052/ What I'm Wearing: Weeks 36 & 37
New York to Toronto to Paris to Sardegna
What I’m Wearing is a series where I share all of the outfits I’ve worn over a given week (or two), along with styling notes, links and related thoughts. If you see an outfit you like on my Instagram, you’ll find it here.
Buongiorno from Sardegna!
It’s been a hectic couple of weeks, with the boys starting at different schools for the first time since preschool, and getting back into the rhythm of homework and after-school activities. Meanwhile, styling season has been back in full swing as of mid-August,1 and you’ve likely been following the frantic pace of fashion month in NY, London, now Milan and soon Paris.
Frantic is the right word, because it’s hard to keep up with the hundreds of brands who present during fashion month, one after the other on the official calendar, and the many more simultaneously off of it. Consider the natural, financial and human resources (both physical and intellectual) it takes to conceive, create, present and market just one collection, multiply that by hundreds, and then to do it all over again in six months (or sooner, in the case of resort and other mid-season collections).
Somehow all of the hype surrounding fashion week makes us feel like we should care, that it’s all relevant information that we, as followers of fashion, need be filing away in our mental fashion compendium lest we fall behind, become irrelevant, invisible, and die sad and alone. Ah, the power of marketing.
As a professional in this industry, I’ve asked myself what proportion of this information do I really need to retain to not only be effective at my job, but also to satisfy my own curiosity about a craft and medium I genuinely love.
I’ve also asked myself, at what point are we producing too much, and too often? For the last few months I’ve been realizing how much more hesitant I am to buy things new; that when I’m in Paris or Tokyo, my first instinct is to not visit the impressive flagships, but the seek out vintage and consignment shops. Even in Toronto, as I get dozens of newsletters everyday from e-commerce sites and brands touting all that is new, my first searches of day usually start at VSP or Rewind, two local consignment stores.
There’s just so much clothes already out there on the resale market, and — if it’s what you’re looking for — some of it is even current season, or NWT (new with tags) or unworn (NWOT — new without tags). I’ve written before about Why I Shop Vintage, and I guess these days, beyond the aesthetic and cost considerations, I’m thinking more and more about #4, the environmental considerations of the fashion machine as a whole.
How and why we shop is so very personal depending on our own needs, and so I want to say that this is not a judgement of anyone. It’s human nature to want more and seek status, and clothing is one way to do this. I understand that shopping resale is time (read: resource) intensive, and thus not realistic for everyone, all the time. I appreciate that fast fashion brands often recreate pretty damn good replicas of the pieces and vibes we most desire, and at price points that are generally attainable (see: Mango’s latest drop). We are all trying to navigate life the best we can — you (and me), as the consumer, as well as those who are making the clothes, as they try to make a living from doing it.
Yesterday, I walked into the Prada at Porto Cervo and I got up close and personal with two of the most photographed and wanted pieces of the A/W 2023 collection. Now, this was a mere six hours after the S/S 2024 show, as the photos were rolling in on WWD and Vogue, and as the reels of the new collection and its celebrity audience were excitedly being uploaded onto Instagram.
And I wondered, have these two gorgeous and intensively constructed garments — which made up countless editorial spreads, Instagram pixels, and inspired spin-offs (see again: Mango’s latest drop) — already been forgotten in favour of what just walked down the runway? All of the above noted (wo)man-power to making these two skirts happen — how much of it matters just six months later?
Anyway, a quick summary of my last two weeks on the road…
New York
My first stop was a quick 36-hour layover in New York for Tibi weekend, half of which was spent in airports and taxis. What a crazy weekend of delays and cancellations! It was a delight to meet so many women of the Tibi community last year, and even more so this year because our relationships have deepened so much since then. A big hug to all of you!
The biggest factor for all of us getting dressed for the show was the heat and humidity. Oy vey. I stressed over this too because, naturally, I wanted to wear Tibi, but none of my outfits felt quite right for the weather. This outfit was a last minute throw together after deciding my original outfit — which featured the Liam blazer — would be oppressively hot.
I’ve sub-consciously noticed peplum silhouettes creeping back into collections, and when I bought this Le Phil gilet in the also oppressively humid summer of Tokyo, I wondered, “is peplum back?” Having just googled it, the answer seems to be, yes.
Show day, and again, an outfit chosen for the weather, and no Tibi. I can’t say I was disappointed to have a chance to wear this vintage (2003) Lanvin tulle top which I found recently at Mine & Yours. My Miu Miu ballerinas and Chanel bag were also secondhand, and I’m wearing an actual bra vs. a bralette because I don’t own any of the latter.
Toronto
Back to Toronto at 3am on Sunday morning after multiple flight delays, and a crammed work week in Toronto, after which I flew to Paris late Friday evening.
Paris
A dear friend was celebrating her 10th anniversary in Paris, and like many things you commit to months in advance, it’s hard to foresee just how busy life will be when the event comes around!
Paris was firmly in transition season, with the days quite toasty under the sun (especially in cashmere) and cooler in the evenings. The day I landed, I wore this outfit to a friend’s 40th birthday house party. The entire outfit is secondhand, minus my trusty APC Grace bag.
For the day of the big party (it was essentially a second wedding), I re-wore the outfit I wore to a wedding last summer in Hamburg, which I spoke a bit about in Part 2 of Buying Mistakes I’ve Made. Btw, this dress wasn’t the mistake! The mistake was a vintage Marc Jacobs dress I found at a consignment shop:
As someone who regularly shops secondhand, I would be remiss to not mention it here. There are two pressures at play: because consignment and vintage shops usually sell one-off pieces, it’s tempting to convince ourselves to get something because you believe you’ll never find something like it again, and especially at the lower price it’s being sold at.
I came across this Marc Jacobs gown from his S/S 2013 collection at a great price, and my heart exploded because it was so thrilling to be able to own a runway dress that I had gawked at in magazines and on vogue.com.
I feel like a broken record at this point, but for both pieces I didn’t reflect enough on Question #1: Do I love it? The Marc Jacobs dress was stunning, absolutely gorgeous. I bought it in hopes to wear it to a wedding in Hamburg, but every time I tried it on, it just didn’t feel like me. I bet many of you are reading this and are thinking, what are you talking about, it’s amazing!!!! And it is. And because I sold it, it will be amazing on the person who wears it next. But when I don’t love what I’m wearing, I feel it inside and it shows in how I present myself to the world.
(Btw, I ended up wearing the Kika Vargas dress below for the wedding and felt 100% like me which = 100% confident!)
I knew I had a long day of walking ahead of me visiting vintage shops around Paris, so comfort was my priority all the way (I’ll likely do a newsletter on this shortly). I like the added touches of texture from the two bags, as well as the extra layer of my husband’s blue shirt which does double duty to cover my bum. (This is a personal thing, I don’t like tight fabric around my bum!)
And finally, 25,000 steps and 10 vintage shops later, a quick shower and change to something a little more put together for a casual dinner with a friend in the 7th.
Sardinia
Which brings me to Sardegna, where I am sitting right now under cloudy skies, the rumble of thunder, and the sporadic trickle of rain. 2023 is officially my Monsoon Summer, and I guess I’ll have to wait another year for my blue skies.
I fly back to Paris tonight and back home to Toronto on Sunday where I eagerly await hugs and kisses from my boys (all three of them).
A bientôt,
Irene
Loving the gray sweater white shorts combo and also the way you speak to covering your bum in tight fabric as a personal preference. Goes without saying that I am so crazy about these missives! A Substack highlight always! xoxo
(Vintage) shopping in Seoul, Tokyo and Paris within a couple of months - my envy knows no bounds! I am 100% with you on the buying of vintage/preloved/unworn and the joy it brings. My wardrobe has never looked better than it does now, since I started selling my own preloved pieces and buying other people’s. Viva the circular economy!