A New York Minute

I'm writing this while I watch the George Michael scene in Babygirl so there will likely be spelling and grammatical errors.

I didn’t end up staying in New York for most of Fashion week because I needed to get home to my family. The amount of travel that Fashion weeks necessitate these days is unrelenting. As such, I have less time for long intros. Here we go.

Rachel Tashjian consistently has the hottest take in fashion. We have so few fashion critics left, so I appreciate that she does just that - critique. Vogue Runway is just a sea of descriptions without any bite save for Nicole Phelps. Cathy Horyn and Vanessa Friedman are the only others I look to for an accurate read of the season.

Still, Rachel stands apart. Her recent article in the Washington Post on copycat fashion is a fascinating read and I feel smug that I share her view on Colleen Allen and Altuzarra. I am always pleasantly surprised by Altuzarra even though the clothes never seem to stay on my mind very long. This time around they did. This look was my favourite — It’s so perfectly elegant:

Colleen Allen is leaning more commercial in the best way possible. Her beautifully constructed shaped Victorian jacket is reimagined somehow with more lightness and ease as well as a more exaggerated hip. Simply put, it’s for me. The sheer slips and gathered gowns were exquisite. This is not the time nor the place to ask how to wear it.

I also want to add that commercially, it’s working. At least it is for us at Absolutely Fabrics which I’m (honestly) pleasantly surprised about. I want it to work desperately because I am so enthralled by it, so thank you for caring.

The Christopher John Rogers show was such a joy to attend. I don’t know what it is but his shows feel like a fun reunion where you get to see everyone you need/want to see in one place. No one is in a rush to sit down for the show to get underway, much to the PR team’s chagrin, and no one is in a rush to leave when it’s done. In between, you get a beautiful, exuberant, colourful break from The Row copycats. The clothing is distinctive, which is saying a lot in this day and age. Whether you like it or not, it’s undeniably CJR and I for one love it.

I ended up missing the Ashlyn show because our pop up was busy and I’m trying to make this my final career iteration, so I stayed and worked. ABC baby! From what I saw online, it was beautiful. I’m excited to be physically next to the clothes in Paris and take some photos of what I imagine will be perfect attention to detail and craft. These were my favourite looks:

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I forgot to pack my Laneige Cream Skin and it was honestly kind of nice because it reinforced how important it is to me. I bought this Boom Boom Milk ( the name is not my favourite) from Violette FR (also a tough name) and it’s a very close second, but a second nonetheless. I am also a fan of the Violette makeup - specifically the Bisou Balm. Lipstick ages me so I always want something light and airy, which this is. Just be warned the lid never stays on so be careful how you store it.

I saw Lauren Sherman (I think?) talking about Roz hair products on instagram and I while I am a New Wash girl for life (a whole Hairstory girl, actually. I use two products, the Hair Balm for when I air dry and Dressed Up for when I blow dry), I do like to mix it up a bit. The Ceremonia shampoo + conditioner I tested out first did not do good things for my hair. Fine. The Roz The Foundation Duo however, did. I brought it with me to NY to test drive and it’s 10/10. The smell is lovely and it left my hair weightless and smooth.

I wore a skirt while at work and I am now a skirt girl — I felt powerful and ladylike. I chose this one by Marie Adam-Leenaerdt because I love a strong point of view, and I thoroughly enjoyed wearing it. I paired it with a vintage Polo button down from The Vintage Twin (they have every used Polo button down in North America I think), and my Khaite Ankle Boots because I wanted some shine next to the tweedy matte-ness of it all. Here I am in my skirt!

Jalil Johnson of Consider Yourself Cultured fame stopped by the popup to buy the aforementioned Colleen Allen Victorian jacket ( in a perfect orange) also wearing a skirt and it reinforced my skirt supremacy feelings. I didn’t ask where the skirt of necklace were from, and they were admittedly integral parts of the whole but we can still appreciate it!

I also love the idea of the slip skirt + Oversized Button down, which I road tested in my room at 7 am this morning (to lackluster results, I’ll be honest - the wrinkles don’t help) here: I think the problem is there isn’t enough strangeness. I’ll puzzle it out and come back to you. Is it insane that I’m working through these things in a “finished” newsletter? Again, this is why I don’t charge.

The skirt is Diotima, here is a cream version. A sweater would be better than the shirt I think. I have this Lauren Manoogian cardigan and I think it’s wroth a try. The shoes are Jil Sander from a few seasons ago.

Anyway I think the idea is right but the execution lacks sartorial heft. I would also try the skirt in a reliably easy black like this one or a pale blue like this one (Pale blue is coming in hot for Spring and Pre Fall, BTW). Maybe a denim jacket over the button down would help — I’d like this one, bonus it’s on sale. For evening I think all the Diotima skirts (especially this one) are top tier, I’d love to see it with an oversized silk shirt.

This skirt world feels like a good place for my new obsession with small opticals to land. Possibly too literal but let’s see! In Paris I discovered what I assume to be the Warby Parker of France, Jimmy Fairly. I don’t love that adjacency but good product is good product. My favourites were the Miranda Sunglasses + The Elvie Glasses, both of which I plan to purchase on my next trip in March.

Just to close the loop here, my favourite part of this movie is when Antonio Banderas becomes the babygirl for a brief moment at the end. Nice.

I’ll probably be back after Paris in March for a recap and hopefully something different and exciting.

X

Kael