Now's The Time To Grab Yer Boots!

Retailers are DUMPING boots! Be an off-season shopper and learn to stock up for next year. Didn't Santa stuff a little cash into your stocking??

My picks are from Endless, definitely not your daughter's bogwoman shearling boots!Donna Karan, around $950; Endless.com
Rockport Pepperbush, $135.90; Endless.com

Are you storing nuts for next winter? Tell me what you've bought!

J.Crew Handbags: Not "Too-Too"

Blogger Deja Pseu and I were noting the other day that there just don't seem to be any great bags out there right now. Spare us all the leather tassels, overdone and cheap hardware,obnoxious logo plates, bottomless hobos and outrageous prices! Where's there a selection of really nice, hardworking bags that we can carry nonstop for at least two years?

J.Crew's the answer. They feel great and meet my standards for good, functional design. The prices, under $300 for a medium sized bag. Pictured above, bags from the Ryder, Georgie and Beacon collections. See J.Crew.com for many more sophisticated bags.

Fair Isle Wake Up Call by ofacertainage featuring Jessica Simpson shoes

Items in this set:
Joules Baxter Fair Isle Tank Top, Express Brown, 16, 39 GBP
Steven Alan Dora herringbone pants, $168
naked queen Tweed Skirt (Blue), $63
POINTY LOAFER SUEDE PUMPS, 348 GBP
Jessica Simpson Ikina - Blue Jean Patent, $90

Remember The Preppy Handbook by Lisa Birnbach? That book was my shopping guide as I left for college. The year the book came out I had been "summering" in Connecticut, and had fallen hard for anything East Coast. Was it "Love Story" that prompted my early love for the preppy aesthetic? Or was it the later, "Animal House?" Mandy Pepperidge was the ideal sorority sweater girl!

The Shetland Fair Isle sweater became a favorite--Was it LLBean or Land's End? No matter. My favorite was pink, and it smelled like oily sheep in the rain. I wore it with the obligatory oxford shirt underneath, which was good for the itch. See, even then I knew my mantra was always gonna be, "Some things are worth suffering for!!!"

Garnet Hill recently had a lovely Fair Isle sweater, a little softer, a little more now than 1982. When I went to have a looksey online, I was chagrined to see they were all sold out.

I don't like it when things sell out once I decide I must have it! Sigh.

Did you wear a fair isle? Is there a way you could sauce it up a bit now? I think to pull it off, you have to dramatize the look somehow, exaggerate something. Make it the shoes or add colored pearls. Unconventional and modern.

WWYD? What Would You Do?

Cashmere's a Privilege

And the award for the best blog post of the holiday season goes to....... Privilege, where we learn all there is to know about High Wasp Living. Thought you knew all you needed to know about buying cashmere? Stuck in the low-end price category and need a reason to go up a notch? It's all here, and I suggest you read and appreciate. This post must have taken hours, at the least. The care and research efforts are obvious.

You In or You Out? Geeky Glasses For Spring

Nobody's Laffin' At Moi!


I've been lucky to get around this year. My travels have given me the luxury of getting inspiration from what others around the world are wearing. I paid special attention to eyewear this year, mostly because it was impossible to ignore.

In Europe, creative eyewear is de riguer. No one's going to laugh in your face if you want to express something with your eyewear over there. Before I ever saw a clear acetate frame in the U.S., they were on LOTs on stylish Europeans. The plastics, the metals, there was always something very special about the eyewear I saw in 2009.

Maybe that's how I ended up with two pairs, one in red and one in purple, from Ottica Urbani in Venice, a favorite of Elton John and Spike Lee. And, catching an early ride on the upcoming (to us) clear acetate trend, I bought these in Paris. I'm planning a switch to my prescription lenses for this pair come spring.

I like the acetate idea. They say, "I'm transparent, I'm honest, whatcha see is whatcha get." Even if you buy the ones with thicker frames, they won't overwhelm. Go out now and shop some with confidence. The clear trend will be here for the next eyeglass style cycle, around two years.

If you'd rather say, "I'm not only beautiful, but really smart," Get on the "geek chic" bandwagon while it's hot. Nerdy frames need not be huge and costumey to get the effect. I just bought a pair of black framed Chanel's, very delicate and feminine and chic, yet horrid enough to be on trend.

NOW. Down below is my favorite photo from Eric Bompard's Fall 2009 cashmere catalog. I've been dying for that necktie, but don't have the balls to wear it. As much as I like the photo, they LEFT OFF HER GLASSES! One of the pairs below should do...Which makes me think there are a lot of looks you could swing with the Nerd glasses. Annie Hall Redux. Ellen De Generes. Bowie! Sexy intellectual. Mature Student of Life.

We Must've Done Something Right!

What was in that eggnog last night anyway? Whatever it was, it inspired my kids to have their thank-you cards done by 10 a.m. on Christmas morning! The Viking and I were FLABBERGASTED, as thank-yous are usually something we have to coerce them to do. The older kids had signed, sealed and basically delivered their cards, but Little Guy's were stacked for inspection. Among the notes:

Dear Tommy, David, and Aunt Lisa,
Thank you for the barrel of monkeys pen. I figured out how to play the game. You conect the monkeys together. Then you put the monkeys in the pen. Last you open the pen and it explodes! Love Little Guy


Dear Bestemor and Harry,
Thank you for the $50. I will save it in my bank account. I can't wait to see you next December. Or some other month. I miss you alot. Love, Little Guy

Dear Bestefar and Bjorg,
Thank you for the $60. I want to see you back in Norway. I want to go to your cabin because I like smelling the smell of Norway. Love, Little Guy

Dear Sverre and Eivind,
Thank you for the flyer and the bomb. Nick wanted that for Christmas. From, Little Guy

Need a new supply of thank you cards? I love American Stationery for selection and price. I've bought my stationery from them for years and have never been disappointed.

"That's So HER!"

Do you ever have those moments when you're shopping and out of nowhere you spot something that is SO YOU? And that something makes your heart pump a little harder? And you're trying it on in your mind's eye before your hand even touches the hanger for real? That reaction's not always just an emotional impulse to put on "pause" or wrestle with IF you know your style VERY well. That impulse can lead to well, love that lasts a lifetime.

When you know your preferences intimately, the pieces that express who you are will JUMP into your lap and lick you in the face faster than you can say, "King Charles Spaniel puppy." That's why "Know Thyself" is the first rule of achieving style consistency--what I believe is the key to having your own unique style identity.

To start: Ask yourself what looks have I always loved? For me, as a teen I loved pearls, fair isle sweaters, crisp oxford shirts. As a twenty-something I knew I loved lace, chains, chiffon, quilted leather,roses and peonies, gold buttons, burnished metals, silk charmeuse, denim, animal prints, velvet, fur, tweeds, plaids, and bare feet. Those elements still resonate with me today and are the core of my wardrobe style whether I'm dressing up or down, or whether I'm experimenting with the season's latest offerings. I may have for brief moments liked other things, but these are the CONSTANTS. What are yours?

To Follow Up: Open your eyes, REALLY open them wide and look at everything that sings to your soul, including furniture, wallpaper, art toys, textiles, bathroom fixtures even! Make collages of magazine images, including things that have shapes and color combinations that grab you. This exercise will help you get a visual grasp of what you want to express. Keep a written journal of people, places and things that inspire you. I don't care if you think the Golden Arches at McDonald's are prettier than the Roman aquaducts, just try and figure out WHY.
Follow-up can take years if you've never really payed attention to style in your adult life. Be patient, it is worth the deliberate examination. If you're a veteran fashion lover, it might take you a pleasant afternoon to refine or redefine where you're going. Either way, an image consultant can put you on the fast track to knowing yourself, with assessment tools, color, and objective, compassionate eyes.

Practice. It's not foolish or vain to play with clothes. The more you play around with wearing your preferred pieces in new ways, the more consistent you will look to the outside world. In short order people will be able to spot things or wardrobe items that make them scream with glee, "That's SO you!" Find five key elements to start with. For you it might be colorful stone jewelry, leather, shearling, silver metals and modern art. You've loved these things forever, so think about how you could WEAR the aesthetic on a consistent basis. You don't have to wear them all at once, of course. What pieces do you wear on a consistent basis that people would know you by?

Learn to understand the difference between loving stuff for its intrinsic beauty, and loving stuff because it's YOU. Once I learned to do this, I had my consistency nailed. I love looking at Kate Hudson for her sunny bohemian looks, but I can appreciate them without wanting to make them part of my personal aesthetic. I also love looking at showstoppers like Christina Aguillera, but that doesn't mean I want to look like a pinup girl. Get it?



The Photos
Top: Why it's "me": Silk charmeuse with a hint of stretch. Offbeat print for a blouse, but it's a beautiful classic painting. If this were a Mondrian or a Keith Haring, I'd have kept walking. I like the neck pleats. I like the sexy back zip, not shown.

Middle: Why it's "me": Classic shape and practical fabric; outrageous print but a classic subject (pearls). Gold buttons a big plus. Pearl ropes give illusion of smaller middle.

Bottom: Why it's "me": It's vintage. It's animal. It's got a new custom silk lining from Hong Kong. The lining is red. I love the mix of the larger jacquard pattern in the lining with the smaller leopard spots. It dresses up or down. It's an irreverant piece for where I live. No one else has one like it.

Do you know what's "So You?" Are you consistent enough that others know what's "you" too?