Business Grunge OOTD

Alma Mater Blazer from Anthropologie
Ann Taylor LOFT top

Juicy Couture bow skirt

Spanx tights

Doc Martens

Boot socks from Kohls

Vintage Coach Satchel

Remember all those romantic 90s comedies that featured quirky female protagonists wearing sportcoat style blazers with combat boots, booties, or creepers? No? Maybe I dreamed it? Maybe it was because I was wearing my Lisa Loeb-est glasses? Regardless, I swear in films like If Lucy Fell,  Miami Rhapsody, Husbands and Wives, Reality Bites, Singles, and the like, quirky lady leads wore cognitively dissonant pairings of pieces like the above. All of them inspired my decision to wear a pretty silly outfit for yesterday's trip to Ross Park Mall.

When I was able to track down an Alma Mater blazer on sale with the extra 25% off thanks to the community over at Effortless Anthropologie, I was thrilled. I wanted the blazer for a while but knew it was an odd piece that would require odd styling.  And I knew I wasn't really dressed age, weather, or style appropriate. But I didn't care because it will almost always be the 90s in my heart. BTW I didn't mean to look so winsome in the middle photo but Chris was in the doorway groaning at my vanity (or just being impatient but wanting to leave the room without being in my photo).

Shameless Plug: Vote for ME!!

(MBMJ dress and bag; photo from summer 2008)

Hi guys. I entered In Pursuit of Pretty Things' Netflix Contest, where Carol and Kathryn asked readers to submit a movie-inspired look. I remembered the subconscious influence that Troop Beverly Hills had on my decision to buy this Marc by Marc Jacobs dress a few years back and decided to submit. Although I'm trailing by a lot (the entries are really amazing and mine is unfortunately kind of interpretative rather than literal), I figured it couldn't hurt to get a boost.

Shelly Long's character in the staid Troop Leader uniform.

 Shelly Long in her custom redesign!

To vote (for me or one of the others):

Go here. Vote for number 7 (or whoever you like, of course). No sign-up or email required! Thank you in advance!!

Two Paths Rainforest Morning Dress Suit

The other week when I was visiting my local Anthropologie, I was hoping to track down the Rainforest Morning shirtdress on sale. My store had shipped their's elsewhere, so they had to run a store search. I was told to expect the dress from Charlotte in a few days. Well a week and a half went by with no sign of a package so I called my store which called the other store. Eventually it was determined that the order got mistakenly put back on the sales racks and my dress was never on the way to me. A Charlotte store employee called with apologies and promised to overnight the dress to me. After a lot of rigmarole during which I was sure I'd never have this dress, it arrived. And I was excited to make my "Two Paths Rainforest Morning" dresssuit idea a reality.

I've long been inspired by 1960s fashions and I adored the trend of having a dress with a matching jacket. And although I wasn't too enamored of the plot, one of my favorite aspects of Down With Love, the filmic satire of 1960s fast-talking screwball romantic comedy farce, was the style. The clothing and the set designs were gorgeous.

Specifically, I recall this restaurant scene, during which the two female leads unveil that their amazing coats have lining designed to match their beautiful dresses.

 

Short of unearthing something similar from fancier, well edited vintage clothing stores, I was skeptical I'd ever have such a moment. And other than a few vintage polyester numbers, so thick they were almost unwearable, I have never even had my own proper dress suit like Tippi Hedren's in The Birds or Audrey Hepburn's in Charade. This was my chance.

Rainforest Morning Shirtdress
Idra Two Paths Trenchcoat
Cynthia Rowley handbag
Marc by Marc Jacobs pumps
Sure it isn't quite as grand as film narrative, but I am pretty thrilled.

I will have to carry it with me carefully to expose the lining with pride.

Does anyone else have a bizarre fascination with the matchy matchy outfits peppering so many of my favorite stylish films? There have to be more movies that include depictions like the above. But I can't think of any.

Movie March: Stylish Films Make Me Yearn for a More Stylish Life

March weather might offer the hypothetical promise of sunny and warm afternoons, but more often, March delivers the leftover bitter cold of February. For some, this is a problem. For me it means more time to wear my favorite winter coats, thick tights, and warm scarves. It also offers a few more weeks to nest and take in some movies.

Films are often a fantastic source of style inspiration. The streamlined sheath dresses and slick updos of Tippi Hedren in Alfred Hitchcock's classic, The Birds makes me long for platinum blonde hair, the perfect frame shaped handbag, and a mint green dress suit. I often gravitate toward pieces that allow me to recreate or at least pay homage to some of my favorite iconic looks from classic films. But these looks don't always come from the most critically acclaimed, intellectual films. Often they come from the films I adored as a child.

When I was very young, my favorite of the Disney films was Alice in Wonderland. I adored Alice's timeless outfit of the blue fit and flare, peter-pan collared dress with a crisp white apron, tights, and black mary janes. The search for the perfect fit and flare, peter pan collared dress still consumes me, but in the meanwhile, I found this blue A.P.C. pleated number.

In the late 1980s, I became obsessed with the movie, Troop Beverly Hills. In a pivotal scene, Jenny Lewis and her troop gal pals staged a fashion show where they modernized their uniform to great effect. This was only after Shelly Long's character (the troop leader) had her uniform completely redesigned as you can see in the screen cap sequence below:

I think part of why I became consumed by this Marc by Marc Jacobs Geo Gems Shantung dress was that it reminded me of a modernized girl scout uniform.

In the 90s my favorite films also included some of my favorite stylish looks. Specifically: Cameron Crowe's movie, Singles, about twenty-somethings and the grunge scene in Seattle and Amy Heckerling's modernization of the Shakespearean classic, Emma, with Clueless. Those will be tackled in my next Movie March update! Thank you for reading!