Tag Archives: fashion

Fashion

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Scarlett O'HaraWhat do Stevie Nicks, Scarlett O’Hara and Della Street have in Stevie Nickscommon? Besides being awesomely fabulous females, of course. Give up? They were my fashion icons when I was growing up — well, Scarlett’s Southern Victorian diva and Della’s sexy smart secretary were, and then Stevie’s flowy boho hippie came along when I was old enough to make my own style mistakes buy my own clothes. Today, I’d like to think I’m sort of a combination of all three, with some Michelle Obama thrown in. Farrah Fawcett hair(But maybe I’m flattering myself — that’s what I’d like to look like, at least!) I wrote more about how TV, movies and music influence what we wear in my quarterly fashion column for the TimesDaily’s Shoals Woman magazine, in Florence, Alabama, at http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20090624/SW/906239986/1085. On a day when two fashion inspirations have left us — Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson — I’m thinking about how much influence entertainers have over the way we want to see ourselves. And remembering one gold-star day in college when my wings turned out perfectly — my hair has never looked as good as it did that day more than 30 years ago when Farrah gazed back at me from the tiny dorm-room mirror. Sigh.

Art

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Anthropologie Hatch Show PrintYou got a surprise present in your mailbox this month (no — your carrier isn’t leaving you chocolate-chip cookies again): The cover of the June Anthropologie catalog features an original work from Hatch Show Print, in Nashville, Tenn., and it’s a beauty. Hatch Show Print, on Broadway in downtown Nashville, is the oldest working poster print shop in the country. It began in 1879 and became known for its wood-carved letterpress work for country music, jazz and blues performances — and its iconic balance of layout, typeface, color and Southern culture. The best part is that you can wander into the shop and see posters still being made the same way. I’ve always thought Anthropologie’s catalogues were whimsical combinations of style and design and I was tickled to see one of my favorite Nashville spots featured here. Actually, my parents first told me about Hatch Show Print — because they’re cool like that. Our hometown of Manchester, Tenn., is near Nashville, and Hatch Show Print is one of my parents’ usual stops when they head downtown. They took me along one day and am I glad they did. If you’re headed to Nashville this summer, you owe it to yourself to schedule a visit to Hatch Show Print — chock full of presses and prints and posters and typefaces and wood blocks, it’s unlike any other place you’ve ever seen. Check out Anthropologie at http://www.anthropologie.com and Hatch Show Print at http://www.anthropologie.comhttp://www.countrymusichalloffame.com/site/experience-hatch-today.aspx

Bridesmaids

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Rehearsal-dinner styleYounger Daughter was in town from her summer-school classes this weekend to Bridesmaid stylebe a bridesmaid in a friend’s wedding. I Bridesmaid hairlove all the hair and makeup and these-shoes-don’t-work chaos of getting ready — reminds me of  the prom and party excitement from the girls’ high-school days. For the wedding-rehearsal dinner, YD went with simple black jazzed up with purple accents, although she switched these fantastic purple heels for black sandals before she left the house because her feet already were hurting. Then Saturday morning she got her hair done in this sweet sort of loose and messy half up-do that she and the stylist came up with based on a couple of photos and magazine pictures. Both of my daughters have great hair and know what to do with it — a skill they didn’t get from me but I wish I could pick up from them. I loved how it all came together — I thought the pink bridesmaid’s dresses and the orange bouquets were stunning together. The bride had picked out some wonderful metallic heels for the bridesmaids to wear, and after the wedding YD passed hers on to another friend who admired them and is getting married next, probably thereby starting the Tradition of the Traveling Wedding Shoes. I wonder where they’ll turn up next!

Shoes

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Shoes Oh, baby — come to mama! I am so in love with these shoes that I Chique in Oxford, Mississippigot this past week at Chique, an unbelievably cute boutique on the square in Oxford, Mississippi. Tucked in the back of a dress shop on South Lamar Street, Chique is the sort of place that your girly sexy soul sort of sighs in contentment whenever you Chiquewalk in. Chique came about after owner Angel Overstreet had gone on several mission trips to Brazil and decided to “help the Brazilian Shoespeople by sharing our favorite souvenir,” according to the Chique Web site — and she started with her hometown of Oxford. It’s quite obvious that these shoes aren’t from around here, as we say. Every pair was sultry and playful and sophisticated and comfortable and affordable — and talking directly to me. I finally narrowed my choices down to two pairs and had to call in reinforcements and drag my friends from their own shopping adventures to help me decide. I love these because they’re a bit more versatile — the other pair was definitely dressy but this pair can go with anything and even on into fall. For less than $100, too. Jackpot! And, to my dear husband who I know is reading this: I only bought these shoes for the purposes of journalistic investigation. And I don’t think I got the whole story, so I’m thinking a followup visit is necessary. Who’s with me? Check out the Web site at http://www.chiqueinoxford.com

Hair Cuts

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The other day I turned to my college-student daughter and said, “I’m thinking of doing something really wild and different.” After a couple guesses — hang-gliding? painting the kitchen purple? — she gave up and I confessed my secret: I was thinking about ditching my usual hair guy and wandering in to one of those quick and cheap no-appointment places for a much-needed cut. I was at that place where if somebody handed me a pair of scissors I’d chop it all off myself. You know? One day your hair is good and the next morning you wake up and you cannot stand it one more minute. Or is that just me? Anyway, I knew I had reached that I-hate-my-hair point and I knew it would probably be a week or so before I could get in to my usual guy and anyway I’d always felt sort of guilty about the amount of money I pay for a few snips and razoring and hair-styling when I usually go home and completely mess up his creation anyway. So why not try something different? My daughter, on the other hand, had another solution: Go to the local beauty school. That’s what she does when she needs a trim. It’s cheap and you can get in immediately, she said, and the instructors are nearby in case of crisis. Hmm … maybe that college tuition is paying off because that sounded like a great idea. So that’s what I did — albeit somewhat cautiously. The result? A positive experience overall that I would recommend to anyone who Needs A Hair Cut Right Now. I simply walked in and the receptionist checked her list of available students. I got a sweet 28-year-old girl who was confident and skilled and gave me a trim with a bit of a different style — and a fun half-hour of girl talk and local gossip. Since I also got a shampoo and some hair-drying, the price got bumped up … to $13. Definitely worth it. I also got the satisfaction of helping out some young people, which is always good. I don’t think I’ll give up my hair guy altogether, though, especially not for color. And my usual place definitely wins more points on the calm-and-peaceful front. But for one of those in-between trims or when the budget demands a choice between a hair cut and a new pair of shoes (and we know the shoes always will win), the beauty school was perfect.

Fashion

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Capri pantsAre you like me and find yourself turning to seasonal uniforms, fashion-wise? My cold-weather go-to outfit is a black turtleneck with boots and jeans. Boring but classic, I guess. As temperatures start rising, the turtlenecks get folded up and the boots get cleaned and stored and it’s time for capri pants. I remember 10 years ago or so when capris went mainstream again, invoking days of  Grace Kelly/Jackie Kennedy sophistication instead of the dowdy and baggy gardening attire they’d become in the past couple decades. “I could never wear these new capris,” I remember saying then. “They’re only for young girls with good legs.” Today, of course, young girls with good legs wear short shorts and us moms and grandmoms gratefully have made capris our No. 1 summer basic. I love how they’re cool and comfortable but still allow me to sit and bend and move around without fear of … well, exposure. Unlike shorts, you know. But capris are not trouble-free. The problem is finding ones that fit and flatter your legs as well as your middle. Not easy. If the leg openings work, chances are the waistband won’t. And vice versa. And if you find the perfect fit, it’ll be in lime green or electric turquoise blue or some other tropical color that in the store you can talk yourself into thinking you’ll wear all summer but really you wear them only once to the neighbor’s cookout and then never again. That’s why I felt as if I’d hit the jackpot when I recently found two perfect pairs of capris. I had been on the lookout because my only wearable pair of denim capris — hand-me-ups from one of my daughters — had moved from the “wear only at home” category to the “wear only when doing yard work” category. And you can’t get through summer in Alabama without denim capris. Luckily, I scored at Belk’s with a pair of dark denim (Ralph) Lauren Jeans Co. The rise is high enough to prevent muffin tops but low enough not to be matronly. The other pair is a lightweight denim from Gap. It’s a Limited Edition with a lower waistband and slash pockets that I’ll take out and sew shut for a smoother line. So I’m all set — except today it’s sort of cool and rainy and makes me think I need boots and turtlenecks again.

Fashion

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Old Navy little boy clothesWhen my two now-20-something-year-old daughters Old Navy women's blouseswere younger, Old Navy was Clothing Central. We could find whatever we needed there for all three of us: School clothes, T-shirts and shorts for summer, jeans, jackets and even work basics for my office. Lately though, I’ve been disappointed. I don’t know if we’ve changed or Old Navy has, but I’ve walked out empty-handed most times I’ve gone in recently — if I even went in. With grandson Capt. Adorable’s arrival almost 13 months ago, however, Old Navy has regained its top spot for family fashion. I bypass everything else and head straight back to the baby-boy corner, where shirts and shorts like these are off the cute-0-meter. And cheap. In size 12-18 months, each of these pieces was about $12. I think Capt. Adorable’s going to be the best-dressed toddler at the playground. And of course, on my way out of the baby-boy section, I just happened to spy these blouses for me. Perfect! They’re lightweight and fitted just like I want button-up blouses to be and they give winter-weary closets some of that cheerful color warm-up we’re all craving right now. At $25 each, they come in literally a rainbow of shades. Hard to choose — I may have to go back for more. Check them out also at http://oldnavy.gap.com/.

A Week of Spring — Fashion

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Spring fashionWelcome to day No. 4 of A Week of Spring. Before I Spring fashionbecame a grandma to a darling baby boy, I thought little girls’ clothes were the cutest. Not so! Little boys are right up there fashion-wise, especially when it comes to spring style. I absolutely adore these pink and green madras shorts with the pink grasshopper-print polo shirt and the blue and brown board shorts paired with the colorful T-shirts, all in size 18-24 months from Baby Gap. I can’t wait until it’s warm enough for my 1-year-old grandson, Capt. Adorable, to run around in these. He is going to rock the playground. Come back tomorrow for day no. 5 in A Week of Spring.

Michelle Obama

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US President Barack Obama (L) and his wife Michelle (R) meet Britain's Queen Elizabeth II (C) during an audience at Buckingham Palace in central London, on April 1, 2009. US President Barack Obama visited Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace on Wednesday while his in London for the G20 summit. Obama and wife Michelle were hosted by the queen for a meeting, the day before the crunch summit on tackling the world economic crisis. AFP PHOTO/John Stillwell/WPA POOL (Photo credit should read JOHN STILLWELL/AFP/Getty ImagesOh, Michelle! Thank you for being such a class act in LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 01: First lady Michelle Obama arrives in Downing Street on April 1, 2009 in London. Obama is on his first trip to the UK as President and will be attending G20 world leaders' summit dedicated to tackling the global financial crisis. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)representing American women as you accompany your husband to London for the G20 summit meetings. You understand that in your position image is so important and you wore your favorite creative and entrepreneural American fashion designers — Isabel Toledo and Jason Wu — and fresh and springlike sparkles and mint green from classic icon J. Crew. You have been graceful and gracious, respectful and confident, strong and kind. You combine high-style with American frugality and your own sense of playfulness. You embody the best of what we want to be — what we imagine we ourselves could be … if only. You inspire and motivate. We have only one question: Can we go shopping with you?

Shoes

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Spring shoesOh, yes — come to mama! Never mind that a recent Shoes for springFacebook quiz pegged me as classic ballet-flat-wearing.  (Read “boring.”) When I saw these shoes at our local mall earlier this week, I had the classic symptoms of shoe lust: Sweaty palms, increased heart rate, rapid breathing. Or maybe that was from the Spring shoesburrito I’d just eaten. Doesn’t matter. I fell in love with almost every pair of these totally inappropriate and probably wildly uncomfortable shoes. And actually, I believe I had a pair exactly like the bright and shiny pink pumps about 20 years ago — didn’t we all? Sadly, common sense prevailed and I moved on empty-handed. But I can’t get those purple python platforms out of my head. And those brown strappy sandals. And the animal-print pumps. So take that, stupid classic-ballet-flats Facebook quiz.