130/ What I'm Buying For IRL Clients
Everything from barrel leg jeans, loafers and foundational sweaters to "sexy" pieces for nights out.
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Dear readers,
Earlier this month, I sourced out some of the pieces you’ve eyeing for fall in this thread. Not surprisingly, many of your needs and wants overlap with those of my IRL clients.
One might think that sharing recommendations here would be easier because I’ve supposedly done the work already, but that’s not necessarily the case. Choosing the right pieces for IRL clients means getting to know their unique blend of lifestyle and styling needs. And — with greatest respect! — sometimes clients don’t know what they need, nor do they have the words to describe it. So, part of my job is drawing out that information, both high-level ideas and context as well as the little details.
When I put together a sourcing newsletter, I don’t have the whole picture of the person behind the keyboard so I tend to skew my recommendations towards the middle of the bell curve in an effort to catch the largest bucket of needs. As a result, I miss out on the tails, as well as a long list of circumstances specific to a client — style preferences, formality, comfort level, budget, daily activities, climate, etc…
With that in mind, I thought it would be helpful to share what I’ve bought for my IRL clients alongside the factors guiding my choices (without any identifying information, of course!).
Bottoms
As an example, let’s take the barrel leg jean that
recently wrote about in . The barrel silhouette is sensitive to hemming and rolling because doing so may diminish — or in some cases, entirely remove — its tapered ankle silhouette. Thus, it’s especially important to buy a pair that’s the right length for you.Over the 12 years I’ve been a personal stylist, I’ve worked women whose heights have ranged from 4’11” to 6’2”/sizes 000 to 22 and men from 5’5” to 6’9”,2 and so recommending the “average” barrel jean (30”-ish inseam) is kind of useless.
For a 5’0” petite client, I searched for a barrel leg with a shorter inseam and/or intentionally cropped. Everlane’s 27”-inseam Way-High Curve jean and 26.5”-inseam Utility Barrel Pant worked well for her as a full-length pant with low heels (which she prefers for the office). When wearing flats, Banana Republic’s petite line carries cropped styles with a 24” inseam, and other options include a pair of Oak + Fort 25” inseam jeans on Posh, Citizen’s raw hem Ayla (24”), and Free People (26”). This pair of Citizens Miro (also here) are inching towards regular length (27.5”), but I had to share because I really like the Bravo wash as a dressier, possibly work-appropriate jean.
At the other end of the height continuum are my 6’0” clients who dream of finding jeans that hit the ground. Frame had an extra long 35” inseam jean that worked smashingly, but sadly, it seems to have been discontinued (other than here). Other options include the SLVRLAKE’s Tess jean (34”), DL1961’s Taylor, EB Denim’s Enzo and Agolde’s low curve high (all 32”), while Helsa’s Low Tide jeans have a whopping 37.5”-inseam. Banana Republic offers a decent selection of long pants, such as their Classic Wide Leg Jean (35”).
Banana Republic has also been a good source for clients between size 14 to size 20, and Good American for sizes up to size 32 and inseams of up to 37”. Universal Standard’s Lou barrels go up to size 40. If you have a large waist-to-hip ratio: