we are all connected: six degrees of kevin bacon

This is a collaborative post. Let me try to explain.



While we were in Florida, I finally got to meet my 'blog-friends': '-h', of Pret a Porter P, and Stephanie, of Style Odyssey (more about that later). We'd all never met before, and were such instant friends. I didn't want it to end. Then, we went to a fabulous event that Stephanie, who is a brilliant artist, told us about: ('hollywood glamour').



After a day at the beach, I had changed in the car into a little black sequin number from Topshop, and the moment I saw Stephanie, I just fell in love with her outfit. She was describing how she made it: 'you buy three Hanes wife-beater tees...' and said that she got the idea from another blogger, 'childhood flames' (do it yourself tees). I've bought my three-Hanes packet at Target, and am about to make my own. The core of the concept is you shred one tee and layer it over another.

I can't tell you how excited I am about this look: soon as I post this, while watching Antiques Roadshow, I plan to take scissor in hand, take a deep breath, and start shredding. This is all I want to wear for spring & summer: clouds of ethereal white, and palest pastels. I'm starting now: just extra layers.



Stephanie's accessorised her outfit with a necklace from.. well, here's her post on it.



I love Stephanie's style: she's such a pixie.. you know Kevin Bacon's wife, Kyra Sedgwick? The Closer? She's a bit like that with her warmth and humour and generous heart and honey coated, slightly southern drawl. I feel like we've always been friends, and always will.



And these are shot by Stephanie: her delightful friend, Jenny (their friendship formed through their husbands, sailors & boat guys), with me & Mr. Dot. Story of my life: he's in focus, and I'm a blur.



And this is my hand, shot by Stephanie on our blogger lunch in Boca. Our aesthetic is so similar, although our styles are individually our own. And wait til you see '-h's. It's uncanny: it's like we're all drawn together by something that's hard to describe. A zest for life, certainly, but more than that: we all see beauty in something similarly quirky, and indescribable. Or maybe we're just six degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon.

Stephanie's DIY 'Hanes' dress: one small or medium white Hanes wife-beater tee, shredded as per childhood flames' do it yourself tees instructions. Layered over one XL Hanes wife-beater tee, a white long sleeve tissue tee by James Perse, and leggings by American Apparel. Boots by Fiorentini + Baker, from Barney's website.

classic with a twist

Pondering further on the previous posting: it seems to be everyone's obsession these days, looking like a million bucks for next to nothing. Take these two unrelated models I've met streetshooting, and coincidentally, just heard from: Francesca Frane (left) and Hannah Horn. Both were caught on the street with regular (i.e., their own) day clothes - both in sombre tones of black and navy, both with gorgeous, luxurious raven locks, and both subscribing to what I suspect we all, deep down, want to believe is our look: classic with a twist.

My blog-friend H recently posted about it (The Roit(feld) Way) in her blog, Pret-a-Porter P. Francesca has taken the smart/casual uniform of skinny jeans and a cardigan over tee, and made them special with her platform sandals from Topshop, while Hannah has pulled on a bubble skirt dress from H&M and, while seeming on trend, has channelled a classic-with-a-twist homage to a Victorian woman's bustle - in reverse - and teamed it with heels and black tights that are a spin on the black button up boots of that time. And over it, a jacket derived from a Marseilles fisherman's pea coat.
I'm sure she didn't dissect it quite that intellectually: she just put it on, it worked, and she walked out the door. Frida, also a model, did the same thing with her trench, but I've posted that twice, so if you're new to my little blog, go back to this posting.



I've always dressed this way, even as a child. When my beautiful childhood friend Sherri and I were trying to come up with fashion don'ts of ourselves from the past, she said she went thru old photos and sure enough, there wasn't much you could laugh at (well, you could always laugh at me for behaving like an idiot). But I was rarely swayed by current trends in too wacky directions. She said I was uncannily classic, even as a child. Classic, yet twisted.