Mn Vogue vol. 2

[MarshaBrady]

For anyone who likes to talk about style, nice stuff that they've bought and so on.

Crap, not cramp!

Morning all - am feeling all flustered after the school run, it's very humid and still very warm.

Missed your message Ujj yesterday but am really happy if you have gained confidence in dressing. I also really enjoy this thread - it has taken some time to realize that I do not need to dress like someone's mother - I'm still allowed to be me

Read Justine Picardie's book on Coco Chanel last night, tbh just to finish it, it's excruciating. The very complex and interesting main characters (say, Chanel or Stravinsky) have much less life than paper dolls. Oh except that the author doesn't even describe their clothes - early in the book Coco has a milliner's shop and in the next chapter she is a millionaire, but we don't know what happens in-between. She does not even get the sequencing of events right - we keep hearing a lot about one of her lovers, but he is really only introduced 50 pages later...

Wearing beige wide-legged poplin trousers, a cropped cotton sleeveless top, a big white bracelet and flipflops (took of the jeweled ballerinas and the bright red blazer) - feeling a bit tired after the monster day yesterday.

Realized on the street today that Italian women wear precisely cut tops that hit just right so that the waistband of skirt/trousers is covered but their bum curve stays visible and is often accentuated with pockets etc. I deeply dislike the baggy/tunic-y style that assumes that your hip area needs to be hidden and that places layers of extra draping somewhere where it just adds bulk (exception: peplums, where the bunching is the focal point).

On the whole, Italians are not as much into viscose jersey and cotton jersey tops - their tops are often crisp cotton or soft silk - this creates a completely different, more structured and less sloppy vibe, which I love.

I wish the longline jersey vest/tee + slightly cropped jacket trend would go away (because it influences what type of tops we will get on the high street). I've never managed to get it perfectly right and would much prefer precision cutting (jackets that are just the right length with tops hemmed at the most flattering point).

DonaAna - you are right about the shapeless jersey tops - Mediterranean women don't wear them, whereas in most of Northern Europe they are a wardrobe staple. I think that the further south (and closer to beach culture) you go, the more body-conscious the styles are.

Completely agree about tops. Especially the over the hips thing.

Also think that designing tshirts so flimsy they are see through and pricing at £70 to £100 must be a huge boon, great for the profit margins.

A cocktail party / dinner tomorrow night.
(Was looking forward to wearing sweatpants.)
Possibly rainy, but indoors, need to think about the outfit.
Will probably do something very simple.
Lacy black Marc Jacobs dress? Navy/black military style Boss dress?

A green Narciso Rodriguez dress? Ultra-simple Helmut Lang LBD? RED Valentino LBD?

I agree Marsha - the prices are outrageous for garments that are pretty unflattering and don't last a minute. There's a page on the Telegraph about designer t-shirts.

I tried on this blouse and it is the most richest burgundy in a soft silk. Wonderful. The bow/scarf thing can also be detached.

Trying to find a way to transition into autumn without being bored silly by only wearing grey/black and navy, I bought a pair of inexpensive skinny cords in burgundy plus a thin plum-coloured belt (obviously not to be worn together)

Gorgeous Fritzi love both!

Dona Narciso Rodriguez, vote for green from me.

Oooh that blouse is so pretty Fritzi! (And yy to inexpensive burgundy - I was trying to find inexpensive brocade pants but all the pretty ones had sold out already.)

Yep Marsha will need to see whether it's not too cold to wear the NR (blue legs to match the green dress ). Will need to check the list invitees too - last time there were some high fashion people present

Bonsoir I wouldn't mind paying for good quality but am not a fan of see-through viscose mix. Have a hard time finding a t shirt that is 1) thick good quality 100% cotton and 2) hemmed at the right length. I happened to buy a bunch of very good t-shirts from Argentina in the early 2000s - have searched in vain for similar ones high and low - will possibly re-dye them black and navy Vince and Splendid are quite good but ?? - maybe will just get a few more of them in white.

Oh, and this would be my perfect tee... .

DH just texted from the airport - is back from his trip. Nice to have him back and watch cheesy TV together.

I love the long tops over jeans thing, but my biggest bugbear is that most tops aren't long enough. I think shops are maybe trying to please those who want long tops and those who want shorter tops, and failing on both counts! The only ones I can find that are long enough are the insanely expensive Splendid tops and tanks. I would happily buy cheaper ones, since they never last that long, but I can't find any with the length that are still fitted - these come down to about my leg break, so I can wear them over v skinny jeans/leggings and not feel naked.

Fritzi lovely shirt, very you. Cords look useful too.

Dona I read 'my mother's wedding dress' by Picardie and didn't like it at all - I find her writing style very disjointed and difficult to get into. Interesting that she's obviously successful, there must be people who like that style of writing?

It is peeing it down here. Ugh.

I love those cords Fritzi - I have a pair of Mavi jeans and they're a great fit and have lasted really well.
I am loving the style chat and all your style ideas which seem so much braver than my own and are making me work a little harder when I get dressed in the mornings!
I wondered if I could ask for some more advice please? This time about colours. The woman I went to see described me as warm, deep autumn. I was told:

1. look for colours with a warm undertone and a deeper quality
2. My best neutrals are medium to deep browns and marine navy
3. Wear gold jewellery
4. Always combine light or medium shades with a deep shade
5. Aim for medium contrast when combining colours My colours include camels, tomato reds, golden yellows, forest green, teal blues, corals. I feel a little stuck though as my wardrobe currently has a lot of black in it and I am not keen to get rid of all of it. There are colours that i love this AW (such as burgundy) which are not in my colour palette but I would still consider to be autumn colours. How closely do you stick to your swatches? At the moment I almost feel so stuck to my swatch book that if it isn't an exact match I walk away which feels a little limiting!

The Ash Jalouse boots arrived today and I love them - I got them in the taupe and i think they will go well with these:
pinterest.com/pin/122230577357594308/
I wondered if those of you who had a pair would be able to share how you wear them to give me some additional ideas?
And my final question of the day if you don't mind:
How would you style these?
pinterest.com/pin/122230577357594302/

I am still reading YAWYW Dona - I think there is a little part of me in every chapter worryingly! But it is really making me think through my style choices. I am definitely shopping less, and with more care when I do so thanks!

Shop definitely don't try to match your wallet perfectly - you'll drive yourself bonkers and never buy anything. The trick is to hold things up against your swatches and see if they look 'at home', i.e. they are of a comparable warmth/depth/tone. As a rule of thumb, you can also push the limits in areas where you have a lot of wow colours. E.g. if almost every brown in your wallet is a wow colour for you, you can probably push the browns a little lighter, a little darker, a little brighter and a little cooler than in your wallet and still be ok.

FWIW I think most of the redder burgundies are too cool for autumns, but there are some that verge on chestnut (i.e. they are more of a very red/purple chestnut brown than a dark bluey red) that I think tone in quite nicely with the autumn palette. Bets way is to hold up a good colour against your face, then hold up the other colour and see if you look like a dead lady. And if you think it tones in well, it's probably going to be fairly safe below the waist.

Thanks Hopefully the wow colours for me were ripe tomato colour reds and this shade of oil blue:
www.hobbs.co.uk/product/display?productID=0212-3745-3843L00&productvarid=0212-3745-3843L00-OIL%20BLUE-18&refpage=coats-jackets/macs-coats
I just keep looking in my wardrobe and don't want to get rid of things unnecessarily. When she held a black swatch against me she said it wasn't too bad but that deep browns were better so i think I'll hang onto black bottoms for now and replace as they wear out........

Shop if you color-analyze Kate Moss she should never go anywhere near black - yet can you imagine her wearing Boden... A big chunk of my wardrobe has been and will always be black. Sorry, navy or charcoal will never look as high-octane chic. Nor will brown.

At this stage, you can explore which ones of your new colors you really enjoy wearing. Some of them will look good on, you but you will not like them (I look good in dusty pink and mauve but cannot bring myself to love them). Some of them will look fabulous and make you feel fabulous. When you get the elements right, with the rest you can just ask whether a new item will fit in. And you can always start with tops or accessories and pair them with your old stuff. Put the items you are not sure about in storage - I'm going to rescue an old floral-on-black chinoiserie jacket from the cellar as soon as the weather cools down and take down lots of summer dresses I'm not all that keen on.

Also feel free to skip a season / wait until sales time - burgundy is difficult for me, the coolest ones might work but I've always felt frumpy and wilted in it... I'm actually already looking forward to clear and bright spring colors (but then fall is so not my season)

I posted a few pins recently that feature gray sweatpant chic. You dress them up with heels, ankle boots and balzers these days (party outfit conundrum solved?)

Hopefully iirc Ms Picardie has either written for Vogue or is related to somene who used to be important there .

Oh and there is a little bit of me in most YAWYW chapters too. But I really hope I won't ever have to revisit the mom jeans stage any more

Thanks Dona - i think that is my biggest issue - browns make me feel ten years older than I am (and take me back to the 90s when I had a hideous brown trouser suit with a long jacket).
Runs off to try this look out:
pinterest.com/pin/176414510374594990/

Shop I developed an allergy to brown and gray in the 1990s too. Remember when gray was the color for several relentless years... (I needed something to wear for a summer wedding then and could only find gray summer clothes - until after a weeks of searching I finally found something in light blue )

One of the best things about being color analyzed is finding great neutrals - camel, white and smoky blue are my go-tos - plus living in Italy I see infinite variations of them on the streets every day.

Oh and I love Pin for ideas - rock the Marant look Shop!

I'm an autumn and although I look great in dark brown I tend not to wear it - I find the petrol navy and dark olive much more authoritative on me, so use those as my dark neutrals. Light neutrals for me are camel and oyster (warm white), and I throw in the odd bit of red for colour. For an image consultant, I stick to a fairly small range of colours, but I am a Dramatic clothing personality, so feel much better in slick monochromatic looks than more easy going/colour blocking ones.

I love black. Sort of forget about it during summer. But would really like some stuff now. And yes to the floral/black! Well done for unearthing something Dona

Not sure if blondes are supposed to stay away from it. But it can look so good. Although probably benefits from a bit of black + luxe, texture and all that.

Thanks all.
Hopefully I am a Dramatic too and I think that is why I'm struggling a little. Anxious that I don't become that woman in 5 shades of brown with a 'statement' scarf (my mother!). I liked the look of the petrol blue that is in my swatch book so will try and track that down as a dark neutral and already know I love camel (but I love it when paired with black!).
Marsha I think you've hit on something for me re: black and texture. Thanks!
Dona thanks for pointing out that those trousers were more like sweatpants. I think I was trying to make them way too smart.
It has also occurred to me that the reason I have lost my style confidence is time. Pre DS I had the time to experiment in front of the mirror, now I just sling things on and run. As a result of this thread I now take the time to experiment a little more with outfits during DS naptime! (when I should be ironing!)

January Jones in brocade trousers (Please excuse DM link)

All Dramatics out there, here are some ideas. The colors are soft summer (somewhere btw Summer and Autumn) but you can easily just take the silhouettes and warm up the colors (a richer shade of navy; blue green becomes olive green; fuchsia burgundy, etc).

Another resource: if you want to wear black and white but are not a Winter, what to wear? Something that will look black and white on you but actually has slightly adjusted color saturation so that the contrast is there but it is softer than stark B&W.

Hopefully your go-to colors sound really chic - no point in going all parrot-like. Many color ladies seem to take the paintbox approach too far - reminds me of the customers of the MAC counter here in Rome - many of them wore too bright makeup that looked a bit trashy - it is really hard to resist all those saturated high-pigment eye shadows...

Issimma retail therapy is good and you deserve nice post-birth stuff!

I'm dressed up Dramatic today. Clean-cut cobalt blue COS shift; chunky ivory Marni bracelet; matte fuchsia Chanel lipstick, bare legs, black low-cut satin ballerinas from Zara. The clothes are so simple, yet make me so good: monochromatic with tiny accents of color.

Party tonight is not going to be super-glam (says DH). Am seriously considering my green COS dress with the Marni flower bracelet.

In Burberry waiting to try on rain boots. Taking ages! Also didn't realise how big store is, ok here now. Let's see!