I was all over the place this week. I went to a friend’s birthday drinks on Saturday, then to Austin for basically like 24 hours, then all around LA for all kinds of things (in one day I had an elementary school visit, a client zoom, a store pull, and a lunch all before 2). I could be like, ~ooh i’m a busy gal on the go!~ but then also everyone is like this, I think. Pulled in a ton of directions. I feel like a Nintendo character kind of booping along and jumping over mushrooms, onto platforms, rolling under things, just going forward forward forward, onward with a high five! And how good it feels to get to race around like that and be busy! I love it!
And I especially love getting dressed for all of it. I had dinner with my friend Mia this week (one more thing I did! A very silly Valentine’s Day dinner with Mia at Sunset Tower) and we were talking about having two kids vs one kid, and two kids who are a little older vs two kids under 3. Mine are both on the brink of being 5 and 3, and I feel like we’ve moved more or less out of the baby stage, or out of the space where they needed vastly different things. Now their needs are pretty parallel, and rather than feeling like I’m juggling two kids, I often feel like they’re one MEGA KID. It can be fun and easy, but then when they’re unhappy it’s a real cluster fuck. ANYWAY, my point is, because they’re a mega kid, I’m starting to feel a bit more like I have myself back again. And with that, comes dressing for fun.
Here are some things I wore and loved.
Party mom
I went out to an actual party! On a Saturday! So I got dressed. In pants. Felt so good.
Omg and HEELS! The star of the show here is the pants. They’re Kallmeyer, and they’re EXCELLENT. They’re very retro, very sharp, mega flattering, and very special. I liked the shiny texture with the softness of a cashmere sweater, but then to sex it up again I wore my favorite heels (Saint Laurent) and my Maria McManus blazer plus my silly little Alaïa bag. All this plus the short hair = a hot bitch feeling.
1. The actual pants - they are truly heaven. I felt like a zillion bucks when I wore them. The shape, strong front crease, and the sheen really make them. Kallmeyer, $475
2. These have the strong crease, but not the sheen, and a very different cut. However, they have this fun curved bottom hem and are SPECIAL TO THE MAX. Bottega Veneta, $1,150
3. These are a gorgeous option and in a pale grey! I love the carrot shape on these. Toteme, $540
4. This is a lightweight merino/cashmere blend and comes in a bunch of colors. It’s such a classic shape - I would size up so it will be more mensy. This shape/style of sweater is a mainstay for me. Closed, $290
5. Yummy puffy grey mock neck! This contrasted to the sharpness of the trousers is really really nice. Me + Em, $285
6. Prada tailored overcoat massively on sale! Buy this so I don’t! Prada, $1,416
7. The Maria McManus blazer - I love everything Maria makes, and she does it all as sustainably as possible. The cuts are fantastic, and everything is interesting enough to justify adding it to your wardrobe, but classic enough to be eternal. Maria McManus, $1,090
8. I can’t find the exact Saint Laurent pumps I’m wearing, but what I love about them is the cone-shaped heel and the little sliver of toe cleavage they show. These are a pretty close double for them. Isabel Marant, $770
9. Ok, these don’t have the cone heel, the pointy toe, or the cleavage, but they’re super special and very classic. I love this shape. Manolo Blahnik, $745
10. I very rarely wear actual heels, so I appreciate a flat option. These serve the same function and won’t kill your feet. M. Gemi, $245
11. A little hard shell bag! This isn’t as 80s as my heart bag, but this is mega special and the structure is a nice compliment to the crispness of this look. Simone Rocha, $447
12. And here! I couldn’t stop thinking about this bag for months - so eventually I got it as a very special treat for myself. I’m surprised at how often I wear it, especially considering it holds very, very little and is a mega-specific look. Still, it makes every outfit ten times better and makes me super happy. Alaïa, $1,170
She’s trying color
Before kids I used to wear TONS of color, loads of prints, heaps of patterns. Now….navy, black, white, and gray. Always. Not as a rule, I just fell into the pattern and it feels very me so I didn’t try to break out of it until I discovered my genius friend Alissa’s brand, High Sport, which I’ve gone on and on about, so you know, but these pants are SO good and the colors are so sophisticated, suddenly I was buying orange, and lime green pants. Very un-me! But then, how does someone who is generally color averse, and doesn’t like things that are loud wear lime green pants? Like this!
I find that khaki or tan or whatever you’d call this color is a nice foil to a brighter color. I usually wear my orange High Sports with a tan button down, too. I wore this to Austin to style out ByGeorge’s spring campaign, I flew in on Sunday, and out Monday night, so I didn’t bring anything else, and it was perfect for that trip. For most of the day I wore this with my navy sweatshirt underneath, but I like it better with just a little tank top and matching white slippers. Back in, like, 2009, we would have called this ~a POP OF COLOR~ but I hate that phrase, but it essentially is that. One vibrant spot in an otherwise neutral field.
1. The actual pants! I get a lot of questions about sizing for them - I find them pretty true to size, but also very stretchy. If you’re unsure I’d guess size down? Also, I saw someone successfully have them hemmed recently and it looked really good. These are from ByGeorge, but you can find a ton of colors here too. High Sport, $860
2. A straight leg bright green version if a kick flare isn’t your thing. These would be so nice with the gray oversized blazer from Uniqlo that’s also here. Mango, $80
3. If bright lime scares you, here’s a muted mossy color too. Cos, $99
4. My blazer here is Partow, a brand I love (mine is sold out everywhere but here’s a close duplicate), but what I like about this one from J.Crew is the similar color to mine - not quite tan, not quite khaki, but a bit more saturated. This is also a bit more fitted than mine, if that’s your thing. J.Crew, $228
5. Oh god I LOVE THIS BLAZER. Today I bumped into my friend Julia at a sample sale, and she asked what was the thing I can’t stop buying - easily blazers. I can’t stop. And now I want this one too. The oversized-ness is just right, and this color is gorgeous. It also comes in dark green and off white. Uniqlo, $130
6. A very good dupe for my tan old Céline poplin button down! This is a shirt you would wear to death. In a lot of instances when I feel like a white button down might make me feel too obvious, or like I’m dressed as a waiter (which I spend YEARS of my youth doing, and it was so much disgusting fun), I go for the tan instead and it works every time. Banana Republic is looking kind of good lately? Banana Republic, $100
7. My all time favorite white tank - a surplus tank from my favorite vintage/surplus store, Rawson. If you want a classic-looking, menswear-inspired, super relaxed, very cool tank to wear with your nipples showing through just a little bit, this is the one for you. Rawson, $25
8. And then here’s my favorite fancy white tank, because a girl needs both. This is mega soft, but still holds its shape. AYR, $68
9. My all time favorite navy sweatshirt! I wear it almost every day, and is a nice counterpoint to bright colors - similarly to the tan/khaki/camel. Comfort Colors, $31
10. The actual ballet flats! I wear these so frequently, mine are all scuffed and I actually like them better that way. I love the square toe box and that they come up higher on my foot. Yuni Buffa, $395
11. A Birkenstock is another nice way to tone down the color. Imagine these with the High Sports + the tan button down & navy sweatshirt. Hottttt. Birkenstock, $117
12. A slightly more polished/structured ballet flat, these are HEAVEN. They’re like, boatneck flats for your feet. Aeyde, $295
13. The necklace! The most beautiful tennis necklace, I wear the 16” version every day. Dorsey, $550
14. The teeny tiniest most subtle tiny little itty bitty studs. I love them. Otiumberg, $130
Same blazer, different day
Here I am running around all day, without having showered for ~2 days, and trying to disguise my griminess by looking as prim and preppy as I can.
Most of these are things I’ve written about before (hello, twice with the same blazer in one week), but I like this because I’d never worn these things together like this, but it still felt mega intuitive and very me. I still obviously shop, but much less than I did especially in my magazine days. And I like this idea of having clothes, really wearing them, but still maxing them together in ways that make me feel cute. You can’t tell here, but this knit is a sweater vest (my favorite thing!). It’s great under a blazer because it doesn’t add bulk to the arms, and keeps the blazer comfortable. And then if you’ve been reading this for a while you know these pants, I wear them at least once a week, and these I wore all through my pregnancy with Phoebe and they’re not all weird and stretched out. Cost/wear on them is less than 1 cent.
1. The actual pants. The blessed pants! The Row pants! They’re made of stretch scuba material with a seam down the middle of the leg in the front and the back, and an excellent little slit up from the ankle. They feel like workout leggings, but look so polished, they are great with every single thing I’ve ever worn them with. The Row, $550
2. Another scuba legging, this one in blue and in sizes up to 24. Veronica Beard, $295
3. Ok, these leather kick flare leggings are heaven and somehow on sale for less than $400. They also come in tan. Theory, $397
4. I’m wearing the same Partow blazer as before, so there are those recs above, but this is slightly different, but still has the preppy, 80s feel I love. Very classic. Me + Em, $495
5. A gorgeous camel wrap coat, that’s it! Anine Bing, $800
6. Banana Republic again! With a sweet V-Neck vest. I typically don’t love a v-neck, but in a vest I’m into it. Banana Republic, $45
7. And in camel! This is a thinner, lighter weight version in cashmere, and so nice. Everlane, $66
8. A classic stripe button down but in silky cotton. I love the contrast collar and cuffs. Another goodie from… Everlane, $85
9. I love this olive stripe button down from Yaitte. This color! (Can you tell Substack is telling me I’m running out of space?) Yaitte, $225
10. And then my all time favorite men’s shirt, but in blue stripe. Buy it in classic fit and way oversized. J.Crew, $40
11. Margiela Tabi flats… I still want a pair so bad. These are great to offset the preppy traditional vibe of the rest of the outfit. Margiela, $660
12. These Mary Janes are very close to what I’m wearing - I linked to more options for these in the last outfits letter last week, so here are some more! Alaïa, $780
13. And last but not least, my favorite ever plain navy dad hat. Keep it simple! Cap, $12
And that’s it! This weekend the first version of the paid letter is coming and it’s going to be RealReal finds. Wooohooo! Sign up here!
Love, your friend,
Laurel