010 whose collections mix high/low and an uptown meets downtown vibe. Both images form style.com.
Wear bold accessories. Few things make a visual case for personal style like costume jewelry. A statement necklace, big cuffs, an oversized ring or two- all transform a simple look. Current looking shoes (which doesn't have to mean sky-scraping or mondo platforms) that suggest a trend will add an essential dose of now to an outfit. I guess where words fail, accessories visually articulate a woman's sense of style.
ABOVE Left: Fenton Fallon for J. Crew necklace from a selection on jcrew.com. Dries van Noten accessories from F/W 2010. Lower left: Michael Michael Kors shoe michaelkors.com. Lower right: Ann taylor sandal anntaylor.com.
One OTT piece per outfit -Whether embellished, beaded, feathered, vintage or just plain over-the-top borderline bad taste - let it rip- but keep everything else in your outfit a study in simplicity.
Clothes should fit well. Too tight. Too oversized. Bad fit and looking 'effortless' are incompatible. Having a few nips and tucks at the tailor makes dressing well effortless.
Oh and a seventh tip: Hair should evolve too. Get the best haircut (and color) you can afford. Overstyled or dated hair is a daily look killer no matter how great your outfit.
Spring has officially arrived and with it the promise of sunny days, warmer temperatures and less clothing. It's the prospect of wearing less clothing that throws me into a seasonal tailspin. Currently, my corpus is paler than an anaconda's underbelly. I don't go in for commercial spray tans. The all-angles jet spraying makes me feel like a car in for a seasonal detailing. No, I prefer a DIY at-home tan. Determined to acheive a golden faux glow (and to wear a sleeveless top to a drinks party this past weekend ) I trawled through my basket of self-tanners priced from spendy to thrify. I freely admit that I am a big self-tanning sucker who is always questing for the newest in orange-free fake tanning formulas. I'll try any product as long as it doesn't make me bleed or cry or turn me into a creamsicle.
Here are some highlights from my stash and some new finds too:
$pendy
Glow Fusion $45 is neither stinky nor streaky. It takes a few applications and a little time to build your glow but for the truly pale and freckled it looks very natural.
Sevin Nyne $35 was created by Hollywood tanning expert Lorit Simon and one of her clients actress/recidivist Lindsay Lohan. Now there is a girl who knows her way around a fake tan I thought as I read that the product promised to deliver "a kiss of color instantly' as it turned darker over the usual four hours. It delivered. My pasty hyde looks naturally sun-kissed in two applications and the formula smells like caramel instead of the usual stink. Thanks Lilo! Both sold at sephora.com.
Scott Barnes Body Bling Original $38 at skinterra contains a bronzer so you can see if you are applying an even, streak-free tan. My olive-skinned gilrfriend looks great with a little Body Bling to amp her natural skin tone. If you are lighter than a washer load of whites you will end up looking orange.
Watch SB's application demo on youtube.
Mid-Priced
Strike Gold Self-Tanning Lotion With Bronzer $15 ( 2 for $20!) let's you see how you are applying the cream to aid in a streak-free finish. A girlfriend (a nubian goddess complaining about her ashy skin) tried this and loved the boost it gave her natural coco color. I'll attest to it's imparting natural-looking color to skin as pale as wallpaper paste. bathandbodyworks.com
Jemma Kidd Year Round Body Glow $28 is a deliciously fragranced bronzer to apply for the day and then shower off. No cooking time required. It has a lovely creamy texture that's easy to apply. Available at Target stores and at target.com.
Thrifty
Palmers Sunless Tanner & Instant Bronzer with SPF 15 $ 8.99 brought to you by the cocoa butter specialists is very moisturizing and perfect for a top-to-toe bronzing. Wear it straight onto the beach and let it cook a bit before reapplying sunscreen.
Don't forget to give your skin a complete exfoliation. I like St. Ives Timeless Skin Daily Micro-Dermabrasion $4.99 followed by lashings of a heavy moisturizer to prep my skin for the tanning ahead. Both sold at drugstore.com.
East meets West and points in-between with this spring's abundance of graphic prints. Indonesian batiks and Uzbheki ikats comingle with Kenyan tribal patterns that mix it up with Chinese florals. Central to this mash-up of cultures and color is the art of pattern mixing and nowhere was the look more vibrant than at
Dries Van Noten and
Duro Olowu whose collections offer a master class in how it's done.
The old rules say that when you combine two or three different prints in one outfit the colors and scale of each must be the same. Wearing an outsized plaid with a tiny floral print will look jangly. A classic combination might combine a stripe of two colors with a floral of the same two colors plus a third color as an accent. But that's the kind of look that can read as a bit pre-coordinated.
So, let's take on the new rules which say mix with abandon and forget about the old rules- but this enthusiasm should come with a warning label. I have seen a few attempts at pattern mixing lately that looked, well, crazy. If you love the look and want to give it a try with your own things here are tips for mixing prints to look confident, not certifiable:
Two images of
Dries Van Noten's spring runway (from
style.com). On the
left: the unifying color is black but the ivory in the jacket is also visible in the black leaves on the pants. Both pieces have pattern placed on the diagonal so although the scale of the jacket is a bit larger, the mix is harmonious.
On the right: The quick take- the blouse appears hot and yellow and the skirt appears cool and blue. But each has the unifying- and visible- colors blue, yellow, red and black. The scale of both prints is the same so the mixture of horizontal and vertical prints looks fluid.
These two looks from Duro Olowu are a beautiful blend of prints that at first glance seem unrelated.
Left: The top and bottom share a bright white ground. They also have the same scale and a similarly graphic vertical pattern. Although the print on the sleeves has different colors it shares the same scale so the look gels.
Right: What unifies these two pieces is the scale of the prints, plain and simple. That each print has only two colors further pulls the patterns together.
Now have a look at your spring and summer prints. Look for similar scale and for the same visible colors between pieces and then have some fun. I have often combined two pieces that have only a white background in common. That's an easy place to start.
Stores and catalogues are filled with the season's natural shades. And while white, ecru and khaki are no-brainers what about these 'off pastels' -brownish pinks, grayish blues and washed out mints that remind me of the makeup palettes you get when you spend $50 at Clinique.
Lots of you have sent questions asking how to wear the season's naturals that I call beigebrownypinkishgraypalebluemintygreenandalittleyellow. Does it look best when you wear all one color? Or is it better to mix natural colors in one outfit? So pictured below are four ways to think about wearing pale tones either solo or in combinations that won't look bland. All runway images from
style.com.
WEARING ONE COLOR
Combining smooth fabrics with a piece that has surface interest is a sure way to avoid monotony in a monochromatic look. Fabrics that are crinkled, crumpled, ruched, draped, and folded like origami are out there in all price ranges. Ruffled edges -especially if they look hacked by scissors, frayed edges, and textured knits do the trick as well.
L-R
Jil Sander designer Raf Simons said he was inspired by landscapes for spring. His ecru sheath combines a textural mix of sheer and opaque patches - perhaps inspired by an aerial view.
Clean lines combine with the raised texture of this Lanvin coat. Note the accessories: a soft and peachy shade looks sugar-free worn with tough, burnished metal chain necklaces.
Donna Karan's show notes said that she was inspired by the wind. Wind or not the rippled texture and frayed edges of her steel gray jacket create a curvy peplum effect.
Flounced pieces worn layered like Narcisso Rodriguez's jacket and top create drape and texture in a clean- lined white suit.
COMBINE MATTE AND SHINE
L-R
Lanvin again for a tonal mix of a matte top and a skirt with shine and drape.
Crinkled cotton lends texture to this
Ann Taylor jacket - an ideal foil for a shiney pant or skirt.
J. Crew sheeny silk linen pull-on pant for an instant look changer with a jacket.
WEAR ACCESSORIES WITH TEXTURE AND A LITTLE BIT OF TOUGH
Burnished metals, rough stones like agate, neutral python shoes and bags, shoes in camel, saddle, or brown keep soft colors from looking either twee or boring.
L-R
Doo-Ri crinkled silk dress - just the kind of shaped but potentially blah look that is an ideal canvas for accessories.
Camilla James' Proud Mary Necklace combines crystals, agate and mixed metals. For information contact nash@succarr.com.
Burnished silver bracelets at Club Monaco stores.
ADD POPS OF WARM COLOR
Salmon and coral boosts gray tones. Yellow, coral and warm saddle brown accessories break up an expanse of pale or neutral.
L-R
Donna Karan, and three images from Fendi.
