Fundamentals

Last weekend I got to talking about the evolution of personal style with a close friend and when I say ‘close friend’ I am referring to myself. We spoke about our favorite self inflicted style periods at which point, the conversation took a turn for the retrospective. I thought back to three summers ago when I was finishing my junior year in college, still living on my parents’ credit card and having had been working for five years but alas not yet earned a dollar. That summer I bought five things: a lace mini dress from Zara, a chambray shirt from Madewell, high waist ripped denim cut-offs from Urban Outfitters and a utility jacket from there too. I did some administrative work at my father’s office so that I could rationalize spending $500 on a pair of Alexander Wang wedges too. It wasn’t rational and so I lost my credit card capabilities but the way I saw it, at least I’d done what I went to do: complete a wardrobe. Now, with those five items I learned to makeshift an entire three months worth of outfits picking and pulling from previous seasonal conquests and it worked.

Quite famously, at that. So I gave some thought to why that may be and concluded that when ones style must be so edited, there’s no room for erroneous frivolty. Those Alexander Wang wedges–we’re talking the season of Alla–are to date, my favorite shoes. That entire aesthetic: lace, utility, denim: still manifesting in my closet. And so I thought, hey: why don’t I structure a post around investing the things that could be stretched into an entire wardrobe–enter the above. Now, this isn’t to say you should necessarily buy the precise items listed above–some of them are quite expensive, but get inspired. The way I see it, if this were relevant three summers ago and still is now, there’s hope for summers future. And if I’m totally wrong? Relevance falls only in conjunction with an extensive personal compass. Dictate your wardrobe, don’t let that shit dictate you. Memorial day sales are in tow anyway. Photographed above: LNA white tee, A.P.C jacket–yes, it’s menswear, so what? Theyskens Theory dress, Free People denim cut offs, Giambattista Vallishoes, MR. Dannijo necklace–threw this one in for good measure. It’s an outfit in and of itself.

Also, in case you missed it: free manicures to last you a year do exist and they’re this way.