Cultivating Truly Personal Style
Or, really trying to make brooches happen
Welcome back, friends. We find ourselves in that moment of early spring when the first warm day feels almost tropical, every activity must be done outside, and I, as is my wont, feel like I suddenly have nothing to wear. This is hardly a unique lament for me (anyone who has spent time with me has heard it before), and is also wildly untrue. However, the crux of the issue is that the changing of the seasons requires a bit of recalibration in terms of one’s everyday wardrobe essentials, particularly for me, as I tend to be somewhat of a uniform dresser on a daily basis (which is a polite way of saying that I wear the same three things throughout an entire season). The issue is further complicated for me this season by the feeling of seeing the same outfits and aesthetics repeated across Instagram, TikTok and even the shopping newsletters on this platform. Whether through a fault of my own or of the algorithm’s I started to feel like almost everyone was highlighting the same items and saying the same things but with little meaning attached. What I am craving now is a feeling of personalization, of a unique sense of self as expressed through my aesthetic choices, without having to completely forgo the items in my wardrobe or my styling choices which may have lately become more ubiquitous than I would prefer.
The genesis of the feeling began, perhaps, with my instant gravitation toward The Row comb, but the feeling that has persisted is deeper, and I think reflects a multifaceted desire to combat the pervasiveness of the algorithms and the "flattening of culture,” and to declare my own individuality through my stylistic choices. I have been gravitating toward scarves, belts, brooches and cuff bracelets, some of which I wrote about earlier when I discussed my desire to augment my wardrobe through the acquisition of accessories.
What I appreciate most about these items is that, contrary to how I often feel about apparel (that there is typically only one exact version of “the thing” that I am looking for), there is an almost endless array of options that you can choose when it comes to many of these items: in many cases one is best served by seeking vintage versions, such as the case with Hermès silk scarves or silver brooches (cue my mother calling me to tell me that she has plenty of Hermès silk scarves she can share with me and a brooch or two as well).
The fit at the top of the page is the product of clothing that I already own and a few key recent accessory acquisitions. I stole the styling idea for the belt from a friend and wore it around my waist to create more of a fitted shape out of a jacket from The Row that I have had for years but haven’t gotten a lot of wear out of. The jeans are ones I haven’t worn as often lately but since I saw The Row venturing into heavily distressed jeans, I too decided to return to distressed jeans.
The key items for me with this look are the cape/scarf and the sneakers. The cape is from Prada’s Spring ‘24 collection, one of my favorite collections of the season. As soon as I saw Mrs. Prada show barn jackets with satin mules and no pants, I too wanted to wear barn jackets with satin mules and no pants. Sadly, that desire directly conflicted with my practical need to pay my rent (and also ride the subway), but, thankfully, I found the cape in Paris and was able to do my “Euro to dollar exchange rate plus tax refund equals practically free” dance that I do when the dollar is strong, and brought her home with me. Over a jacket, the cape adds another dimension to an outfit that on its own might feel incomplete or simply staid, but I can also see myself wearing it through the summer as a light layer with t-shirts and shorts. As a big fan of layering, I am always looking for ways to incorporate it during the summer months.
These sneakers from The Row were a surprising purchase, even to me. I had been telling people that I don’t own a single pair of practical athletic sneakers (that’s technically not true: during covid, my mother gave me a pair of her sneakers because I had been walking upwards of four miles a day in my Nike Sacai sneakers with disastrous results for my feet) when I saw these and decided on a whim to get them. I know these are hardly athletic sneakers, but they feel highly practical to me and I can see myself wearing them with everything from jeans to more elevated trousers and tailored shorts. Yes, they are essentially the same Keds sneakers I wore with my uniform as a kid, only more expensive. They’re also hardly revolutionary in terms of styling, but have seamlessly integrated into my wardrobe as only the best additions do, almost in the form of an answer to a question I didn’t yet know I was asking. What can I say? The heart wants what the heart wants. (It’s a good thing they’re sold out in black because now the heart wants those too.)
Above is another example of an outfit predominately comprised of pieces that I have owned for some time elevated by a key accessory, in this case, the brooch. (Although the coat is newer, and to the person who sent me the coat as a possibility to buy themselves: I’m sorry! I never said I was above stealing a really good sartorial idea.) I’ve never been a huge fan of brooches; in the past they have typically felt a bit fussy and mature to me. That started to change sometime during the last year in tandem with my sense that apparel had started feeling repetitive and uninteresting. I really like this brooch from Agmes because it feels strong and feminine but not too girly and still clean (that’s a lot of weight to put on a small piece of jewelry! But it holds up). Here is another simple way to add another facet to an outfit— I love that such a small tweak can have an outsized impact on the look as a whole. I have been trying to make brooches happen without pause since then (my poor colleagues can attest to that; I think they have started adding them to trend recaps just to get me to stop mentioning them!). Thus far I have mostly gravitated toward silver abstract shapes that have an ‘80s/90s minimalist feel, but once I saw the below photo last month of Mrs. Prada wearing emerald jeweled brooches/clips after the Prada show, I started to warm to the idea of a jeweled option (or two!) paired against a more menswear-inspired fabrication. I really appreciate how Mrs. Prada’s pins complement each other but don’t match exactly. There is a reason why she is the Queen and the rest of us mere peons when it comes to personal style (and everything else she touches).
What I appreciate most about these pieces of personal flair is that none of them feels distinctly “right” or “wrong,” or to put it another way, “in” or “out.” Because there are so many options to choose from and even ways to wear them (in addition to wearing a belt outside of traditional belt loops to create a new shape to a standard garment, why not wear an earring as a brooch, or pin them onto your waistband as Leandra has frequently illustrated?), one is truly empowered to experiment and stretch one’s own taste. Figure out what you really like and discover things that no one else has that might be suited to only you. At its best, that is what the expression of personal style represents to me. It is a way to display something about yourself without speaking, to transmit some of what you value in a way that reflects your personal sense of beauty and curiosity. At the very least, it saves you from the quandary of having nothing to wear: just put a pin [on] it!
Love this! Everything out there feels so homogenized.. Going to get some brooches from my Mom next trip home, and maybe a bolo tie (too soon)? Thanks for always so eloquently sharing what we are all contemplating. xx