{dressing the part} Sloane Peterson...

"He's licking the glass and making obscene gestures with his hands."

She pretty much only wears one outfit the entire movie. Her lines are not earth-shatteringly funny, particularly poignant or full of unheard depth.

And yet.

Sloane Peterson (Mia Sara) is probably one of my all-time girl crushes. She's cool, she's beautiful in a way that isn't wildly intimidating, and she rocks a white leather jacket with fringe harder than anyone in history. It's sort of funny that she hardly changes her clothes at all in the span of the film, but her look had a resounding effect on me. And it was pretty much this, "Damn, I want to be her."

However, trying to emulate her look, as I might try to do with an Audrey film, simply isn't relevant here. I wouldn't be caught dead in knee-high boots, bare legs and high-waisted, pleated shorts. Not on your life. What I take away from Sloane is more of an attitude. I remember watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off in high school, and totally identifying with the characters' "I care, but I don't really care," outlook on their lives and the future. Not to over-analyze, but think I can see that in Sloane's approach to dressing: it's representative of her grasp of trends, her brazen attitude and the fact that initially, it was just another school day. Oh, and her influence as the girlfriend of one Ferris Bueller.

This is the point where I would feel inclined to list a bunch of my favorite FBDO quotes, because it's one of my favorite movies. However, you can Google that at your own discretion, so I will leave you with only this...

"I'd like to dedicate it to a young man who doesn't think he's seen anything good today - Cameron Frye, this one's for you."

 

How badly do you want to watch the parade scene now?

You're welcome.

an affair with flare...

I love skinny jeans. I could write a sonnet about how much I love them. I would use iambic pentameter and everything. I've been in a long-term, committed relationship with them for some time now. Years, in fact. We look excellent together, and until quite recently I thought I may have found The One. (That would be my J Brand 12" Pencil jeans.)

I don't want to leave skinny jeans. I don't think I'll ever be able to walk away from them for too long. However, I'm being bombarded by temptation from another style this season. The flare. The flare has been strutting around town - everywhere from The Sartorialist to Who What Wear Daily (and All The Pretty Birds, right) - looking chic all over the streets and the internet, and I am attracted. Repeat, very attracted.

I'm rather surprised that I'm considering cheating on my skinnies with a flare. They're so not my type! I experimented with them in high school, and briefly with a pair of trouser-cut jeans recently, but I always felt guilty and unflattered. When the skinny jean came along, it was love at first three-way mirror.

The flare is wooing me though, and wooing me hard. I'm imagining a wild, dark, rather high-waisted affair, one that cuts close to the thigh and then gets crazy wide at the toe. To complete the trist? Platform wedges and tucked-in blouses. Perhaps even a dalliance with a few belts.

Sinful? Hardly. Out of character? Absolutely. In the end, breaking away from the comfort zone and experimenting a little with fashion is what keeps things spicy.

Editors, models and the like in their flares, courtesy of WWWD

 Light & dark on Le Fashion

I definitely favor the dark look on the right, but one can't help but dig the easy ensemble with the faded bell-bottoms on the left.

 Saucy Glossie looks so phenomenal in her flared trousers here (left), and the woman on the right, shot by Mr. Newton makes a strong case for white denim. (Though I am definitely not totally sold.)

Jac and Anja Rubik work a classic, dark and sleek look for Gap.

 The Kates Holmes and Moss rocking flares in contrasting ways. 

Below, four of my favorite flared denim options. If I'm going to go through with this affair, it has to be on my terms - no funny business. Clearly, even when it comes to straying from my type, I have a type. I guess my next step is what - take an ad out in the Village Voice? 

"Leggy brunette seeks five-pocket dark denim flare for illicit springtime jaunts in NYC area."

(Citizens of Humanity flare jeans, $229, J brand, $187, Hudson Jeans flare jeans, $123,Mih jeans, $189.)

my picks from J. Crew Fall 2011 RTW...

For the complete collection, check out style.com.

Here are the looks I'm most obsessed with:

 (all images via style.com)

{dressing the part} Holly Golightly & Paul Varjak

Some movies you remember for their classic one-liners, some for their emotional plot lines, and some - for their brilliant costuming. After posting that quote from Love Story, and the passing of Elizabeth Taylor, I got to thinking about my favorite film characters and how deeply my affection for them is shaped by how they dress. My movie heroines are one of my favorite sources of inspiration when it comes to dressing. I try to take the notion of playing a part with me into my closet each time I get dressed.

It's hard to narrow down my scope of favorites, but I thought it would be fun do a series of posts on my favorite well-heeled leading ladies. I figure there's no better place to start than with my favorite movie of all time, Breakfast at Tiffany's. Let it be known I am well aware of what a cliche it is to be a fashion blogger - never mind a girl - who loves this film. Yes, I had a poster on my wall in my dorm in college. Yes, I have dressed as Holly Golightly for Halloween more than once. Yes, I own it on VHS, DVD and itunes. Sue me. I've been watching this movie since I was about nine, and now it's not so much something I play to watch, but something I play to feel. I can't it explain exactly, but I have a down-to-the-gut full-body reaction to BAT. Full disclosure? I tear up every time during the opening credits, and every time she finds Cat. It's strange, I know.

 As far as costuming goes, there is so much to drool over in this film from 1961. Audrey is of course an entity in her own right, but I now appreciate so much more George Peppard's character, Paul Varjak, and his skinny ties, jackets and really good hair. Man, is he handsome, and his clean cut, rather collegiate style looks as good now as it did then. Anyway, instead of the tres typique photos of Miss Golightly in her long black gown and pearls, let's look at Holly and Paul: falling in and out of love and jaunting around New York City...

"I'd marry you for your money in a minute. Would you marry me for my money?"

"In a minute."

"Well then I guess it's a good thing neither of us is rich."

"You can always tell what kind of a woman a man thinks you are by the earrings he gives you. I must say, the mind reels."

My god, the things I would do for those sunglasses.

"Now what's all this jazz about South America?"

"I've never taken a walk in the morning before. At least not since I've been in New York. I've walked down 5th avenue at six, but as far as I'm concerned that's still night."

"Years from now, years and years, I'll be back. Me and my nine Brazillian brats [...] I'll bring them back alright, because they must see this. Oh, I love New York."

(all images were found via Google image search, and probably belong to Paramount pictures or some such giant movie studio.)

{outfit post} interview basics...

Interviews can be such an insanely nerve-wracking experience. I always fret over how much I should brush up on my company basics, what kind of questions I should have prepared, and if I've printed enough copies of my resume. The one thing I absolutely relish about the interview experience is dressing for it. My day-to-day wardrobe can feel mundanely casual, so any opportunity to really turn it out is one I embrace to the fullest. I had such an interview recently, and the look I put together really helped elevate my confidence.

Karen Millen coat (missing a button, blast!); J. Crew shirt; Theory pants; Mee Too flats; c/o Amanda Pearl Gobstopper earrings; Michael Michael Kors watch; various bracelets.

This is actually one of my favorite outfit posts so far on the blog. It's uncharacteristically restrained and simple. No Mr. T gold chains, no print mixing. I also don't think I've posted this J. Crew shirt before; because honestly it took me a while to really appreciate it. I probably bought it five years ago, and hardly wore it before moving to New York.  The fit is out of this world, but the color is just not me. Luckily, I never let it go, and it's going to be a staple for this spring season - I've decided to embrace the light pink.
Everything else you've seen before, but it's sort of amazing what an effect the shirt has on the overall look, right? Here's a side-by-side with the same pants and shoes from last September:

I wore that second look to a show for NYFW. I really prefer to wear the woven brown belt just because it dresses down the pants, and for exactly that reason I didn't wear it to the interview. Even at a fashion or lifestyle-based company, I think it's extremely important to put professional polish above personal style. You can absolutely still express your individuality and taste without compromising business-dress standards.

Take my pants, for example. They are by no means your standard dress pant, they've got a paper bag waist, pleats and are cropped above the ankle. I find that a traditional trouser style can look unflattering on my figure, so I chose an unconventional cut I like more, but made sure to pair it with a simple, conservative shirt. As far as flare, the oversized pearls were my little twist. My MK watch is one of those menswear-inspired pieces that is perfect for interviews: it illustrates timeliness and taste! So I wore it with just my slim, silver Tiffany bangle and no rings.

 (Don't you love Ari's little touch with the tulips?)

 I call this pose - Sears catalog, party of one.

One last note about this look, my hair! I am the world's biggest fan of the top knot. I wear one just like this all the time, for every kind of occasion. It was an extremely practical style for my interview though, because currently my mane falls about half-way down my torso. I love it, but it can be hard to wrangle and a bit of a distraction. I tend to fiddle with my hair when I'm nervous, so having it swept up and away from my face eliminated the urge.

**Confession: I thought about calling this post "Interview With a Vampire" because I'm so vitamin D deficient lately. Then I thought that might be really strange. So I went with 'interview basics' instead, because I felt that was a tad more accurate and a tad less frightening.

one little thing, a ring, i don't mean on the phone...

Of course I'm not talking about that ring, my friends. Good grief. But I do love to think of rings as just one extra little thing, a little treat for your hand - something sparkly or interesting to look at while you pound the keyboard all day.

For whatever reason, my favorite rings were feeling rather photogenic the other day, so I thought they might like to show off for you a bit here on le blog.

Top row: vintage, Forever21, Forever21, Jo

Bottom row: vintage, vintage, Forever21, NYC street fair

 Sometimes,  there's just nothing like a giant cocktail ring to lift the spirits. F21 really is one of my favorite places to shop for jewelry. Is it inauthentic? Of course. Do the rings turn your fingers black occasionally? Absolutely. Does it make me sick to my stomach if I accidentally break or misplace an F21 accessory? Not even a little bit.

This purple flower ring is one I absolutely treasure. It was handed down to me from my mom, and I believe the stones are amethyst. Its just the right size to sparkle but not overwhelm, and pretty without being too girly. When I wear it with the gold ring next to it, which is made up of tiny little flowers, I feel like I have a nice spring garden on my fingers.

tgif...

Because it's catchy, silly, and a great song to swing into the weekend with. The dance break is pretty funny and it really just looks like what might happen if you got your friends together over a weekend and spent a fair amount of time trying to make a music video that wasn't half bad. It makes me want to run around barefoot in a field immediately.
Happy Weekend!

"Anna Sun" by Walk the Moon
(Courtesy of Megan)

tgif: the beardown edition...

We now interrupt your regularly scheuduled programming to bring you a special announcement:

The Arizona Wildcats have advanced to the Elite 8. I finally have a case of that March Madness that seems to be going around.

Beardown red and blue!

Meow.

That's all, now back to fashion-y things...

from NOWNESS: Advanced Style...

"I think it's fun to dress up. It's an exercise in creativity, and it makes you feel better. Sometimes you're in a funk, and you put something on and - Bam!"


Advanced Style: Age and Beauty on Nowness.com.

What a wonderful piece. I so admire these women who have spent decades getting up and getting dressed each day, who still take pleasure out of it and keep it fun. We young fashionphiles can certainly take a few cues from the ladies of Advanced Style both in style and manner.

{outfit post} la vie boheme...

Do you ever have one of those days where without even paying attention to what you're doing, you just start getting dressed, throwing on exactly what you feel like, without really regarding how it will look with everything else? That was the genesis of this look:

 

Anthropologie scarf tied as a turband; Ray Ban aviators; Schott NYC leather jacket; Banana Republic top; BDG jeggings; Navid O'Nadia brogues.

Initially, I had this French girl vibe going on with the boat-neck stripes and the skinny black pants, but before I knew it I was tying a turband around my head and doing my best James Dean in my biker jacket.

How amazing is this jacket by the way? I haven't posted it yet because when I got it, it was still too cold to wear it. Guess who picked it out for me - my dad! Schott is sort of a legendary brand, worn by James Dean, Marlon Brando, The Ramones, and more recently, Blake Lively on the cover of Esquire. It's incredibly soft, fits like a dream, and every time I put it on I feel about 10x cooler than I actually am.

The turband is one of those micro-trends that's become a bit of a sensation among the fashion set. It's a slightly less absurd version of the turban, and much more wearable in case you're not that girl who showed up to Lincoln Center specifically to loiter around during NYFW and have her photo taken by Mr. Newton. It's basically just an exaggerated headband, and can be whipped up in a cinch if you have a large square scarf hanging around somewhere. (It would take forever to type out how here, so I may do a separate post if you guys are interested.)

Moira showed up for a bit... As did an umbrella.

(all photos by Arimophoto!)

a little PFW man style from Tommy Ton...

 

Tommy Ton captures nothing by accident, nothing at random. I admittedly love how that effects his street style photos. There is a purposeful aesthetic style which, to me, creates an interesting juxtaposition between the reality of the subject and the editorialized setting.

Reading that back to myself I'm not sure it makes any sense, but let's just leave it at this:

I love this photo; I love a fitted rolled cuff and some beat up boat shoes sans socks.

So is it just me, or is ankle cleavage as sexy on a man as it is on a woman?

Discuss.

(image via GQ magazine)