Like a Cat...

Every now and again I buy completely out there things that can in no way shape or form be considered ‘pared back’ but I still like to think of them as ‘classics’. A prime example of this is my leopard print faux fur coat. It is gorgeous and I love it, a real wardrobe ‘hero’ so to speak. I found it at a vintage fair I was attending and I like to think it was fate that led me to it. I had been stalking eBay for a number of weeks but nothing was really what I wanted or was just phenomenally expensive. US$8000 for a real leopard skin coat? No. Just, no. On so many levels, no. In any case most of the ones I spotted (no pun intended) were really furry. Like Animal-the-Muppet-style furry and I have no desire to look like a teddy bear. I know a two-year-old with one of those super furry leopard jackets, she looks super cute. I would look ridiculous.

So anyway, I was faffing around trying on some hilarious vintage hats when I spotted it. It was perfect. Late 50s/early 60s boxy style, cropped sleeves, furry but with a close trimmed pile and small spots. Even better it had big leather covered buttons. Like the kind my dad has on all his height of fashion 70s cardigans. In other words: leopard print perfection. And it fit like a glove. I remember standing there like an idiot staring into space and wondering how close the nearest cash-point was when the shop owner came up to me and said these magic words “It’s $110 but if you’re undecided I can knock it down to $90?” I think I may have actually squealed out loud. Very embarrassing. I couldn’t get a good photo so you will have to imagine how it looks… Sort of a cross between these two beauties:

source: teen vogue

source: the gloss

And when I wear it I feel like this:

source: handbag fairy

Or this:

source: glamamor

Or even this:

source: delicatessen!

(I’m slightly hyper today, in case you hadn’t noticed)


On a more serious level, I find that the kind of wardrobe I am aiming for needs to have the occasional stand out or hero piece to stop it from stultifying. As mush as I love my new pared back approach, I sometimes want to be a bit frivolous and that is where this coat comes in. Not that I wear it out with a vinyl catsuit and matching leopard print stilettos… Though that would be quite a sight to see I would imagine. Haha. Underneath my clothes are the same, usually my black merino sweater and a black pencil skirt or my new(ish) black pants for work or over jeans and a tee for casual. It also looks pretty cool over shorts with tights and loafers for a bit of a grunge twist if I’m feeling that way inclined. But mostly I love the sense of old school glamour it instils in my wardrobe, I certainly always feel elegant when I wear it. And let’s face it ladies, it’s not like leopard is going out of style anytime soon!


Is there something in your wardrobe that is a real standout that you just love? Or even just makes your feel a bit screen goddess-ish?

A Few Things to Consider

 “French women don't try to look like anyone else other than themselves. They know who they are and make the most of what they have.”  

Nathalie Rykiel, daughter of designer Sonya Rykiel.

source: i like, i wish, i heart

There have been a few very interesting posts floating around in the last week or so about people stopping shopping all together or even just moving away from the whole 4-5 piece French wardrobe concept in an effect to curb their spending (again). And I have to say I feel a fair amount of affinity for what these girls are saying. I too set out on my blogging journey in an effort to define my personal style uniform and cure my chain-store-tourettes. And my bad habit of accumulating clothes in a manner that vastly resembles that of a schizophrenic monkey on acid. But I feel like I have gotten a little lost on the journey and I am struggling to prevent this blog from turning into a shopping list of things that I think should belong in the perfect “French Woman’s Wardrobe” rather than the search for style that it was always meant to be. Although I believe I have achieved a slight victory though in cutting down my accumulation of crap for the sake of shopping – my mother commented rather archly the other day, while listening to the news, that the current woe the local retail market is suffering has mysteriously coincided with my shopping hiatus. Very funny mum.

source: the fash pack

So let’s look at what I have bought this year:

-White silk shirt
-Blue checked shirt
-Merino boat-neck black jumper
-Merino boat-neck grey jumper
-Merino Breton jumper
-Merino panelled plum jumper
-Linen navy/gray stripe top
-Black wool/linen pants
-Leather shorts ($10 vintage eBay DIY)
-Faux leather ra-ra skirt (another eBay bargain)
-Taupe suede boots

Also some staples/replacements:
-Black loafers
-Breton tops x 4
-Jeans x 2
-Grey tee
-White tee

I can honestly say that for everything that I have added I have culled much more chaff. Some things were replacements – the loafers replaced a very dead pair of black ballets for example – and some things signified a slight realignment of my style back to what suits me and what I actually enjoy wearing. Having mostly avoided shirts, due to the aforementioned difficultly with my womanly parts, I have since embraced them with gusto – despite the current cold snap requiring constant scarf wearing, resulting in irritatingly squashed collars. In fact the only item I have not worn to death since I bought it is the linen top but that is because, after I bought it, the weather instantly became too cold to wear it and the shape doesn’t lend itself to wearing as an additional layer during our sub-zero mornings.

source: the cheap girl

Unfortunately, what I notice most is that there are still way more things on this list than I am happy with – for seven months of controlled shopping at any rate. In fact, I’m not sure that I am really shopping less, one of the aims I set out when I started this blog. However, that said, I am definitely shopping smarter. Every item on this list is honestly something that I will wear until it is threadbare and falling apart. While not everything is classic – ra-ra skirt and leather short I’m looking at you – they all fit together to make a definite style uniform that I am proud of and am fully utilising. On Friday night for example, there was no prevaricating over what I would wear out for dinner and drinks, no staring at my wardrobe thinking desperately ‘I should have bought something new’. Instead I instantly reached for my trusty high-waisted black jeans, my white silk shirt and my khaki blazer. Add to that some heels, a big colourful scarf to protect from the cold and the gorgeous (early birthday gift) necklace my good friend had given me earlier that day and I was good to go. Sure the other girls were more – for want of a better word – flashy than I, but I felt great: confident and sexy. And ultimately that was my aim when I set out on this little journey. No more stressing about my wardrobe and having ‘nothing’ to wear and certainly no feeling uncomfortable and out of place because my outfit was unbecoming and/or not my style.

All in all I have noticed a refocus in my attitude, now when I walk through most shops I don’t see fun, on-trend, must-haves. I see cheap, poorly-made, future-landfill.  A bleak outlook sure, but ultimately my style (and my wallet) will thank me for it... I think!
Have you ever had a major style rethink?
And was it worth it in the end?

 “French girls know themselves; they don't follow trends.” 

Lou Doillon

source: oh... a sparkle

Treasure Hunters

Apologies for the slight hiatus ladies, the weather has been so miserable that I just feel like sleeping. Plus I feel like I have hardly been at home! After going to Melbourne I took off to the country to visit my brother and my two gorgeous nieces – one is 3 and a proper ratbag at times and the other is 4 months and so beautiful it hurts. I was teaching the baby to poke her tongue out and she was laughing so hard she was all chubby cheeks and toothless gums. Too cute!


But back to Melbourne and my so far elusive search for the perfect black pants. In the past this search has always proved a struggle – too long, too short, too tight or too baggy. Many times I have given in and just bought a pair out of desperation, only to give them away to a friend or to charity after a year of non-use. I lay my frustration firmly at the feet of the clothing companies that steadfastly refuse to churn out anything other than skimpy hip-hugging pants (for a suit? Really?) or wide legged monstrosities that, unless they are worn with a skin tight top (again, office appropriate? Not with my assets), make one resemble the rear of a bus. No thanks. I know exactly what I am looking for: black, pleated, structured fabric, cropped to the ankle. I have found the right cut many times but there is no way this side of the apocalypse I will ever been seen anywhere in pants made from jersey. Jersey pants are like leggings: not real pants (unless you have the body of a supermodel, then you are legally allowed to wear whatever the hell you want). But I digress. While doing some online research for the grand girl’s weekend, I compiled a list of potential black pants candidates: three pairs that were the right cut and the right fabric but obviously needed to be closely examined for the inevitable flaws…


Except, this time, I hit gold with the first pair. Unbelievable! Where have these pants been my whole life??? They were exactly the shape I was after in a wool/linen blend that is just thick enough for winter but will also breathe sufficiently for the warmer Spring months before the insane summer heat sets in and I refuse to wear anything other than shorts or sundresses. But not only do they look great they are insanely comfortable. I think I wore them four times last week alone! Haha.

black sucks for seeing detail but they have front pleats and tabs on the waistband to pull them in or loosen them - good for after yum cha! source: country road

I also snapped up something I had been contemplating for a while – a plum coloured knit. I loved the colour but was slightly scarred from years of maroon school uniforms to wear it before now. The colour itself is quite neutral, fitting in well with my current wardrobe colour scheme, but also colourful enough to add a little something to my current winter palette of black, white, cream, grey and navy. As with my favourite crimson red pashmina, it adds a little pop without creating too much of a statement – unlike my hot pink pashmina, for which I really need to be in the mood to have everyone stare at me. Teehee.

i love the extra detail in this knit - frontal inside-out seams, shoulder panels and the cuffs are a smaller looser weave knit to the body. source: country road

Unfortunately it wasn’t all sunshiny. The leopard shoes were totally the wrong shape for my feet and actually extremely uncomfortable and difficult to walk in – and I am a well practiced heel wearer! This was a total bummer as I had to go to six different stockists before I found my size, only to be disappointed. *Sigh.* I was rather proud of myself though, in the past I would have just bought them anyway and hoped for the best. It was a small victory but a victory nonetheless! I did find these others by the same brand:

source: tony bianco

However I am still unsure of the shape. I really had my heart set on the pointed ones despite the fact that these suit my feet extremely well and are much more comfortable.


Have you ever compromised on something and found a better investment? Or did you always regret not waiting for the perfect one?

Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing...

image source: fashionising.com

I'll give you one hint: it involves eBay...

We Reach the First Hurdle...

…and the horse decides to wander off to the side of the track to graze. I had finished my shopping for the season. Honest. I had everything I needed for this fall and only two things on my list for the next season:


-loafers
-suede boots
-leather shorts-faux leather skirt
-black merino sweater

-white silk shirt
-black cropped pants


But all the while I have been nursing a secret crush on fleurette’s APC sweater (seen here in all it’s stripy perfection). But being unable to find something even remotely similar, in a nice semi-heavy fabric for winter, I had struck it off the list… that was until a chance search of NAP, due to their recent free postage offer, led me to meet this little piece of perfection:

Aubin & Wills Chedburgh Striped Merino Wool Sweater

And at only 83 pounds I was staring down the barrel at some serious lust-and-found. So despite all my protestations that I had absolutely stopped shopping for autumn, I whipped out my credit card and hit purchase.


So over dramatic I know, but it arrived today and it could not be more perfect nor the weather be more perfect for it – today being the first really cold day of the season. So this is how I am wearing it:

I have so far gotten lots of compliments on the red touches at the sleeves and base and I have to admit that I adore it – the merino is super soft and not it the least scratchy – and I will be happily wearing this for many years to come.

Have you guys given in to lust and come up trumps? Or have you ended up regretting it?

image via fashion tidbits

I'm really not very well suited to my nationality. I really don't fit into the Australian stereotype of bronzed beach babe. I don't do bikinis, short shorts or thongs. And I especially don't do tanning - fake or otherwise. I am extremely happy to deny my roots and so remain pale and cancer free :)

I really am quite on the French side of the equation, except for the point about women-as-competition. Not my thing. Hermes scarves on the other hand... haha. 

I hope you are all having as lazy a Friday afternoon as me?

Last Chance to Wear?

Although I am loath to admit it, I am getting to the age where all of a sudden my friends are getting married, buying houses and starting families. A little scary considering I’m not long out of university. I have been noticing a trend toward getting married younger and younger among my friends and acquaintances that directly contradicts what the newspapers are trying to tell me, i.e. that I will be old and wrinkly with shrivelled, lifeless ovaries before I even think about getting married and procreating because I am too selfishly wrapped up in my career to notice that my body is decaying around me. Fun.

So, what the hell does this have to do with my wardrobe? Well, I have an undeniable penchant for dressing like a school girl. Currently, I am wearing a kilt I bought in Edinburgh (unfortunately it is an ex’s clan tartan but I still like it), navy v-neck sweater, black tights and my favourite black patent brogues (they look like Darth Vader’s helmet… if he was a cone head). And whilst this may seem to directly controvert my whole concept of creating a classic French-style wardrobe, close observation of French girls my own age has led me to believe that they too like to have a little fun with their wardrobe, supplementing in a few carefully edited chain-store items each season whilst still maintaining their core wardrobe of quality classic items.

With that in mind I decided to invest in a (fake) leather pleated skirt. I bought it on eBay for much less than the original price and made myself plan at least five outfits to go with it pre-purchase. I have also instituted the “1-in, 2-out” rule in my wardrobe which basically means I pawn off items to charity shops, eBay or friends every time I buy anything. One such friend has spent the whole day twirling around the office, receiving compliments off everyone about her lovely new skirt. Hilarious.

Anyway, I know this skirt has a limited lifespan – no one wants to see a thirty-year-old non-fashion-magazine editor in a leather skirt… not that I am turning thirty anytime soon – but I am determined to have fun with fashion without wasting money on items that don’t suit me and which I will never wear. Each item will have to pass the rigorous Outfit Test and fit in with the rest of my classics.

Further to my current leather fetish I also bought a pair of intensely 80s high-waisted black leather pants on eBay for $10. Don’t worry I’m not having an out of body hipster experience. After reading some posts on A Pair & A Spare about DIY leather shorts I decided to have a go. And I was rather impressed with the result. They actually go great with my collection of Breton tops and the McQueen scarf that I bought in London the last time I was there. They look a lot the ones in the picture but I have paired them with a black wide belt I already owned to pull them right in, so as to emphasise my waist and avoid looking whale-esque. Score.

*Update*
The 4-5 Seasonal Items purchase index:
-leather skirt
-leather shorts
-black loafers
-…
-…

My Style Resolution 2011

Inspired by posts by the lovely ladies from the blogs Dead Fleurette, 312 and Miss Moll Cherie I have been busily creating a list of things I need to fill the gaps in my slowly reforming wardrobe of staple items. The key theme that runs through these lists is the wish to develop a style akin to that of the famously – and unattainably – chic French woman. Having been lucky enough to spend a fair amount of time in Paris observing these rare creatures – though not as much time as Fleurette the lucky thing – I have been trying totally unsuccessfully to try and emulate their style.

But all I have managed to achieve in the ensuing years since this self-declared war on bad styling is a wardrobe of random non-matching items that looking like they were collected together by a schizophrenic monkey on acid. Not a pretty sight.

I think I have what I would here-by like to coin Chain-Store-Tourettes. This condition is a neurological disorder characterised by recurrent ill-timed clothing purchases often involving a random and meaningless selection of items that were, variously: on sale, in a magazine or on that hot girl seen via a street style blog.

But no more! I have hereby decided that this will be my year of getting my shit under control!

*insert drumroll*

I will not do the following things:
-purchase random items without being able to name at least 5 outfits I can build it into
-acquire more than 4-5 key items for the season
-incessantly buy ‘basics’ when I have a draw full of spare tees already (this is because my chosen favourite white tee brand does not ship to my country so I stocked up last time I was near said store)
-seek to obtain anymore shoes unless I break a staple favourite beyond repair

The only safe way to combat CST is cold-turkey my friends!

No more shops. No more shopping to combat boredom. No more random spending.

We’ll see how it goes.

In the meantime I am in the process of accumulating a list of items for my newly French-y-fied wardrobe for which I will need to save up (hopefully much easier now that I will not be wasting my money):

The List

-White Silk Shirt by Equipment
-Classic Trench Coat by Burberry
-Taupe Bottines by Isabel Marant
-Breton Stripe Tops by Saint James
-Black Cropped Pants by Isabel Marant

I’m sure I will think of more things to add to the list as this crazy caper continues.

Until then adieu!

I Love It When…

I manage to rediscover an item in my clothing coffin and realise if I change it a little, said item will go from meh to awesome.


Case in point: my narrow-legged boyfriend jeans.


I wanted a pair and found some I liked but wasn’t sure because they were made to be worn rolled down at the waist, which is a look that really only suits people much thinner than I.


Long story short I bought them as they were a good brand and on sale for just $23 (down from well over $100). But I never really wore them until the other day I put them on with a red stripe tee and rolled the waistband back up to create high-waisted nautical perfection a la Ms Bardot. Needless to say, they are fast becoming a staple.

Image: Tumblr