Another of my personal fall trends (maybe they are better labeled as "interests," "fascinations," or "obsessions"): tie-dyed things. I'm specifically drawn to the black-and-white variety, or its equally neutral cousins (gray-and-black, white-and-navy), because let's face it, I am not one to pull off the rainbow-hued hippie sort of tie-dyed T-shirt.
The concept first entered my consciousness through Lucky's end-page spread from Andrea Linett, the insufferably smug creative director who has been called "the horsey, manfaced ex-Sassy editor" by at least one vehement blogger. I know, I hate her sense of entitlement too. But I totally developed an infatuation with this tie-dyed cashmere scarf she featured in the some really old issue of Lucky. The very idea of tie-dyed cashmere was intoxicating - such a flippant, casual method applied to such a luxurious material. The scarf, of course, was way out of my budget, but the idea stuck.
A month ago, my dear Annie sported a simple tank dress from Calvin Klein that was tie-dyed in the same way. Of course, this girl can pull off anything, but it really looked good--and versatile to boot, the way she combined it with black tights and a belt. Then, I saw a glimpse of some tie-dye the other week while browsing through American Apparel. Usually I am hard-pressed to find anything worth buying at AA, but the style of the dye almost exactly matched the one in Ms. Linett's spread. And finally, I was reminded of this latent tie-dye obsession when I came across a beautiful, version of the tie-dyed dress in the tambukiki eBay boutique.
Now, I'm torn! Do I get the simple shift dress from Calvin Klein (on sale now for just $20!)? Or the giant and infinitely versatile circle scarf from American Apparel ($34)? Or both? Or do I bite the bullet and invest in one of the uber-extravagant cashmere versions ($200+)?