Sartorial Watermark: Signature Style

-my signature

Everyone has a signature piece. Something that they always wear all the time, a certain color they claim for their own, or even a certain style they purchase repeatedly. Over time it is something they become known for and it starts to become a bit odd if they don't wear it. I mean, remember the time Posh didn't wear flats?

- bauer-griffin

What's mine? Black leggings. I seriously wear them pretty much every day and refuse to wear them in any other color. My husband once made a joke that if I was given a chance to design a legging collection a la Lohan I'd make them "in every shade of black imaginable".

- fabcrush

Though, sometimes I do regret wearing them on days like today when they soak up the sun and crank the heat index up about another 10 degrees for me. I usually just grin and bear it. Now it looks like I no longer have to all thanks to Uniqlo's dry technology! It "combines breathable fibres with cross-woven nylon, removing sweat at the humidity level and keeping the wearer dry and comfortable underneath their clothes, whilst ensuring a smooth and silky feeling next to the skin". They offer wearers "superior drying action with anti-odour and anti-bacterial properties and ensuring dry confidence throughout the day".

- UNIQLO

I loved their heat tech leggings, so more than likely I will picking them up either today/tomorrow. I absolutely need a pair for the BBQ I am hosting this weekend. After all, nothing is more unfashionable than being a sweaty host!

Do you have a signature piece? Leave it in the comments!

What to Expect When You are Expecting: Fashion Edition

-Chic Tuition

A friend of mine recently sent me a barrage of texts of how unhappy she was about her current unfortunate situation. Apparently, the maternity offerings are just not quite up to snuff in her opinion or terribly expensive. She asked me to do a whole post about it, and who am I to turn down a pregnant lady's request?

I did a bit of poking around and unfortunately for the most part time has marched on but maternity fashion has not kept up. I mean take a look at this old pattern piece illustration? Can you tell me the difference between this and some of the items from Destination Maternity or A Pea in the Pod?


I mean yes they do have guest designers like Heidi Klum creating lines like Lavish by Heidi Klum and Loved by Heidi Klum. These, however, are just the best of a bad situation. I knew there had to be something better out there to satisfy those fashion diehards. There just had to be right? I mean after all there are all these pregnant celebrities out there looking fabulous like Amy Poehler, Alicia Keys, and Danielle Lloyds.


So, I began my search and came away almost defeated. 7 for All Mankind Maternity Jeans - expensive/poorly designed. Liz Lange Maternity - boring/stiff designs. It seemed that maternity was plagued with the same issues that bog down plus size offerings - lack of insight. Just because you are pregnant does not mean that you do not want to be fashion forward or overhaul your whole look as you are a mom to be.

Here are a couple of looks that I pulled together for my friend. She is a young school teacher, so what this what I tried to keep in my mind as I was playing virtual stylist. She is also quite thin when not pregnant (it is her second), so I wanted to create looks that were reminiscent what she wears then. Well, improved on a bit by myself of course! The other great thing about the items I pulled is that these items can mixed and matched. Thus, justifying the investment!


Work - Day: This dress from Moody Mamas is something I think anyone would want to wear - pregnant or not. Bright and vibrant this is the perfect dress to wear while working with children! She works in a school that does not allow bare shoulders, so pairing it with this cute sweater makes it work appropriate.

1. Moody Mamas - Sweetheart Dress (Sizes XS - XL; $190.00)

2. Spiegel - Whisper-Weight Cropped Cardigan (Sizes XS: XL; $17.00)

Work - Night: A teacher's work is mostly done during the day, but there is the odd occasion when they have to work the night shift. Namely - Parent/Teacher conferences. This outfit would be perfect for such occasions as it is extremely professional yet fashionable. I absolutely love the color of this top from TopShop and the fit of the pencil skirt by Isabella Oliver. Also, the cropped sweater featured with the day look can be paired with this outfit as well for a more casual look.

2. Spiegel - Whisper-Weight Cropped Cardigan (Sizes XS: XL; $17.00)

3. TopShop - Maternity Boutique Tuck Blouse (US Sizes 4 - 10; $50.00)

4. Isabella Oliver Maternity - Pencil Skirt (Sizes 0 - 14; $100.00)


Date Night - Casual: Being pregnant should prevent you from having a night out on the town! This more casual outfit on the left is still pretty fashion forward and is on trend via the lingerie inspired top. The Garbo Trousers from Isabella Oliver Maternity are also fantastic as they are fitted yet allow for your pregnancy tummy! This trench also from Isabella Oliver is the perfect way to complete the outfit, well that is if it is cold enough for it.

1. TopShop - Maternity Peplum Tunic (US Sizes 4 - 12; $70.00)

2. Isabella Oliver Maternity - Garbo Trousers (Sizes 0 - 14; $126.65)

3. Isabella Oliver Maternity - The Trapeze Trench (Sizes 8 - 14; $223.30)

Date Night - Sexy: Going out on the town with that special someone? This is the dress you should be wearing. It hugs your curves in all the right places and better yet comes in a color that pops! Pair this Isabella Oliver dress with the trench coat featured to avoid making women and men stop in their tracks!

3. Isabella Oliver Maternity - The Trapeze Trench (Sizes 8 - 14; $223.30)

4. Isabella Oliver Maternity - Ruched Tank Dress (Sizes 2 - 10; $148.75)


Casual: My friend spends a lot of time at home because 1) she lives down South in a large home and 2) she has 2.5 year old. (Seriously her house is 4 - 5x the size of my apartment at least!) So, I wanted to put together something she could be comfortable running around in as well as fashionable. I looked at tons of jeans for her, but these ones from Isabelle Oliver are the best! They are low cut and the band does not seem intrusive. The fit on the leg is also very fitted, which is very necessary. As I said, she lives in the South and it gets pretty hot down there. No better reason then to wear this adorable tank top! This sweater from Spiegel also does the trick to avoid being frozen when met with ice cold blast from AC indoors.

1. Spiegel - Whisper-Weight Cropped Cardigan (Sizes XS - XL; $17.00)

2. Isabella Oliver Maternity - IO Jeans (Sizes 0 -16; $89.50)

3. Ripe - Twist Tube Top (Size XL; $34.00)

As I was roaming the internet searching for these items for my friend, I came across something quite alarming. The selection of plus size clothes was horrendous. And I thought it was bad just searching for clothes in my size regularly! The maternity clothes in plus sizes should seriously go into the category of Things That Must Not Be Named a la Harry Potter. They are that horrific! Fret not, however, I was able to track down some decent plus size options. It just required a bit of creativity.


Casual: This amazing top from the ASOS mama·licious line of maternity clothes goes up to an XL, which according to their size chart is an American size 16. If you are larger than that this item will most likely still fit you as it has an extremely loose fit coupled with enormous armholes. Pair it with a pair of leggings as shown here, and you would not look out of place strolling around the West Village.

1. ASOS mama·licious - Embellished Woven Tunic (UK sizes S - XL; $59.18)

2. duo Maternity - duo 22" Legging (Sizes 2X - 3X; $12.99)


Convertible: This dress can be worn in a million different ways to accommodate your growing bump. The white/teal combination is truly inspired and will always look fresh! This item also goes upward to a size 3X and due to its dynamic nature can probably be worn on larger frames.

1. Hayley by Hayley Starr Reversible Knit Wrap Dress (Sizes M - 3X; $38.50)

The one thing that my friend stressed to me is that she hated spending money on things she was only going to wear for a limited time. Fact is I am sorry to say that being fashionable takes investment! That does not mean, however, that you have to break the bank to be a pregnant fashionista. There are in fact a couple of options to make this happen!

1. Consignment Shops: Check out the consignment shops in the affluent parts of time. More likely than not you will be able to scoop up some discarded designer maternity duds. Also, there are shops like Belly Bundles that sell their maternity consignment merchandise online.

2. Rent: Yes, believe it or not you can rent maternity clothes by the week. RentMaternityWear.com offers one-week maternity dress rental rates starting at just $35. They carry brands such as: Christian Siriano, Maternal America, and Olian Maternity.

3. Sell Them After You Are Done: Sort of like renting, this options requires you to ditch the clothes after you no longer need them. Ebay is literally teeming with mothers looking for maternity wear, so this may be your best bet to recoup the majority of the cost. Also, this is what will justify you spending more on those transient pieces! The higher the quality - the higher the chance of resale.

Do you have any places or suggestions for my friend? I am also always looking for new ideas for posts. Have any ideas on either - leave them in the comments!

Walking Amongst Giants: American Woman at the MET

I finally made it to the American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity at the Metropolitan Museum. Seriously, I have tried 8 times to go and each and every time something has come up. This time I only made it with 45 minutes to spare, so unfortunately it was a bit of a rushed viewing of the exhibition.

A little background on the exhibition:


American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity "explores developing perceptions of the modern American woman from 1890 to 1940 and how they have affected the way American women are seen today". The exhibit is broken up into The Heiress, The Gibson Girl, The Bohemian, The Patriot and the Suffragist, The Flapper, and The Screen Siren.

As you can imagine, the fashions were nothing short of amazing. I could literally go on and on about them. The most interesting thing I found about the exhibit, however, is how truly timeless the pieces were in their construction.

Take this piece from 1910 by Madame Marie Gerber for instance. I highly doubt any hipster would bat an eye if I showed up in a bar in BK in this outfit. After all, it is eveningwear accompanied with leggings!


This sweater from 1895 also caught my eye as it would hardly look out of place in my wardrobe today. I mean there is no way you can deny its similarity to this piece by T Los Angeles.


Then of course there is this excruciatingly beautiful gown made by Madame Grès in 1937. It would hardly look out of place on a red carpet today - just look at this dress worn by Angelina Jolie in 2004.

The exhibit overall was a bit crowded and small, but the curating is amazing. If you are in NYC this summer I highly suggest you brave the crowds and take a trip over to go see it. Also, if you loved the exhibit like me but were hoping to a take a slightly more leisurely stroll through fashion history I highly suggest picking up High Style. It is the catalog created to accompany the exhibit and at $25.00 a copy it is one of the most cost effective art/design books I have ever purchased. I seriously cannot wait to sit down and leaf threw it some more!

Have you been there yet? If so leave your thoughts in the comments.

What Not To Wear: Leggings as Standalone Pants

Just because you can fit into something it does not necessarily mean that you should wear it. Discretion is key to being truly fashionable as it gives one the ability to ascertain whether or not a look works for their body type. After all, is not one of the main aims of modern fashion to create an ensemble that flatters the figure?

Why do I bring this up? Today as I was going about my day, I saw two of my chotto brethren wearing leggings as standalone pants. I know I have a whole post about how leggings are godsends, but that was was in regards to when worn as intended: foundation garments! For all of you unfamiliar with foundation garments: they are normally items meant to be worn underneath another item of clothing.

In the case of leggings, especially for larger fashionistas this means that it should be worn underneath a long sweater/shirt or a dress/skirt and not serve as a replacement for pants. Why? It more often than not emphasizes the not so sexy elements of the plus size frame when worn as standalone pants. I personally am part of the majority of people that cannot pull of this look, and that is why I always wear leggings as a foundation garment only.

If your intent is to emphasize the curves of your lower half you would be better served wearing something more akin to a pencil skirt in lieu of leggings as pants. It accentuates plus size curves in all the right places, and also provides the coverage needed to hide any negatives. I mean look at how great Stéphanie of Le Blog de Big Beauty looks to the left. It should be obvious that this is look is a win-win!

Invest in the Unexpected: Legwear

Pants, I swear to god, were created by the devil to torture those of us who suffer from both a shorter frame and wider girth. They never fit right as the waist either comes right up to your breasts, the crotch hangs too low and irritates the skin of the inner thigh, or they emphasize the paunch. On top of this, there is also the fact that no matter how hard you try when it rains or snows the bottoms become drenched.

That is why I currently only own two pairs of jeans out of necessity, and and only wear them when I absolutely have no choice. Why besides the obvious fit issues would I do this? Simply put, you can control the way the silhouette is constructed much better. Ditching pants as a sartorial choice, furthermore, allows you to recreate those lines that best suit your figure. Doing so also comes in handy for those times when by the grace of God when I am able to fit into straight sizes in dresses, and I need some additional coverage to make the item suitable for public.

Unfortunately, however, we all know that lackluster legwear options abound in plus sizes. There is hope though as Uniqlo and We Love Color sell boldly colored fashionable legwear for larger frames.

We Love Colors is amazing as you can get traditional tights, nylon/lyrca tights, and even fishnet stockings in any color your heart desires. They are also currently donating 5% of all sales to Haiti Earthquake Relief, which means indulging yourself might not be such a bad thing after all. These tights are warm and sturdy, which is key for me as I hate to wear pants and always manage to poke holes in my stockings. The nylon/lyrca tights are warmer and sturdier than the traditional tights, and I also I think the fit is a bit better than the tights as there is more give.

Speaking of winter, I know for some you are thinking I must be mad to be Team No Pants in winter. Especially, since I live in NYC and its not exactly known for its gentile winter weather. (Case in point: Yesterday's horrendous slush-o-pocalypse).

Uniqlo has literally saved my life in this regard by creating heat-tech leggings, which not only keep out the cold but somehow help you keep warm by utilizing your body heat in a feedback loop. I have no idea how they work, but they do the job just fine. They also come in an array of colors, but of course I had to be boring and buy a pair in black. (I so regret this now). What I found even more surprising than them actually working as advertised was that even though they are a Japanese brand I still was able to fit into a women's large. It was at this point that I dared to dream that there was a God, because only he could have created an item so perfect for me.