Dilemmas: Stuff I'd like to get from the General Economy

Been a long time since we did a "Dilemmas" post.  In this case it's not really a matter of choosing which one to get, but whether to get something at all - or get all of them :)

  • Oak NYC houndstooth scarf, $7
  • Frye Paige dark brown boots, $200
  • Rag & Bone top, $45
  • Free People sequined vest, $23
  • Random Japanese lace skirt, $30
  • Kookai striped sweater, $27
  • Anthro skirt, $45
  • Tulle pencil skirt, $20

Mayle retrospective - I thought her sample sale was coming up, but as it turns out, the sale already happened a year ago.

So it's kind of unclear whether Jane Mayle is really truly out of business for good, because the lease on her store's retail space was supposed to have ended in February, but the site is still functional, and when you visit it, it's still advertising this huge sample sale, to end all sample sales, which happened April 24-25.  Last year.  It's a weird time-warp feeling to flip through the lookbook and sigh wistfully at all the beautiful things I missed out on:

Whatever the ultimate fate of the brand, I wish I could have been there.  Her clean-cut yet easily romantic silhouettes is everything we ask for at Wearability.

For Men: Loungin' in comfort and style

When it comes to clothing, guys are pickier than you would think. But what we're looking for is not so much color and style per se, but more about comfort. Now that is a loaded term, so let me name three characteristics of comfortable clothing:

  • Low maintenance
  • High quality fabric that feels good next to the skin
  • A good fit, so you don't look sloppy

People assume that comfort is necessarily at odds with words like "stylish" or "fashionable," but that's not the case. It's possible to achieve both if you watch for fit, consider color, and commit to the "casual" look all the way from head to toe (if you don't go 100% casual, you end up looking messy).

I've been on a "loungin'" vibe lately and finally got around to take some shots around the house.  Great for hanging out on a Sunday afternoon, grooving to some lowkey music as you putter around the house.  Simple, understated, comfortable... it's loungin', baby!

Here are some of the style choices that's got me inspired to get dressed these days:
  • Colors: Muted earth tones (browns, beiges, seaweed-ish greens and greys) so you can mix and match easily.  
  • Hats: They embody 'ease' because you don't have to worry about doing your hair! I'm partial to straw fedoras because they hold their shape and don't get too hot when you wear them.  
  • Solid color long-sleeved tees: They are super comfortable and are so easy to layer (wear them by themselves or under short-sleeved tees, vests etc). Club Monaco has some long-sleeved shirts on sale and they are the most comfortable shirts I've ever owned. Alternative Apparel also has great comfortable and affordable stuff (Nordstrom Rack carries their stuff for cheap!)
  • Soft cardigans: Worn unbuttoned, over V-neck tees
  • Pulled-back beanies: Worn sloppily on the back of your head.  I don't know why this is so comfortable -- it looks kind of ridiculous I'll admit, but you get a pass because it's got this interesting balance of capturing some of the warmth from your head, but exposes your ears to let off some of the heat.  I've seen this in a few magazines so I can't claim credit for it, but it's so comfy!
  • Lightweight Hoodies - Spin-off of the long-sleeve T-shirt, with built-in "man caves."  Zip-up hoodies tend to be bulkier and have a more youthful, skater vibe (which is cool if that's the look you're going for).  
My two favorite looks (above): 
  1. Light grey cardigan (7 For All Mankind), white V-neck (good ol' Hanes), vintage striped scarf, dark grey shorts (River Island), grey sweater cap (H&M)
  2. Brown henley (Alternative), striped vest (Ted Baker), black straw fedora (Groovin), dark grey shorts (River Island - but you can substitute this with jeans, chinos, etc.)
Love it?  Hate it?  Leave a comment (and send in your own pics if you've got 'em!)

Tokyo Style: Nothing Lost in Translation

There's something to be said about Tokyo style.

Part of it is pure, unadulterated fun. Part of it is sheer crazy. But what is really refreshing about Tokyo style is the chutzpah with which the everyday Tokyo-ite struts his/her stuff. I spent some time in Tokyo in January and in between periods of stuffing my face with some of the most delicious food in the world, I was constantly baffled, impressed, and astonished while people-watching.


The typical Tokyo resident pays attention to every small detail of his/her personal appearance, but since I'm writing on behalf of men, my focus is going to be on men (fear not ladies - I also got great snapshots of some very bold Japanese women).

Perhaps the most astonishing were the men's hairstyles. The amount of product needed to accomplish any one of the looks (see group picture), and the time it must take to pull it off (not to mention, the gall to tell a hairdresser, "I want to look like an anime character but still have movement in my hair!").  Oh, and then the balls to walk out of the house looking like that!?  Hat tip to you Japanese men... well done!

The flair with which men also accessorized was quite possibly the most shocking.  Here I go on about a manbag/murse that looks pretty much like a briefcase, but in Japan men carry bags that would make most American women look like old ladies (no offense, ladies... these men are just that over the top).

But my favoritest thing to watch for in Japan was footwear. Sneakers specifically. Did you know that Adidas, Nike, and Asics (aka Onitsuka Tiger) make specific shoes just for the Japanese market?  No joke. Not only that - not every store has the same inventory. You can go to a store that carries stuff in Shinjuku and take the train over to Harujuku and that store has a style that the other stores don't have yet.  Crazy. And most amazing, Ferrari and Porsche design limited edition sneakers. Who knew?  

The Japanese did, that's for sure.  It's no wonder that so many designers find inspiration here. I did my best to try to catch a few moments a la the Sartorialist but my Japanese is not good enough to ask for people's names, and by the time I noticed someone with great style, they'd already be about 20 feet away from me.  So enjoy these hip-shot candids... I tried my best!

I'll definitely go back someday because a mere 2.5 days in that city simply is not enough.  But if you find yourself there, I can hook you up with some shopping recommendations - just leave a comment or shoot us an email!

Awesome! First "hate comment" on Wearability

Normally I like to think that our readership is a rather civil bunch, so I was a bit taken aback when this comment landed in my inbox this evening.  And thrilled.  Because if you're not pissing people off, really, you're probably doing something wrong.

I especially love how s/he talks about gladiator sandals (an abomination! really!) like they are her offspring. I swear I've never seen anyone get so fanatical about a shoe trend.
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NneNna just commented on the post "Trend that should die: Gladiator Sandals." on Wearability.us

YOU PEOPLE HAVE ISSUES,YOU SIMPLY DONT HAVE A FASHION BONE,YOU ARE FASHION DISABLED,YOU NEED HELP!GLADIATORS RULE AND THE KNEE HIGHS ARE TOTALLY SEXY!!GO TO HELL AND DONT DISS MY BABIES!DONT HATE,APPRECIATE! LOSERS!!!

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Update: This is the image that comes to mind when I read the above comment:


10% off all Moop bags for their birthday.

Moop is one of those etsy sellers that caught my eye early and held my interest over a long time.  I was delighted to see that they're offering a discount on their very well-made, sturdy bags.  They are the opposite of "fussy," with simple lines and a straightforward practicality.

Now the only challenge is figuring out which style and color combo to choose.  Below you can see the Market bag, the Porter, the Messenger, and the Letter Clutch, among others.  Shop at their etsy shop.

This point in time: The real reason losing Alexander McQueen is tragic for us all.

By now I imagine you have to be very far removed from not only the fashion world, but also mainstream news outlets and culture in general, to have not heard the tragic news of Lee Alexander McQueen's passing last Thursday.  I have been examining my own feelings and actively absorbing what people have been saying about it--on blogs, in magazines, and most spectacularly, on Twitter.  The outpouring of grief and shock has been great indeed, but I couldn't bring myself to join in because, to be honest, I found some of these sentiments around it being "so sad," "such a waste," "he was so creative and talented," and simply "r.i.p. alexander," to be neither satisfying nor convincing. And so it has taken me some time to process and share what I think is really behind this terrible sense of loss that we feel.

Because I never knew the man, and only knew his work, I cannot write with any conviction or meaning about the unspeakable tragedy of losing Lee McQueen as a human being, especially the untimely way in which he departed.  I can only write about what losing him as an artist means for us, and how his creations continue to inspire and impact the world we live in.

The death of Alexander McQueen is tragic not because he was, and is, my "favorite designer."  That doesn't mean much if you don't appreciate fashion's place in society.  But I contend that even for the philistines among us, there's room to mourn creative genius in any form.  Many of us are overwhelmed with sadness as we stare at this gaping black maw of a McQ-shaped hole before us, and I posit that the reason we feel robbed is really that we have lost one of the greatest storytellers of our time.
  
A storyteller, you say?  Why yes indeed - I believe Alexander McQueen was a masterful storyteller, right up there with the most skillful film directors, novelists, and painters of the era, before he was ever a designer, or even a tailor (of which he was one of the best).  The tales he spun were dark fables and romantic, gothic fairy stories that reached deep into the very underbelly of our cultural consciousness and always left a subtle aftertaste of terror.  His stories were the stuff of Bluebeard's castle, of Jane Eyre's splintered chestnut tree, of Snow White and Rose Red's beloved bear, and of Beauty's faithful Beast.  They comprised a very real part of who we are as a society.

The Contemporary Fashion Archive was one of the few sources I found to accurately describe the full effect of McQueen's work on the fabric of our cultural consciousness: "His 1990s fashion shows became famous for evoking complex narratives and powerful imagery that often seamlessly combined beauty with emotional disturbance, glamour with violence and fragility with aggression."

For his Fall 2008 show, possibly one of his most memorable and magical collections, which Style.com called "a self-imagined fantasy of crinolined princesses and British-colonial romance," McQueen stated, "I've got a 600-year-old elm tree in my garden," he told us, "and I made up this story of a girl who lives in it and comes out of the darkness to meet a prince and become a queen."

And yet, McQueen was always lauded for being forward-thinking, groundbreaking, and evolutionary in his designs.  He was doing exciting things in his collections, things most designers would never have the balls to conceive, let alone execute and display.  One need only behold the bizarre yet undeniable beauty of the now-infamous 10-inch stiletto "armadillo shoes," from his most recent Spring 2010 collection, so unlike anything we've ever seen anyone put on their feet, to understand that McQueen's ability to explore uncharted territory was unparalleled.  And still, the strange new things possess a heartbreaking, breathtaking, extraordinary beauty.


It was his mastery of so many contradictions, including this ability to look ahead at the same time that he reached fervently and reverently into the past, that made McQueen's work so unforgettable, why these silhouettes seeped deeply into the crevices of our imaginations, and why they were always managed to unnerve and disturb us at the same time they lit us ablaze with desire.  For in his stories we found not only where we've been and who we were, but new hope for where we might be going next and how those new places might alter us.  And in McQueen's hands, we willingly relinquished the fears his designs inspired in us, and trusted his guidance completely on this journey into our own aesthetic future.

And so, while I grieve for Lee McQueen, the man, and the many sadnesses and loneliness he endured as he moved within the shallow and concocted world of fashion, the bigger part of me mourns the passing of a true poet and scholar who had so much left to give the world. And yes, that part of me feels robbed of the unwritten stories Alexander McQueen might have had to tell me, the loss of which makes me look forward into the empty space with a real and creeping dread.

Explore images and videos of the last 8 years of Alexander McQueen's collections on the official site.
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It took me a while to uncover these photos, but I finally found them on the Contemporary Fashion Archive website.  This gallery includes designs from Alexander McQueen's earliest collections, starting with his innovative graduate collection (bought in its entirety by the late Isabella Blow in 1994), to the the infamous "Highland Rape" show in 1995, into the latter part of the decade.  It's fascinating to compare these early works with his later, more mature styles.


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The only two celebrity reactions I found remotely interesting, though they may not be the most appropriate responses to the news:

George Forsyth (Lee's former partner): "The truth is, the fashion world is the loneliest place on the face of the planet. It's a shallow world full of party people and party 'friends.'...It's been fashion, fashion, fashion ... but what about him as a person? That's the real loss and the real waste."

Karl Lagerfeld: “I found his work very interesting and never banal. There was always some attraction to death, his designs were sometimes dehumanised. Who knows, perhaps after flirting with death too often, death attracts you.”
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The Best of the Rest: Some favorite picks from McQueen's other shows, like the divine shredded chiffon "oyster dress" from his Spring 2003 collection...

and the exquisite dress he custom-designed for fashion editor/chick-lit "novelist" Plum Sykes:

The Edwardian/Scottish punk aesthetic of his Fall 2006 show:

The abundance of houndstooth during Fall 2009:

And finally, selections from all the other shows:

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In memory of Lee Alexander McQueen (1969 - 2010)

Could Camilla Staerk finally be finding her stride?

The thing about truly masterful designers (or artists in general) is that they continue to put out new things, play with new concepts and ideas, and yet you can tell almost immediately that it's their work.  There is a certain signature je ne sais quoi in what they produce that you recognize as uniquely theirs.  One might say this is how you tell an artist has come into his/her own and reached full artistic maturity.


I wasn't sure I could say the same of Camilla Staerk's early collections (she first landed on the fashion map almost 10 years ago).  They seemed a bit haphazard and scattered, meandering a bit, like a novice writer's narrative.  There were moments of sheer brilliance and offbeat moments that made you scratch your head a bit and wonder what she was thinking.

The last few collections though, seem a bit more focused, more purposeful and certain.  It's interesting I picked up on the writerly aspect of her work, as Interview Magazine described her work early last year as "dark, severe, literary, and modern." 

I don't know if I completely agree, because a lot of her pieces are also feminine, gentle, and fabled.  Hailing from Denmark, Staerk says she's deeply influenced by the mythology and stories of her home country, from the tragedy of Hamlet to the stark modern lines of Danish furniture-making.  At any rate she's someone I find interesting and will be following in the coming season.

(Gauchos + Boots)(Style + Comfort) = Suitable alternative to (Skinny Jeans + Boots)(Fat-Bottomed Girls)

I am not trying to be mean, here.  I'm just sayin' that while it's truly a great thing to be a fat-bottomed girl (as Queen sang about them), it's not always so awesome to "let it all hang out."  And that means PUT DOWN. THE. SKINNY. JEANS.  Good heavens!  Curvy girls and skinny jeans!  Being in possession of a few curves myself, I do not pretend I will ever look great in skinny jeans.  Or bikini bottoms and knee socks.

Instead, I offer to you a style-friendly, still-cold-weather alternative to that awful, ubiquitous (skinny jeans + boots) trend we're suffering right now, which will do you and the rest of society a favor by flattering those lovely curves of yours: Gauchos.  Plus boots!
Yes, you can still wear those kickass boots and keep your feet warm while the weather decides whether it's going to continue stinking or not. Amazing.
 
The term "gaucho" actually refers to a South American people who were sort of equivalent to the North American vaquero or cowboy.  They wore these heavy, loose-fitting pants thusly:

However, it's a bit unclear whether the modern gaucho pants were actually inspired by the native clothing of these South American herdsmen.  Gauchos as we know them were developed in the seventies as a more convenient, more comfortable, more wide-legged cross between the form-fitting capri pants of the sixties (as popularized by the incomparable Audrey Hepbern) and the bell-bottoms of the disco era.  The result was a fantastically practical yet stylish pant that could easily go from casual to dressy to office-appropriate.  And, best of all, the flared leg means its ideal for flattering ladies with hips and thighs (that is to say, something like 90% of normal women in the world).
That said, guachos are not the easiest articles of clothing to find, and even harder to find in the right length (if you're petite like me, they could end up looking like cropped trousers) or the right fabric (light linens for summer, heavier tweeds for winter).  I culled a few favorites to get you started.

And, couldn't help throwing in the Queen video for "Fat Bottomed Girls."  Enjoy!