Dandelion Dance

Vintage The Villager dress & belt. Vintage flower headpiece. Vintage shawl. Vintage flower, pearl & seashell rings. Ribbed tights. Delman shoes.

A lawn of dandelions by any other name would be weeds, but I prefer fields of gold to ones of emerald. My vibrant vintage frock & woven belt is dandelion-camouflage; the cotton dress originally grazed my ankles, but I yanked up its hem a few feet to show off my stems. I serendipitously found a shawl that could be my frock’s sister: Palm Beach-colored flowers snowflake around the silk triangular shape trimmed with fringe – I picture it draped across some grande dame’s piano to keep out the damp in a former life. Finishing touches: flora accents my cap & a fistful of rings shows off my latest tag sale stash.

My Morning Jacket

Marc by Marc Jacobs jacket. Gold Hawk dress. Vintage aiguillette belt. Charm necklace. Hue polka dot tights. Chanel ballerinas.

"It's late in the evening; she's wondering what clothes to wear. / She puts on her makeup & brushes her long blonde hair. / & then she asks me, 'Do I look all right?' / & I say, 'Yes, you look wonderful tonight" - Eric Clapton, Wonderful Tonight

Indecisiveness plagued my usual style resolution, leading me to accept what accosted me from my closet as divine inspiration. I usually take great pleasure in organzing my clothing collection, but lately Dash Snow & Dan Colen (the Nest artists) might've recognized it... An army jacket + Victorian embroidered frock = soldier of love. My aiguillette belt looks like the fabric used to cap soldiers' shoulders, but it's the perfect sized scrap to trim my waist. A delightfully gaudy necklace illustrates my singular aesthetic.

Plain White T's

Appliqué t-shirt. LAMB skirt. Vintage costume pearl brooch (at waist). Vintage chain & tuxedo-locket necklaces. Vintage pressed flower bangle. Tintoretta tights. Delman shoes.

My appliqué tee is the star of this outfit - I wish its flower design jazzed up the back too. I'm considering the retirement of this mini-kilt one of these days (I pinned the wide waistband with a pearl-drop brooch), but it continues to float miles above a pair of bordeaux velvet shoes for now. Traipsing through Chelsea today, I admired Clearview Cinemas' temporary red carpet (a tribute to the Tribeca Film Festival) & thoroughly explored the new Anthropologie at Chelsea Market (my heart remains with the flagship at Rockefeller Center). As much as I adore Petula Clark's paen to the Downtown lifestyle, I secretly prefer my Uptown Girl apartment.

Paisley Park

Anna Sui dress. Woven belt. Vintage flower headpiece. Vintage costume pearl necklace. Vita python bangle (a souvenir from my neighbor’s trip to Martha’s Vineyard). Striped tights. Delman slingbacks with vintage shoe-clips.

"The Secret Garden was what Mary called it when she was thinking of it. She liked the name, & she liked still more the feeling that when its beautiful old walls shut her in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost like being shut out of the world in some fairy place" - Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

Paisley is such a groovy print - it's like taking a psychedelic trip back to the 1970's with your friends while lounging among exotic throw pillows... My frock's indigo girl palette is burnished with lurex light from ten thousand suns & the delicacy of its embroidered neckline is compounded by a trio of glittery gold pearls. This pink python bangle was my prize for taking care of my neighbor's mail one summer vacation - I love it when my karma is on the upswing.

Florence Nightingale

Vintage Ketchum-Uniformer cloak. Ralph Lauren sweater. 3.1 Phillip Lim leather skirt. Pearl-drop earrings. Vintage charm necklace. Satellite cuff. Crochet tights. Lanvin shoes.

Wool capes remind me of 19th century nurses (Florence Nightingale wrapped against the chill as she checks on patients) & boarding schools (a young wizard in dress uniform, rushing across Hogwarts’ campus). This child-sized cloak belonged to a student named Dee Finn (her name is written on the label); as I purchased it in CT, she probably attended one of the elite academies in the area. I revel in my cape’s red lining (revealed with every flap of wind) beneath its conservative navy exterior. Cloaks pair well with a clutch or handbag (no shoulder-bags) – best of all is to forego a purse for pockets. The rest of my outfit is neutral: a beige leather skirt (my favorite obsession) & a pair of gold foil ballerinas.

Oh! Darling

Sonia by Sonia Rykiel darling top. 3.1 Phillip Lim skirt. Bow barrette. Birthday candle necklace. Kenneth Jay Lane elephant bangle. Purple tights. Fendi rubber boots.
"Her body is not so white as / anemone petals nor so smooth - nor / so remote a thing. It is a field / of the wild carrot taking / the field by force; the grass / does not raise above it" - William Carlos Williams, Queen Anne's Lace
Usually I don't like words written on clothing, but I'm not going to argue with this sweater proclaiming me a darling - you'll have to take my word for it. My Queen Anne's lace skirt glows bright white thanks to a pair of purple tights. One elephant bangle + a birthday candle necklace = circus celebration (I admit to childhood ambitions of being an acrobat or a tightrope walker).

American Pastoral

Crochet poncho. Rebecca Taylor dress. Vintage flower headpiece. Studded belt. Vintage beaded necklace. Vintage costume gold/silver twisted bangles. Striped tights. Chanel ruffled ballerinas.
I delight in fancy frocks suitable for both days of playing in the sunshine & evenings perched on the verandah - this silk one is subtly slinky. I layered it under an oatmeal poncho crocheted with flowers whose petals spin asymmetrically around the border. I haven't worn my poncho in awhile, but I'm embracing its wholesome gossamer vibe.
Karl Lagerfeld transformed milkmaids' ruffled skirts into luxe pinafore dresses for the Chanel RTW spring 2010 collection, capturing country girls' hearts & ushering the pastoral idyll into high fashion. I love romping through hayfields, braiding daisy chains & picnicking covertly amidst tall grass - my escape from sartorial complexities... Yet if gardens & their ilk are no longer oases from trendiness, will citified streets become the new country seat?

Mustardseed

3.1 Phillip Lim dress. Linea Pelle tiered belt. Vintage enamel necklace. Ribbon necklace worn as bracelet. Enamel bangle (a souvenir from my mom’s trip to Martha’s Vineyard). Cable-knit tights. Delman slingbacks.
Spring breezes tickled my fancy for this eyelet dress & nasturtium belt. My affinity for all that’s flowery (apparel, prose, gardens) is probably apparent; some of my favorite words are flower names: Petunia, Tulip, Buttercup… I mourn the lost art of picking flowers for their meaning - blooms always have a secret subtext along with the sender’s well wishes. A pair of white tights + an armful of bangles = Victorian gypsy seeking the Fairy Queen’s coterie: “I’ll give thee fairies to attend on thee, / & they shall fetch thee jewels from the deep, / & sing while thou on pressed flowers dost sleep… / Peaseblossom! Cobweb! Moth! & Mustardseed!” (William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream).

Here on Earth

Marc by Marc Jacobs jacket. Betsey Johnson skirt. Vintage leather belt. Vintage Amy New York headpiece. Vintage animal & poison (a souvenir from my sister’s trip to Egypt) rings. Chanel ‘Maxi’ bag. Chanel ballerinas.

"Earth! / Fire! / Wind! / Water! / Heart!... / We're the planeteers, / You can be one too! / 'Cause saving our planet is the thing to do, / Looting & polluting is not the way, / Hear what Captain Planet has to say: / The power is yours!" - Phil Collins, Captain Planet

Green was the starting point for my Earth Day ensemble... I sallied forth in a gingham skirt & my fuzzy flower jacket to prettify the world. It wasn't until I was on the street that I realized I'm a study in coordinating separates: this flora headpiece matches the jacket, while my beige bag/shoes are brothers from the same mother (Mlle Coco Chanel). Eco fashion lines are trendy right now, but there's nothing like recycling golden oldies vintage - use the past to save our future.