Shopping List: Vintage Glamour

I was out to find a turban hat and an off-shoulder gown. Ever since India, I’ve been dreaming in silk.

I did this sketch last night, and today I visited the monthly Street Market Festival in Highwood, a gathering of vintage vendors who love to talk fashion just as much as I do! Like a mirage, the Barbie-pink turban from my sketch appeared before me. I could not ignore such an undeniable sign from the fashion gods who, Old Testament-style, swept down from above to grant my wish. Sometimes you want something so badly that the universe will conspire for you to get it. This is one of those times.


I began to imagine the woman who once owned this turban. Sashaying through a late-summer party with a martini, what else would she wear? High-waisted cigarette jeans and a decadently beaded shell.




I found a lone clip-on earring amongst the stash of my grandmother's jewelry and it works perfectly with the hat!


Vintage beaded top from ???, AG “Catwalk” jeans, Vintage turban, purchased from the Highwood Street Market Festival, Chie Mihara shoes, Grandmother’s Rolex and clip-on earring (on turban)

Recipe: How to Give a Really Good Gift

This necklace is so far the best present I have ever received from someone who isn’t one of my parents. It was given to me by a close friend who obviously knows me very well, right before he moved to L.A. His mother has a formidable vintage costume jewelry collection, on which I will one day try to post. When I called her up to thank her for her amazing generosity, she told me that in her twenty-odd years of collecting she had never encountered anything else like it. That definitely bodes well. I’m sure several contemporary quotations of this design exist, but you can never quite get back to the sincerity of the vintage original.



I paired this showstopper with neutral pieces, but I would just as happily let it play with a mess of prints and textures.


Vintage men’s shirt from the Covent Garden Rokit, London, Vintage Levi’s from ??, Gifted vintage necklace, Fabindia earrings, Grandmother's Rolex

Back From the Market: Etsy

I ordered these fabulous vintage shorts from PennyLaneVintage on Etsy while I was still in India and I’ve been meaning to post my pictures of them since I got back. Such a wonderful combination of one of my favorite cuts for bottoms, a gorgeous color, and that thick corduroy that just doesn’t seem to exist enough in contemporary fashion anymore. Add some delightful gold buttons (sailor-style) and you have a garment that I could not deny, even though they are currently several sizes too big! I sent them off to be tailored down a few days ago (and they looked very promising all pinned up), so until they return I’ll just have to continue imagining all of the outfits that can come from them.

Recipe: Tank Dress Done Two Ways

I searched far and wide for a long tank dress that was as flattering as the ones I coveted from street style mavens all over London and Chicago. I finally landed on this ultra-soft piece from Aritzia . The criteria that led to my decision are threefold:
1. The uneven hem compliments the length that I envisioned in my mind. I did not want this dress to go to the floor but instead to show a bit of ankle. A U-shaped hem is much more flattering and interesting at this slightly shorter length than a straight hem.
2. The cut of the dress manages to suit my body perfectly. It is drapey up top, where I like to have my clothes hang loosely, but it hugs my hips enough that I do not look like a shapeless sack.
3. The bare-cut up top can show quite a bit of skin (as shown in the first iteration). I like that I can still reveal my body even when I’m generally very covered up.
3.5 (bonus!) The slouchy oversized pocket.

This first version is my humble venture into a tougher aesthetic. Bandeaus are an amazing solution to larger armholes and bare-backed tops, as well as all things oversized. I’m happy to inject some color into this look, and the necklace manages not to compete with the bright turquoise of the bandeau. I love a good tribal adornment, the bolder the better!



Wilfred tank dress from Aritzia, Free People bandeau, Mango belt, MICHAEL Michael Kors shoes, Yokano necklace, purchased in Madrid, Forever 21 bracelet


The second version is softer, and ultimately more me. The salesgirl at the Water Tower Artizia on Michigan Ave. put the bustier with the dress, and it was one of the few times that I walked out of a store with a readymade combination. I could have pretended like this adorable juxtaposition was all me, but I believe in giving credit where credit’s due.





Wilfred tank dress from Aritzia, Talula bustier tank from Artizia, J. Crew belt, French Connection Wedges, Vintage KJL chess necklace, purchased from Persephoneclothing, Etsy, Grandmother’s watch

Back From the Market: India

I just recently returned from a 5-week sojourn to India. While my official purpose was art historical research, I was definitely on an off-the-record mission for gorgeous fashion. And I found it to an excess. Such a fearless embrace of color! I tried to bring back as many pieces as Continental’s baggage restrictions would allow.


Indian costume jewelry. Combining multiple loves.


Dupattas (scarves): cotton and silk. Purchased from Cottons and Fabindia, various locations. Fabindia is known for its dupattas.


Elephant-embossed toe rings from South Bombay jewelry stall. An auspicious purchase, as my research concerned the elephant-headed god Ganesha.


Henna, with rings from Fabindia and E Street Denim Co.




I fell hard for this 60s-inspired kurti. The colors and print belong on a psychedelic music poster, and the shape is so mod! The tiny metal disks along the neckline are a subtle (by Indian standards) nod to the ubiquity of adornment as an important augmentation to and, at times indication of, beauty in Indian material culture. I paired it with streamlined jeans and precarious 5” wedges.


Kurti from Cottons, Mumbai, J Brand 10” jeans in Ink, French Connection wedges, LAK bangles from Hyderabad, Topshop earrings