Embracing Femininity

You know that look sported by seemingly every 20-something Hollywood starlet and cute NYC girl - slouchy top, skinny jeans/leggings, and boots/flats? I am somewhat ashamed to admit that a few weeks ago, I found myself succumbing to its lure. I mean, it seems so easy, doesn't it? Just throw on three pieces - all of which are so nondescript they'll definitely match - and you're done!

Then I made two realizations: 1.) leggings are awful; and 2.) it's just as easy to throw on a dress. And then I realized that giving myself two extra minutes to put together a thoughtful and well-constructed outfit would provide that boost of confidence I needed to carpe fucking diem. And how long does it take to fasten a pair of earrings or slip on a bracelet? Thirty seconds? These are little details that really do make a difference. And so, in the spirit of seizing the day, I'm bringing you pieces for the woman who not only wants to take over the world, she wants to do it in heels:

BR Monogram dress, $150

I love how the stretch of white silk accented by a band of black subtly evokes a tuxedo. The cut of this dress is so elegant and its color palate is so stark, it'll simply and beautifully showcase the woman wearing it.

J. Crew dress, $198

I like dresses. I like lingerie. I like dresses that look like lingerie. Of course, since it's J. Crew, this one's summery linen fabric, conservative length, and bubble-gum color all effectively tone down its raciness. The end result? A dress you can wear at your 9-5, or sipping G&Ts in the Lower East Side, or at Sunday brunch.

BCBGMAXAZRIA blouse, $118

First of all: the color. I love it. I'm trying to incorporate more color into my largely monochromatic wardrobe, and this bright emerald is gorgeous, especially paired with white. Second: the cut. The empire waist, cap sleeves and hip-skimming length are super-flattering and create a feminine silhouette. Third: the details. A dainty bow, exposed zipper and shirred fabric elevate this top beyond ordinary.

Banana Republic Heritage tank, $69.50

From the front: a standby tank in oyster-hued silk, perfect under a blazer during the workday or on its own at night. From the back?

Lovely. The better to show off your sculpted shoulders (Michelle Obama is still your fitness inspiration, right? Good, me too).

BR Monogram skirt, $89.50

I'm definitely gravitating toward pieces that transition well from the office to the weekend, day or night, and this skirt is a prime example. The matte gold fabric is key: it's not too formal for daytime, but adding a few choice accessories and a pair of heels will glam it up when the lights go down.

Anthropologie skirt, $88 $19.95

I love this interpretation of the tutu. The draping and volume are spot-on; any flouncier and it'd be wavering dangerously into infantilizing territory. Wear it with a smart button-down, as suggested here by Miss Julia; wear it with your boyfriend's wifebeater; I'll wear it with my laciest bra as I pirouette around my apartment.

KJL "Skyline" bracelet, $151.50

My foreign-born boyfriend loves watching home shopping channels; he finds them charmingly American. Just like me. Anyway, we were watching QVC the other day, and this bracelet was featured. Kenneth Jane Lane is one of my favorite jewelry designers, and this bracelet is delightfully deco. And from QVC. Who knew.

Anthropologie earrings, $28

They're like little disco balls for your ears. At just 0.75" diameter, they're probably conservative enough for the office, and these babies will catch light and draw focus to your beautiful face.

Pookie and Sebastian earrings, $35

These chandelier earrings are among my wardrobe MVPs. I wear them with everything: jeans and tees, sundresses, LBDs, nothing at all. They're also surprisingly lightweight.

So, what have we learned? Embracing your femininity takes just a little bit of extra effort and can make a huge difference. So consider a dress. Swap out your broken-in jeans for a metallic mini. Add some sparkle. Because you should look good while you're kicking ass.

A J.Crew Summer

It's basically a law that I write about J.Crew every couple of months, and since I last mentioned the Crew in March, the time has come. Remember when I said I would make myself stop buying solid colored dresses? Well, that rule does not apply when J.Crew puts the sale on sale. I'm so good about sticking to my shopping embargo when it comes to full priced items, but when J.Crew throws an extra 30% off code in my face (plus free shipping!) I just can't resist. (And FYI, if you don't receive the J.Crew emails but still want to get some coupon codes, check J.Crew Aficionada before buying online. They always have codes for whatever special is running.)

So a few weeks ago, I discovered that J.Crew has some pretty great dresses hiding in the "beach cover-up" section. Sometimes the regular dress section can seem full of bridesmaid rejects, so I was deleted to find some simple, cheaper frocks. The downside: they aren't quite as thick as you'd like if you're wearing underwear and not a bikini.

Here's what I got and returned:
Saturday Twist Dress, $49.99, in Moroccan Twist (a sort of dark orange). The knot in front was too low for me, making any bra visible, and I also wasn't wild about the color.

Chambray Cara Dress, $49.99. I went back and forth on this one, because it's a really cute dress in a lovely color for summer. But it came out of the box very wrinkled, and it didn't smooth out at all after hanging in my closet for a week. While I own an iron, I never use it, and I knew that if I had to iron this dress before ever wear, I would never wear it. Also, when I untied the bow and tried to retie it, it didn't look right. Also, see-through.

Gabriella Dresss, $59.50, in Portland Grey. I can't resist a good cascading ruffle, plus, the fabric is super soft and the strapless top is very comfortable.

I also returned this belt:
Flowerette sash, $19.99. The blue was so dark that the entire thing looks black, and black flowers are not whimsical or cute.

When I was buying this all online, there was a free shipping code along with the extra 30% off, but you had to spend $150 after the discount. Of course I was about $5 short, so I just threw this t-shirt into my cart and figured I could return it easily.
Tissue mini-pocket tee, $14.99, in soft violet. Naturally, the one thing I didn't care about was the one I put on and thought, "I never want to take this off!" So soft, and yes it's see-through, but I'm willing to do some layering. I also realized recently that because I focus so much on dresses when shopping, I very rarely buy tops. So all my shirts are a few years old, and when I decide to wear jeans, I stand in front of my closet and think, "Ugh, I don't want to wear any of these raggedy old shirts." I'm due for some new t-shirts (that aren't the kind you run or sleep in, because I have plenty of those).

I went to a J.Crew store today to return the two dresses and belt, and promptly got sucked into the vortex that is the well-stocked sale section (at 18th and 5th Ave, for you New Yorkers). They didn't have a ton of dresses, but they did have a full table of $14.99 tees. I got this Flower Cluster Tee, which is $24.99 online but $10 less in store.

I also got a pair of poplin shorts in a blue that's sort of like peacock crossed with ocean (think "largo"), and this dress (which is sold-out online, but the 5th Ave store had another in a size 10):
The Chambray Wild Rose dress, $69.99, felt so perfectly flirty and casual that I immediately knew I had to get it, even though they only had it in one size up from my normal number. But the danger of this slipping down will only force me to stand up straight, right? I am very excited to wear it while lounging on a picnic blanket, because my shoulders are in desperate need of a tan.

Wrapped in Plaid

I think I found my new go-to summer work dress. You know, for when it's 86 degrees and completely muggy, and the thought of wearing pants makes you want to crawl inside your fridge and hide from the world.

It's casual, yes, but I think it's just dressy enough to pass at the office (especially on Fridays). Since Target has the worst models in the world, it looks really unflattering and bulky, but I swear the Converse One Star Ruffle Sleeve Dress, $27.99, is actually very flattering towards your curves. I felt a little Sofia Vergara (Gloria from Modern Family and, for my money, the hottest woman on TV right now) in this dress--wrap dresses are famous for creating the perfect hourglass figure. And what I love about this dress is that the wrap portion isn't too meager; the two sides overlap enough so that if a breeze comes and blows up the top portion, the bottom portion will still keep you covered. I tend to favor the faux-wrap dress for this reason (and I always wear a slip, just to be prepared for when I walk over subway grates), but this dress has the benefit of being totally adjustable. I also dig the tiered ruffles at the bottom, which keep this from being just another plaid dress.

While at Target I also tried this dress from the Zac Posen collaboration. FYI, the Atlantic Terminal Target in Brooklyn had a surprisingly good selection of Zac Posen stuff, and a lot of sizes, but it was a bit weird because they didn't have the words Zac Posen on any of the displays. I'm going to make a wild guess and say that they sold out, took down the promotional stuff, and then unexpectedly got another shipment. Not that it benefited me, because the dress I was hoping to score didn't fit right in either a medium or large.
The Snap Tape Dress, $69.99, just wasn't flattering to my boobs in either size, and with that neckline, you have to make sure your decolletage looks its best.
If it were cheaper I might have done that really, really stupid girl thing of buying something that doesn't fit but telling yourself, "I can totally lose enough weight to zip this up in a few weeks!" But I don't plan going up or down a cup size, so, alas, I had to leave without it. I just wish there was some stretch to the fabric--instead, it's a very unstretchy polyester that reminds me a bit of a raincoat, but it works for the design. Sigh. I love the "sailor by day, dominatrix by night" associations of this dress. Maybe in a few months I'll add it to my regular Ebay search rotation, along with a Proenza Schouler for Target dress (the aqua and white palm tree one) and a Vena Cava for Gap dress (the zip-up tank dress; for some reason, the other dress they did pops up on Ebay every day, but the zip dress is much more elusive).

Tutu and the City

Are you already planning your outfit for the Sex and the City premiere? Did you wear a cocktail dress and stilettos to the first one, even though there weren't any straight men for miles around? Then I think you'll appreciate this:

Yes ma'am, for just $29.99 you can recreate Carrie's opening credits look with the Swan Lake Mini from Fred Flare.

I know, a tutu is pretty ridiculous. But it's also unquestionably fun to wear! When I was a little girl, I took ballet for maybe a few months, but I wore that tutu around the house for years. And even as a young adult, I get a little thrill picturing myself flouncing around in layers of pink tulle. I also really dig this outfit, from the Fred Flare website:
Let's ignore the fact that this model looks prepubescent, because a plain blue oxford with a champagne tutu is pretty brilliant. It's perfect for spring, too, when you want to bust out all your sundresses and halter tops, but it isn't quite warm enough--this outfit has the whimsy of a good spring outfit but won't expose all your deathly white skin. You could even wear it to the office, and spend the day pirouetting by the coffee machine.

Alice + Olivia + Foley + Corrina

I very rarely browse ShopBop, because everything is out of my price range and it's a bit depressing. But I got an email from them this morning advertising a Friends and Family discount code (use INTHEFAMILY15 to get 15% off), so I thought I might torture myself by looking at Alice + Olivia dresses.

The Lexis Strapless Ballerina Dress, $495, is so Charlotte York, am I right? At least in the earlier seasons of Sex and the City--it's a pretty youthful dress, so I doubt we'll be seeing it in the sequel. And yes, I will be seeing the movie opening weekend just to find out how Charlotte's perfect family is, and what adorable outfits she's wearing in Dubai, and also because Aiden looks better every time they bring him back, I mean seriously, goddamn. Anyway, the dress: the colors remind me of ice cream or cotton candy--it's like what the world's loveliest candy shop clerk would wear. I'd like to see it with a belt in a more contrasting color, like a deeper shade of purple or navy blue. A skinny black studded belt might even work, for a badass ballerina (like Zoe Saldana's character in Center Stage) look.

The Clara '20s Bugle Beaded Dress, $440, could so easily veer into costume territory, as it has a very distinct flapper vibe. But instead, the simple shape and art deco beading keep it from going over-the-top, and it looks like the model just threw it on, walked out the door, and was effortlessly stunning. No jewelry, just a little makeup, simple shoes; let the dress take the spotlight.

Foley + Corrina is another label that I like to browse on ShopBop--there must be something about that plus sign that draws me in.
The Origami Dress, $460, is in the same vein as a lot of gowns we saw at this past season's awards shows (someone with a better memory then me could supply some names--I'm thinking Anne Hathaway but could be wrong). But in many red carpet cases, I found those dresses to be so architectural/sculptural that they looked wrong on a human body. But this dress manages to put that very structured design on a dress that's flattering and looks fun to wear. The ruffle up the skirt is flirty and a bit bohemian, while the gathering on the bodice looks more deliberately shaped (it reminds me a bit of the tissue paper roses you made in kindergarten, but done in a high-fashion way)--no matter where you wear this, no girl in the room will be able to compare. I also adore the rose pink silk peeking out from the nude fabric, which prevents the dreaded washed effect that often happens with neutral colors.

Working Girls

Did you actually think you had seen the last of me? I have a ton of respect and awe for Julia - she's so consistent in keeping OMGWDYGT up and running, while I'm totally unreliable. However, I've recently undergone a sartorial revolution on the heels of my new job, and I find myself once again bitten by the fashion-blogging bug.

So, I'll be honest. When I received the news that I had secured my first "real" job upon graduating from college, what I was most excited about was building my work wardrobe.

I envisioned my closet containing a tightly-edited selection of clothing that was both age-appropriate and professional. I figured the best antidote for fluorescent lighting and bitter coffee was a wardrobe that was anchored with reliable basics and then injected with some quirk from a few carefully chosen statement pieces.

The task was more daunting than I had imagined. What has emerged as the most important criteria for finding work clothes is that they're wearable when I'm on and off the clock. After all, if I wouldn't choose to wear something when I'm, say, grabbing a late sushi dinner with my boyfriend on a Saturday night or hanging out at my friends' apartment watching Gossip Girl, why would I want to spend eight hours in it on a Tuesday? Luckily, I've found some pieces that are both office- and life-appropriate, and they can be dressed up or down with a few choice counterparts.

ONE: THE PATTERNED SKIRT.

As much as I appreciate a good, body-conscious pencil skirt (hello, Joan Holloway), there's something so appealingly breezy about this Factory Floral Skirt, $98, with its vivid print and A-line cut. A plain white button-down and basic black pumps look crisp and smart against its colorful palette:

Non-iron fitted sateen shirt, $59.50

Perfect Elle Pump, $155 $99.99

On the weekend, dress it down with an androgynous racerback tank and strappy sandals.

V-neck ribbed top, $48

Venn wedge sandal, $79

TWO: THE SKINNY PANT.

Being a petite girl, my figure looks swallowed whole by pants that have an at all voluminous cut. A streamlined silhouette, like the one provided by these Martin skinny cropped pants, $89.50, is much more flattering. During office hours, this standby pairs well with a frilly cami and, to keep it work-appropriate, brightly colored cardigan:

Followspot tank, $98

Featherweight cotton bling-button cardigan, $62

Versatile slingbacks round out the look:

Karoo slingbacks, $68.95

Off-hours, these pants work just as well with a nautical-inspired striped shirt and espadrilles:

Vintage bateau top, $36

Girlee espadrilles, $59 $39.99

THREE: THE FLOATY TOP.

The polka-dot print is sweet and a little bit retro; the fluttery sleeves and deep v-neck cut - which draw focus to your shoulders and collarbone - make it sexy. At work, this Dotsalota chiffon cami, $138, goes perfectly with an all-business blazer and pencil skirt:

Tropical wool shawl collar jacket, $198

Sheri high-waisted skirt, $148

As for shoes - those standby black pumps, you're thinking? What about these instead?

Madison pumps, $298

I've yet to invest in brightly colored shoes that are also work-appropriate, but they're on my shopping list; they're a pretty harmless way to add some interest to an otherwise conservative look. I'm such a whore for Stuart Weitzman shoes - you have to love that juxtaposition of a classic shape and sexy but not-quite-garish cherry red patent leather.

On the weekend, channel Jean Seberg and wear the top with a pair of skinny jeans and black leather ballet flats:

Skinny crops, $158

Leather classic ballet flats, $98

Amanda Seyfriend and Zac Posen

Amanda Seyfried has officially replaced Rachel McAdams as the celebrity I most wish I looked like. Sorry Rachel--you're still gorgeous, and you made a real run at regaining your title in that sublime Oscar dress.......which reminded me of a Barbie I had with a dress inspired by Monet's waterlilies (I used to be really into collecting the fancy Barbies, and would get a new one every Christmas. My favorite was the one with Eliza Doolittle's white racetrack dress from My Fair Lady, because it had a ginormous hat that reminded me of Kate Winslet in the opening of Titanic). On Oscar night, Rachel McAdams completed topped Amanda Seyfried's cake-icing gown, but besides that, it's been a while since anything Rachel McAdams wore made me go, "Ugh, why is she so perfect? (I hear she does car commercials in Japan. One time she punched me in the face. It was awesome.)

Amanda Seyfried, on the other hand, makes me react like that every time I see her, and I can pretty much guarantee that I will go see Letters to Juliet just so I can ogle her shiny, shiny hair (I'm also interested to see her stick her whole fist in her mouth and predict the weather with her breasts, two things that I don't think she does in that movie). And I've had an old issue of Vogue sitting on my desk for a week, open to this page, just to remind myself that perfection is possible:
So gorgeous, right? She's perfectly walking the line between classic and fresh--she has the loose screen siren girls and curvy figure, but looks clean-faced and wholesome. It's like when you see photos of Dita von Teese and think, "She looks amazing, but not quite human..." but here Amanda took that over-the-top look and translated it into an everyday, just hanging at Coney Island outfit. I adored it even more when I saw photos of the dress online. On Amanda, it looks like a staple of your fantasy wardrobe. On this model, it looks like something you'd see at a thrift store and think, "Oh man, if only this were a little less weird..."
Those sleeves! Why are those sleeves ripped open?! It ruins everything for me, because it's one of those really unnecessary designer-y things. It doesn't help that the model has very strange proportions--her neck, in particular, is freaking me out. I should mention that this dress is from Zac Posen's new lower-priced collection, Z Spoke. Of course, "lower-priced" is relative, as this Silk Polka Dot Flared Dress is $495, and then it'll be an extra $15 bucks or so to get your tailor to fix those god awful sleeves. The solid version is a little less offensive to my eyes, since it's in a gorgeous merlot red.

In the Vogue article that the Amanda Seyfried photo is from, Zac Posen does a lot of patting himself on the back for having this new "affordable" line. But it's such a joke, just like every "Steal of the Month" feature. A 500 dollar dress is not affordable! It's not a steal! In New York, it's half a month's rent; in Phoenix, it's 2 months rent. I know that complaining about how Vogue is out of touch with the real world is as old as complaining about bad weather, but I still see red when I read, "Posen is keen to come up with prices that won't break the bank ($78 to a bit over $600). 'T-shirts at T-shirt prices' is how he puts it." Zac Posen obviously hasn't been to a Gap ever in his life, because T-shirt prices should be somewhere between $20 and $30 (if you're too impatient to wait for that v-neck to go on sale). This Z spoke t-shirt--cotton, jersey, and ugly as sin--is $98.

But hey, Zac Posen is doing a collection for Target that comes out on April 25th, and hope springs eternal! Sure, his pieces seem to be at a higher price point that previous Target collaborations, but maybe that'll translate into higher quality. I'm intrigued in a few dresses, but as always, I won't know until I see them in person if they're hideous or awesome. This first dress is so weird that it just might work--it's like sailor meets punk:
And this dress is just pure glam fun:

Wow, this post meandered a bit. Shall we bring it all back with a final appreciation of the late Lily Cane's perfect hair?

Have I been wrong about rompers?

I'm 100% positive that if I went to Coachella, I would spend the entire time nudging my friends and saying, "Did you see that girl's fugly ass outfit? She looks like she fell on the tracks of a Brooklyn bound L train." It'd be like the one time I tried to see Vampire Weekend in Central Park, and while in line tried surreptitiously to photograph a girl with a raccoon tail on her purse. The hipster style is not for me, but I have to admit, this outfit is sort of really cute (via Refinery 29):Between the leather belt and the old-fashioned halter and the sweet white shoes, this hipster girl has managed to make the romper retro-classy. Miracle! And I'll admit, a romper might be a good choice at a music festival, when you'll be sweating a lot but also sitting on the ground (making a dress a bad choice). My only misgiving--besides that all rompers should be burned in a fire--is that you would have to get totally naked while using the Port-a-Potty, which seems very dangerous.

My resistance must be wearing down, because I got an email from Urban Outfitters today and thought, "What a cute dress...no wait, it's a romper...and it's still cute?"

Pins and Needles Eyelet Romper, $58

I'm just a sucker for white eyelet fabric and a waist sash.

There's another UO romper that I'm almost too embarrassed to admit I like, because it's very self-consciously hipster.

Samantha Pleet Run Amok Romper, $178

First, let's all acknowledge that this model looks hideously malnourished--her face is screaming, "I haven't eaten in so long that I've completely lost the will to live, and thus am unable to take this ridiculous hat off." That said, look at that super fun fruity print! Don't you want to wear it on a picnic, after going to your local farmer's market for fresh mangoes? The print reminds me of something Betty would wear on Mad Men, in between yelling at Sally and pretending her marriage isn't a nightmare. Of course, she'd wear it as a dress with a full skirt and actual undergarments, and look all the more glamorous. But she wouldn't be able to sit Indian-style on the ground in a dress.

Le Chapeau

$5 sale at Urban Outfitters makes me think...
...maybe I do need a straw bowler hat!

There was a feature in Vogue last year that featured all these fabulous hats, and ever since I've wanted a menswear-inspired chapeau of my own.

Although it seems like Common Sense 101 that you shouldn't wear a fancy hat on a boat, because will you lose it in approximately 7 seconds.

Betsey Johnson and My Dream Dress

I'm always impressed by how accurate the ads on Facebook are. It's always Modcloth ad, book ad, dating ad. Congratulations, Facebook, you've got me completely figured out. Anyway, this dress was in the most recent Modcloth ad, and I thought, "How adorable! And since it's Mod, it will probably be affordable!"


Alas! This dress is by Betsey Johnson, and the Iona Dress costs a cool $485. But oh, it is so fun! Betsey Johnson is not known for her restraint, which I identify with--when I was a kid, my mom felt compelled to make an extra large donation to the class arts and crafts supplies, because she knew I would cover any project with glitter, glue, markers, stickers, and dried macaroni. This dress is the equivalent of my early artwork, with the embroidery, lace, tulle, and big old sash with a bow in the back. It's totally over-the-top, but sometimes a girl needs a dress like that. Just ask Miley!

Alex and I went to see The Last Song... for the lulz, I swear! We spent the whole movie making snarky comments about Miley's "acting" and Nicholas Sparks's "writing," but we both agreed that this dress was a winner. It's a tea length, around the shins, and it looks so fresh and young that I can't help but be jealous of Miley for getting to wear it (and also for getting to hang out in Tybee Island, Georgia, which looks absolutely gorgeous). It reminds me of that giant poofy dress (Oscar de la Renta?) that Carrie wore when she went to Paris with Aleksandr. And so, while I will not be buying the Betsey Johnson dress, I will continue to dream of the frilly confection of a dress of my dreams.