Archive for February, 2018

A really very picky jeans post

All I’m interested in looking at right now are jeans in dark washes, with little or no whiskering, fading, or distressing. A tiny little bit of that stuff is OK. Good even, because it gives jeans character, and can even cause a pair to be more flattering. But too much of it—and there is so so much of it out there—is way overdone. There are few things I think a person necessarily has to age out of, but super worn-in-looking jeans is for the kids, I really believe.  This pair from AG has a nice straight cut, and such a clean wash you could wear it to work, just about.

This high-waisted dark-grey pair from Topshop has a lot of slouch appeal.

A very all-American choice, from Madewell.

Universal Standard makes the best jeans in extended sizes, and I’m having a tough time finding others I like as well. Thoughts, ladies?

These cropped jeans are nice  and neat-looking, and I like that the waist is high, but not too high.

These Levi’s are just a good kick-around-on-the-weekends option.

A nice inky-dark take with a step hem, from Mother.

Everlane’s boyfriend jean in pitch black is another one I’d consider for the office.

 

 

This pair, from  J. Crew, has the just-right amount of whiskering—which is to say, very little.

A very excellently 70s mom option.

A well-priced pair of boyfriend jeans.

If you’re looking for something black and skinny, you could do worse than these.

Nili Lotan’s boyfriend jean has a nice, trouser-ish cut.

Everlane’s High-Rise skinny jean has such a good dark indigo wash. They remind me of APC.

I like Veronica Beard’s line, and so I’m curious about her jeans. These have a pleasingly saturated wash, and a not-distracting amount of whiskering.

 

Here’s a post I did a little while back on boyfriend jeans.

 

GOACA wardrobe classics: camisoles

Back around 2003 or so, you couldn’t get me out of camisoles: I owned a drawer-full of them and wore them on their own, or—more commonly—with a blazer or cardigan. Lately I’ve been thinking about them again because I’ve acquired a few sheer tops that require them, but also because I feel as though I can still, just maybe, get away with wearing them layered with blazers and sweaters the way I used to. I don’t especially like cotton camis—too clingy—and prefer something a bit silkier. It just drapes better, especially if you’re wearing it under a top. This one, from  Rebecca Minkoff, isn’t left in too many sizes, but is so cute with the embroidered stars.

A well-priced orange option.

More stars, from Equipment.

Just a really sweet floral.

I like the scalloping at the neckline here.

Here’s a velvet peplum cami that looks really flattering.

I am a big fan of the color combination here.

I like the skinny, skinny straps on this (marked-down) option from Vince.

I don’t like too too much lace on a cami, and think this one gets it just about exactly right.

A striped cami like this would look great peeking out from under a blazer.

The blue on blue here is just gorgeous (here is a cheaper but similar option).

Somewhere in my apartment is this Organic by John Patrick cami, which I’d be wearing nonstop if I could find it, because it’s got a beautiful bias cut. And here is another very simply-cut black choice.

I like the clean lines on this pretty blue one from Anine Bing.

Like I mentioned, I’m not a big fan of cotton camis, but I’ll make an exception for this one because the embroidery is so pretty.

 

Here is a post on my favorite lingerie resources.

 

A bunch of my stuff is up on the Real Real, if you’re interested

I’d like to tell you otherwise, but the truth is, I make a lot of shopping mistakes.  And I hate being reminded of those mistakes, so I have not-infrequent closet purges. And while the fruits of these purges in the past always ended up at a local resale shop, this time around I decided to do business with The Real Real, an online retailer with seriously quality merch.  They make it so simple: if you live in one of the 21 cities in which they have representatives, The Real Real sends somebody to your home to pick up your stuff. It then goes on to be authenticated and priced, at which point some of it might be rejected, but they send it back to you. I have updated this post twice because things sell super-fast on the Real Real, so last I checked, all of these items were available. Still, they could very well be gone by the time you get there. Among the items up for grabs from my closet: these  Jil Sander heels, which were simply too high for me to negotiate.

I bought this navy Joseph blazer in a size larger than I typically take—who can recall why, I suppose I was feeling big—and the tags are still in it and it’s pretty perfect.

Just a perfect cotton Ulla Johnson dress that happened to be very unflattering on me: I simply can’t pull off a big skirt.

 

 

Remember last spring/summer, when I was really into camo everything? This Nili Lotan tank is collateral damage.

Another gorgeous print on this Zero + Maria Cornejo top. And here’s a pretty special Cornejo sweater too.

This Alexander Wang dress  reminds me of an ex, so part with it I must.

I unloaded a little bit of jewelry, notably this cute Aurelie Bidermann cuff. Here and here are two other Bidermann cuffs I parted with.

When I was at Lucky, I bought these Prada heels on a trip to Milan. They were sold out in my size, but I wanted them so much I went for a half size smaller. I even actually wore them a few times because I thought they were so cute, but it was torture, of course. And so I offer them to you.

 

What I was packing for the trip to LA I’m now not taking

I was finally getting out of town and heading to LA today. Escaping this crappy, terminally grey weather we’ve been having to instead enjoy a place where the sun shines always and people live in charming bungalows with lemon trees out back. But then Saturday afternoon I started coughing a lot, and then it started to hurt when I inhaled. Saturday night I could barely sleep. So I did the responsible thing Sunday morning and went to Urgent Care just to make sure I was in the clear before flying. And the short version of this story is that the doctor said I have pneumonia, so no airplanes for me. I am desperately disappointed and annoyed, but because I know you guys like a packing story, I’m bringing you this post about what I was going to pack anyway. Which included, for whatever reason, a lot of red, starting with this blouse, which I just acquired.

Amazingly, given my affection for the color red and for striped shirts, I do not own a good red striped shirt. This one, from Xirena is pretty classic and perfect.

 

A pair of bright sunglasses  is such a good lazy person’s way to make a big statement with a minimum of effort. This pair, from  J. Crew, is similar but cheaper.

 

I was probably going to bring my Clare V Gosee Clutch because it packs well, and holds a lot for a bag its size.

I know I just showed you a red Nili Lotan trouser the other day—her ultra-slouchy Paris pant—but I also really like this more streamlined pair.

I was quite enchanted by this scarf when I visited Zadig & Voltaire last week: an unstoppably good print in vivid pink and red, and as soft as my beloved Chan Luus.  But the stylish friend I was shopping with wrinkled her nose at it, so I passed on by. I might have to go back, though.

I would definitely have been bringing my grey R-13 jeans, which I am currently in a quandary over: I wear them constantly and have had them for a while now, and they’re hopelessly bagged-out. I don’t need my jeans tight, but this just looks sloppy. Also they have a dot-shaped stain right on the crotch that probably nobody notices but me. It would be really nice to have a fresh pair, but they are so damn pricey. Still,  good grey jeans are hard, and I have yet to find a pair as perfect for me as these. Did you know there was a survey a while back in which they asked women which items they most dreaded shopping for, and jeans came in second (swimsuits, naturally, were first). I just love knowing that when I get a pair of R13 jeans that they’re going to fit and flatter me, and not send me into a self-loathing tailspin. Because, with denim, in the end, it’s all about fit: find a brand that works for you and stick with them. Maybe even if they cost a fortune, I’m not sure.

If I were to have brought along a third pair of trousers, I’d have packed my Nili Lotan Jenna pants—in fact I’d actually  probably have worn them on the plane because they’re so damn comfortable. I have them in blue, which is almost sold out, but I adore this dark camo too.

I would obviously be bringing along some No 6 clogs—the pair I’m thinking of is grey suede and, like the above pants, almost sold out. So I’m showing you this really good pink instead.

My cosmetic bags are all really trashed, so I’m showing you this Liberty of London one I’ve been stalking.

I travel with a flotilla of hair products, because my hair always flips out when I go away if I don’t stick to my usual routine. But this Davines Oi Oil might be the most important ingredient of all. I apply it after I blow-dry but before I use the curling iron, and it somehow magically makes my dry, damaged hair look impossibly smooth. And it comes in this nifty travel size.

I kept hearing raves about micellar water, which is supposed to be super-hydrating and cleansing, so I decided to try some Bioderma wipes, and they are so excellent at removing makeup at bedtime when I’m too  lazy to wash my face. I haven’t been using them long enough to know if they’re hydrating, but I love the way my skin feels after I use them—smooth and clean and soft.

I always make certain there’s room in my carry-on for a small container of  Portrait of a Lady Body Butter. Portrait of a Lady is my scent of choice, but the perfume itself is too strong for me, so for everyday I use their Hair and Body Oil, which is fantastic and very subtle. But oil is tricky to travel with, so for that I use the Body Butter, which smells so, so good—I have had people compliment me on the scent at gas stations off the Long Island Expressway—and is, I think, more moisturizing than the oil, which is what you want for travel.

 

 

 

 

16 chic grey pieces for (mostly) under $100

I love grey and think it’s impossibly chic, and deal with the fact that it tends to wash me out by making sure I’ve got a nice bold lip going, and/or that that there’s another, more flattering color closest to my face. I’ve included a few grey coats here that are not under $100, but they’re all marked down and reasonably good deals. I have a grey striped shirt like this one that I wear endlessly.

This twist-front tee is good for stomach pooch camouflage, and also looks like the very soul of comfort (here’s a similar sweatshirt I also like).

Nobody can own too many big huggy oversized sweaters.

A three quarter sleeve cardigan is excellent for pairing with dresses.

This embroidered cotton blouse is nice and subtle.

A duffle coat in grey is rather unexpected and even charming.

This grey-on-grey striped boatneck tee looks like a good option for throwing on when you don’t know what else to throw on.

These jeans are a very dark grey—almost black, even—but that’s how I like my grey jeans. If you have any thighs at all, it’s more flattering.

A perfect beach cover-up for those of you lucky enough to be headed somewhere warm soon.

I like the exaggerated cuffs on this turtleneck sweater.

Faux fur in grey is pretty chic, in a borderline edgy way. I’d wear it layered over a hoodie.

This top is Eberjey, so it might be pajamas, but I would happily wear it out of the house, as it has such a graceful, flattering neckline, and I like a dropped shoulder.

A well-cut topcoat is just a good thing to own.

I love the cut of this slouchy tee.

This tunic gives you a nice layered look without any added bulkiness.

And finally: this ribbed sweater is rather quietly elegant, and not too tight, as ribbed sweaters often are.

 

Did you miss the post I did the other day on cute tops under $100?

 

19 tops with really good prints

Tops with really good prints are a nice shortcut to having a “look,” and I am all about style shortcuts this time of year. I think this  lip print is both chic and cheeky.

I ordered this Etoile Isabel Marant top over the weekend, and it came yesterday and is so good that I put it on immediately (with a cami; it’s pretty sheer). The print is unstoppably cool, and is also blue and black, which is maybe my favorite color combination.

I like the idea of dots on a red background. It’s so nice and bold.

Just a very cheery Liberty of London option.

Something about the fact that the dots on this tie-neck top are outlined in black makes the whole enterprise more sophisticated.

This popover looks so comfortable and slouchy, and the print is nicely moody, if that’s a thing.

I enjoy the pops of pink here.

A very feminine choice, and a very good red, which I’m always partial to.

Click through and magnify the image, and you’ll see that this button-down has the cutest starburst pattern.

I’d wear this blouse under a blazer, or on its own once it gets warmer. I think it’s just gorgeous.

Green and black is a rare—and pretty compelling—color combo, and I think the floral here is really sweet.

The stripes on stripes on this crisp cotton shirt intrigue me.

And the rainbow stripes here are just a delight.

The knot front here is excellent camouflage for a poochy stomach, and the print is appealingly retro.

I just think the print on this somewhat splurgy Giada Forte top is so delicate and pretty.

I always like an oddly-shaped dot, and the flourish at the arms here is unexpected and appealing.

This blouse has a somewhat trippy print, but I really like it.

Maybe the chicest heart pattern I’ve ever seen.

This elephant print is just good fun.

Here is a post I did recently on cute tops that cost under $100.