30x30: day 2, perfection

Spiewak coat // Gap wool blazer // Vintage striped t-shirt // Gap trousers // Suede sneakers

This post is an amalgam of a post I started a few weeks ago and yesterday's 30x30 challenge outfit. Because who doesn't like putting all her eggs in one basket? The Gap trousers are from when I was in 9th grade and I haven't been able to wear them til now after the inevitable freshman 15 in college. They are skinny/straight legged, but flare out just slightly at the bottom, kind of like Isabel Marant pants. They're a little too low-rise for my taste now, but I like that they are still a solid pair of trousers after all these years! Goes to show you that sometimes quality for certain brands can really be hit or miss.

I should also note that the above outfit was directly inspired by this one, from Jak and Jil, although not executed with quite the same finesse.

I've long realized that the "perfect" wardrobe probably doesn't exist because humans are of course imperfect. What I'm striving for these days is equal parts harmony, utility, and love in my clothes. In just the first few weeks of the new year, I've already had plenty of temptations that were sure to make my goal to purchase less than 12 items impossible. The items that I've given into are not so much temptations as they are things that I've been planning to buy for a while now.

The first is a new winter coat (pictured above), because I've been growing a little tired of my J. Crew one which is too fitted for proper layering. I saw this Spiewak coat online and didn't think much of it at first. I liked the color and texture, and the knit collar, but the shape didn't seem like quite the Isabel Marant cocoon shape I was looking for. However, when the price dropped to say, how much I've paid for 3 overpriced mediocre cappucinos in China, I had to try it out. 

Despite my disappointing purchase from Net-a-Porter, I decided to give ordering trousers online another try. I bought 2 pairs of A.P.C. during the last days of the NAP sale, but much to my demise neither pair fits. I probably would've returned the chinos anyways because they're quite thin and the color is a bit off, but the mustard corduroys were beautiful and of course they don't have the next size up for exchange (ironically the chinos do). So back they went! 

In truth I really didn't need said trousers from A.P.C., since what I really wanted was a pair of grey wool trousers. It really took a lot to find a pair with all of the specs that I wanted: 100% wool or a wool/cashmere blend, front slant pockets, two back pockets, belt loops, slightly tapered (but not too tapered) at the leg, medium rise, and a 26-27" inseam. A pair of J. Crew pants fit all of these criteria and look good uncuffed or with one or two cuffs to boot. They are unlined but I actually like them that way. Thanks ebay!

I went outlet shopping with my parents on MLK day and almost cried when a pair of Dries Van Noten sandals (like the above but in the black colorway) marked down from $850 to $300 were an additional 70% off but a little less than half a size too small. They felt fine sitting down, but my feet definitely felt scrunched when standing up. I almost bought them anyways but knew that I'd probably only wear them once or twice. Whilst browsing pants I found a pair of Current/Elliott trousers that were a heavyweight, but very soft, cotton in a nice medium grey. I tried them on and they fit perfectly--a perfect upgrade from the very tight American Apparel high-waisted twill pants that I'm not letting myself wear anymore. Edit: I'm finally publishing this post a few weeks after it was started and find now that these pants are way too loose in the waist, as in they can't be worn without a belt. So these are going on my list of things to sell after the summer...

Purchase #4 is the one that came from left field, and yet it is my favorite of the bunch. From a pool of 19 people on the Laws of General Economy I was the lucky buyer of the Mina Stone Hera dress. When it arrived in the mail I literally ran inside to try it on. It fits like it was made for my body and indeed makes me feel like a goddess. The 100% silk is exquisitely died and has a nice weight to it that doesn't seem to wrinkle easily. The cutouts are wonderfully placed without revealing too much. Just looking at it makes me happy. Indeed it's love! And I owe it all to the wonderful Lindsay, who certainly made my day by parting with the dress. Sadly I didn't bring this dress with me to China, because I didn't think the silk could handle the smog clouds. 

I also bought two pairs of new eyeglasses from Lookmatic via Refinery29's Reserve Deals, but I'm not counting them as part of my 2012 wardrobe additions. One does need to be able to see, right? So I'm putting them in the same category of purchases as new running shoes (that my mom gifted me).

So this brings my total purchase number to 8, as I've also bought the Velour Agatha dress in rust, Alexander Wang Julia oxfords in espresso/black, Aldo Netz in taupe, and red leather Converse Chuck Taylors...that's a lot of shoes, but I've pretty much halved the number of shoes I have down to less than 20 so I'm justifying it to myself. No regrets in 2012?

So that's technically 2/3 of my yearly purchases all within the first two months. If I take out the Current/Elliott pants and that I'll probably end up reselling one of the three pairs of shoes, that still leaves me with half of 12. To be honest there's not much left to buy on my wishlist, and I've already got a 50+ list of things to purge which will bring my total 2012 purge to around 100 items. 

For the record though, here's what's still on my wishlist:

1. slouchy black leather carryall, particularly the Marc by Marc Jacobs Totally Turnlock Faridah/Core

2. A.P.C. raw jeans 

3. Frye engineer boots - 12R black (but really considering the 15R too)