Victoria's Secret Does Vintage?

I'm Always a Sucker for "Vintage-Inspired": I just received a Victoria's Secret catalog addressed to the old tenant (I love that!) and was surprised to see they are going for a new all-around look in their Fall preview collection. The concept and clothes actually caught my eye. In the past, Victoria's Secret has been where I purchase my unmentionables...and not much else. Their clothes always struck me as a bit too I'm-trying-really-hard-to-look-sexy, and that's not really my bag. This new collection is going for a Great Gatsby, Art Deco-inspired look, and some of the pieces are very feminine and lovely. The two particular heel styles below really made me smile -- turquoise satin and pumpkin orange Oxfords. The tops and dresses have interesting little details -- ruffles, layers, sequins, ombre sashes, etc. This stuff could really work for those girly moments...don't you think?


Pleated Bra Top ($88); Multi-strap platform sandal ($78); Silk dress ($118).


Silk tiered babydoll top ($58); Peep-toe oxford ($70); Merino wool embellished tunic sweater ($188).

She's a Dandy, Pt. 2

Here are some practical, fun ways I've found to play around with "menswear." Basically, with a combination of various hats, ties, scarves, and jackets/vests, it's easy to create a look in combination with other basic wardrobe items -- leaving room to make the ensemble as masculine or as feminine as I like. My versions always tend to have a bit of the 70's Patti Smith/Diane Keaton feel to them -- I'm not exactly an elegant Left-Bank-Parisian-Dandy like Louise and Romaine (from Pt. 1), but more of a casual, poor-grad-student-dandy.

"Thank You Sir, May I Have Another?" Dandy:

Hat -gift
Blazer - thrift store
Striped shirt - Old Navy
Tie - vintage
Skirt - Gap
Tights - Target
Shoes - Vintage

"Because the Night Belongs to Lovers" Dandy:

Sunglasses - Urban Outfitters
Tuxedo shirt - thrift store
Tie - H&M
Vest - American Apparel
Pleather leggings - American Apparel
Grey ankle boots - Payless
Adorable black pug named Olive -- farm in Kansas

"Come, Watson, Come, the Game is Afoot" Dandy:

Fedora - Target
Tuxedo Shirt - thrift store
Silk Scarf - gift
Silk-blend slacks - Vera Wang collection for Kohl's
Red-tipped suede platforms - Nine West

She's a Dandy (Pt. I)

Masculine/Feminine: I never belittle the fact that there is still much to be accomplished when it comes to improving gender equality. However, as a person who always tries to see the proverbial glass of life half-full, I often muse over the things that make being a girl seem...well, a whole heck of a lot better than being a guy. One of those things is, of course, fashion. We simply have more choice, more freedom, and generally more encouragement to be creative than men do. I feel grateful that society no longer makes me choose according to assigned gender roles, but rather that I can be an amalgamation of traits that have long been considered either masculine or feminine. Speaking of having the best of both worlds, I've always appreciated a bit of fashion-gender-bending. I find it particularly interesting that ladies seem to be able to take traditional male clothing and accessories and wear them with more style and panache than many of their gentleman counterparts. The famous song lyrics from Annie Get Your Gun come to mind: "Anything you can do, I can do better..."

(The image above left is Radclyffe Hall, lover of men's suits ...and author of the amazing novel, Well of Loneliness, published 1926).

Portrait of a Lady: This picture of the lovely Louise (below, right; from her blog Pandora) reminds me of early 20th century artist Romaine Brooks' self-portrait (1923). Brooks, a lesbian writer and artist during the early part of the 20th century painted portraits of herself and her fashionable friends and acquaintances dressed in men's attire. Like Brooks, many talented female/lesbian/avant-garde artists (particularly in Paris' Left Bank region) began co-opting dandy fashion for themselves. Thanks in part to these talented and provocative women, items such as men's hats, ties, ascots, collared shirts, riding pants, etc. began to slowly trickle into women's mainstream fashion... and continue to do so. Louise creates a sort of Victorian femme fatale with her version of the top hat (view her blog for the full outfit).




(left) Romaine Brooks, Self-Portrait, (1923); (right) Photo originally downloaded by pandora-pandora. blogpsot.com.

Warming up to Menswear: There is something a little seductive about a lady donning menswear, but let's face it, it's damn comfortable too. As I've said before, comfort is at the top of my priority list these days. It wasn't until the past few years, however, that I've actually felt comfortable playing with more androgynous clothing. Hats are a must for me these days, and I've recently warmed up to collared-button-ups (I was traumatized by private school uniforms, so it has taken me a while to recover). I'm also obsessed with Oxfords...but that's a subject fit for an entire post. I think as I've grown older, I've become more comfortable with playing outside of the confines of typically "feminine" clothing, and I like the idea of putting my own touches to menswear and experimenting with the options. I'd love a vintage top hat like Louise's, but they run several hundred dollars on Ebay...gulp. Oh well, I'll have to stick to my cheapie fedoras. Perhaps tomorrow I will play dress-up and see what dandy outfits I can come up with...and snap some photos?


More of Brooks' portraits:

Both by Romaine Brooks. (Left) Una, Lady Troubridge (1924). Peter, A Young English Girl (1923-1924).

Hats off to these ladies:

Vintage ladies donning menswear. Images from flickr.com.

The World's Most Practical (and sexy) Heel?

Hard-Working Shoes: I base my clothing and accessory purchases on a combination of three things: comfort, practicality, and a gut feeling. While the first two considerations seem really boring, hundreds of unworn items and numerous "WTF was I thinking" moments have taught me to be much more vigilante about what I spend my money on. I want my wardrobe to do some serious work for me; I want to be able to wear an item (especially shoes) until they are worn out and I can look at them and say "Thanks...it's been a great run!" OK, if I spend under $25 for a pair of shoes, they are allowed to be a little impractical (for example, my really uncomfortable but very rad neon yellow heels from the 80's), but if they cost more than that, I want some staying power. Because of these qualifications, I have a notoriously difficult relationship with heels -- they have the ability to make almost any outfit "sing," but with so many cute flats out there, I have been harder and harder pressed to find excuses to pull my heels out of the closet.

A Good Buy: So, out of the fear that I might be headed down the path of Birkenstocks and orthopedic shoes, I made it my quest a few weeks ago to find a pair of heels that I would actually want to wear...often. I decided light brown leather sandals would be the most versatile, because they would look great with all of my variously-colored tights and most of my skirts and dresses. They can also be worn more casually (with a pair of great pleated pants), which is a plus in my there's-never-an-excuse-to-dress-up world. In addition, I wanted a heel that was slightly chunky, so the hobble-factor would be cut to a minimum. After much searching and list-making, I found my dream pair on Zappos.com -- a pair of strappy, chunky Seychelles made out of the softest leather...and with the cutest liberty print floral detail on the inside:



These were some of my runner-ups; so hard to choose:

All shoes from Zappos. com. First Row: Frye Amy sling-Back; Nine West Antonela; Nine West Sulliban; Michael Kors Bergen platform Madras; Second row: Frye Gabby buckle-T heel; Ralph Lauren Erin; Matisse Gilligan; Mia Worship.

A New Take on the Cocoon Coat

What is a Cocoon Coat? Many new styles of coats emerged during the early part of the 1900s. Some of the more dramatic versions were a cross between a cloak, a coat, and a cape. Cloak styles during this time began to draw influences from the florid, swirling style of art nouveau patterns, often with oriental inspired lines and silhouettes. One of the more dramatic examples of a popular early-twentieth century coat was the "cocoon coat." The colorful print below by Georges Lepape (French, 1887–1971) from the French fashion magazine Gazette du bon ton (1912), depicts a woman wearing an elaborate cocoon coat with a wide fur collar.


Do I Look Puffy in This? After the 1920's, coats began to get sleeker, simpler, and form-fitting. It wasn't until the 80's that designers started experimenting more boldy again with folds, layers, and volume. I have to admit, when I see voluminous clothing ("puffy," for lack of a better word...or consisting of lots of folds and layers), I feel simultaneously intrigued and terrified. This ambivalence probably stems from the fact that I personally do not feel comfortable wearing clothes with loads of volume, which is due to a number of factors: (1.) I feel more "feminine" in clothing that is slightly more body-conscious. (2.) I already feel puffy, no need to make matters worse. (3.) It seems extremely out-of-context considering my location/environment. Having said that, there is something so queenly and powerful about larger silhouettes. These two girls below, who clearly have very distinct styles from one another, both somehow manage to pull off a voluminous coat/cloak in unique ways without looking like a stay-puff marshmallow.

Images from Facehunter. (left) It looks as if this girl's modern-day version of little red riding-hood was crafted using a piece of fabric folded and wrapped in an interesting way, then tied in the front. (right) This is such a casual, urban take on a vintage silhouette.

How Do I Make it My Own? Since I always try to step outside of my comfort zone from time-to-time, I began pondering ways that I could slowly work some more volume into my own wardrobe. I usually start dreaming of fall and winter around this time every year, so coats have been popping in and out of my subconscious lately. I think my answer to do-able volume is an item like a winter coat or hooded cloak in a neutral color and made from a fairly straightforward material like wool, or tweed. This way, the item is practical (it actually keeps me warm...who can fault me for wanting to be warm?), and the fabric itself isn't too avant-garde or over-the-top (letting the shape take center stage). These are gorgeous and way too expensive for me...but they give me a good idea of what to look for when I go thrift/vintage coat shopping at the end of the summer:



Mulberry Lurex cape coat NET-A-PORTER.COM

Oasis Cocoon Coat black,white,wool,buttons OSOYOU

Cocoon Sleeve Coat - Products - Fashion Addicts

Cocoon coat at oasis-stores.com

It's a Romper, No It's a Dress...No, It's a Scooter Dress

Well, it's not as chic as a Vespa, but it'll do. Too bad it's 103 degrees and too hot to go for a ride...

Will the Real Scooter Dress Please Stand Up: In all of my years scouring thrift shops and vintage stores, I hadn't come across one of these adorable creations until recently. The reason for their seeming rarity might be that practically no one in this part of the country rode a scooter up until a few years ago, but apparently the "Scooter Dress" was quite the rage in bigger cities during the 60's. Looking around the internet, I have noticed a lot of vintage dresses being dubbed "Scooter Dresses," but according to my understanding, a true "Scooter Dress" is a one piece shorts-romper overlayed with a skirt that wraps all the way around. So, when you are wearing it, it simply looks like a mini dress, but you can hop right onto your scooter and jet about town without any concerns for modesty. Too clever!

Surprisingly Versatile: Mine is a lovely ivory and black check number with a cute-but-not-too-cute bow at the waist. It is so slimming too... that always gets a gold star! This type of dress is rather season-less, so it ends up being very versatile: doll it up with some tights/leggings and boots (ala Blythe-style) and throw a cardigan over it for the Fall. Or, just go simple, with bare legs and some lace-up Oxfords. I would love to see more of these around for those of us who are little shy when it comes to the shorty-short rompers that are everywhere right now. Too bad I don't own a Vespa -- my vintage bicycle will just have to do.


Images from Flickr.com. 1960's Simplicity patterns for scooter dresses and matching capelets; Blythe looking mod and fetching.