144: Everything I wore this NYFW

Tagged and linked and entirely shoppable.

I’m going a little off-piste with today’s send, a NYFW outfit dump usually reserved for Instagram. But, as with all things IG, there’s always too much algorithm and too little room for context.

The grainy, low-res quality of the photos drives me crazy and of course my room is a mess, but I’m trying to remember that this is the newsletter era’s wild west and I’m not beholden to any standard of production or format. It is mine to iterate!

I’ll be back with shoppable show coverage in a couple days, so I’ll refrain from commenting too much on the meat of the week—the collections. This post, rather, is an internal monologue about how I got dressed each morning and afternoon to attend the New York fashion community’s biannual trade event.

Here you have it—every outfit I wore this NYFW, down to the very dress I’ve got on as I type and reflect over a cortado and pan con tomate at Casetta.

Day 1, Look 1

Belle the Label Vivir vest, $210 / Kye Intimates Form bra, $70 $100 / Toteme double-pleated trousers, $440 / vintage Louis Vuitton sandals (similar, $300) / Jil Sander Goji mini bag, $2,050

I started the week off with a dinner hop and needed something that would translate to two very different crowds. The hero piece of this look is ultimately the crisp, organic Kye bralette, which helped tone down the inevitable cleavage I end up with in a keyhole-style top. Also, shout out to Belle for fitting this vest with a double zip—as I’ve said before, if you’re not installing double zips in every instance where they’re made to be seen what are you even doing?

Day 2, Look 1

Attersee Sculpted Vest, $495 / Mark Kenly Domino Tan skirt (similar, $245) / By Far Amber bag, $685 / Maison Margiela Tabi ballet flats, $690

Even though I had pre-prepped some looks for the week, by the first daytime outing, I didn’t want to wear any of them. Those “sketches” felt affected and unnatural, and all I wanted was to be unencumbered. This combination of things I wear individually often took my mind’s eye off me and out into the world to better observe what the week was trying to show me.

Day 2, Look 2

Beaufille Baes bodysuit, $315 / Lauren Manoogian twill trousers, $690 / Bottega Veneta Sardine bag via Vivrelle, $4,200 / Maryam Nassir Zadeh Olympia wedges, $550

A Lauren Manoogian order had arrived to my place while I was out that morning, so I was determined to make this pair of heavy twill pants work despite the 90-something-degree heat. A next-to-nothing Beaufille top justified the weight and volume of my lower half, and a pair of trusty ol’ MNZ Olympias (now my tallest shoes) helped lift the hems off the ground.

Day 3, Look 1

Loewe Anagram tank, $390 / Alessandra Rich pleated skirt (similar from Gia Studios via The RealReal, $116) / Bottega Veneta Sardine bag via Vivrelle, $4,200 / Maison Margiela Tabi ballet flats, $690

I count the fact that I was repeating items in my outfits by day three a success—the comfy flats, the bag (a loaner, by the way), even the Hernan Herdez single earring. Looking back, this was one of my favorite fits from the week, and I owe it to how weather-appropriate and low-key I felt, while still being in love with each and every item I had on.

Day 3, Look 2

Rus dress (similar from Baserange, $170) / SC103 Links bag, $450 / The Row ballet heels (similar, $820)

I’ve preached the gospel of this knit dress before, an underrated option during summer’s heat waves when linen usually gets the starring role. I paired it with my SC103 bag (because I was having a “Brooklyn night”) and these The Row mini heels, because I really loved the tension between of the forbidden tan and black combo.

Day 4, Look 1

Maria McManus Ladder Crochet dress, $990 / Mark Kenly Domino Tan skirt (similar, $245) / A. Emery sandals (similar, $170)

Maria McManus launched what was technically day one on the official schedule (but, as these things go, we were almost halfway through the “week”), and the brand graciously sent this dress to wear for the occasion. The ladder crochet throughout created such a gorgeous drape that hung so comfortably over the column skirt I’d repurposed from earlier in the week as an inner layer. On paper, a piece like this could easily read too beachwear, but ultimately the intricacy of the knit lent it much more elegance. I’m drinking a Calexo here FWIW!

Day 4, Look 2

Helmut Lang blazer tank (similar, $350) / Prada crinkled skirt, $1,650 / Ratio et Motus Holster bag, $650 $1,200 / Jil Sander T-strap Mary Janes (similar by G.H.Bass, $185) / Peter Do watchband earrings, $125

I went home to change before the Peter Do for Helmut Lang show, wanting to wear Peter Do and Helmut Lang. The heat didn’t allow for the full Helmut suit (wool pants were not about to happen), plus, once again, I found that my “planned” outfits no longer served me.

Day 5, Look 1

Lee Matthews twill midi jacket, $640 / Bevza Spikelet dress, $595 / Paid Actor scarf bindle bag, $245 / Jamie Haller Jutti slippers, $390 / Agmes x Simone Bodmer Turner earrings, $240

I wore a Bevza dress on the day of the Bevza show—always fun and community-feeling to participate like that when you really believe in that brand, as I do with Bevza, especially this season…but more on that next send.

Still, the thing that really cinched this look for me was an ultra lightweight Lee Matthews coat that I had forgotten about. The exquisite construction was fully apparent and appreciable in wearing it and—I’m not even sure I can fully express this next bit—it rhymed so completely with the wearabilty of the best collections I was taking in through the week. The return-to-real-clothes movement advanced a level this season, and this Lee Matthews jacket, these Jamie Haller leather flats, they embodied the excitement I found within it.

Day 5, Look 2

Michelle Del Rio Lucia collar, $220 with skirt / Esse Studios strapless top, $205 / Pleats Please tan wide-leg pants, $365 / The Row ballet heels (similar, $820) / Porto leather pouch, $250

In Michelle, to Michelle. I knew I wanted to channel a send-in-the-clowns look with the collar half of her divine Lucia set, but it took me a while to get there. My first draft included a pair of basketball shorts and no top—I might have to do a reject outfits post at some point, there are a lot.

I love the way the color palette in this look turned out: the chewing gum-wrapper blue against shades of cream and tan and brown. There’s something very innocent here. Also, a side shout-out to this Porto pouch that I pack with me on every trip; its bunchy closure mirrors the scrunched collar quite nicely.

Day 6, Look 1

Toteme Country Jacket, $850 / Agolde low-slung baggy corduroy pants, $248 / The Row Town leather ankle boots, $834 $1,390 (also on Poshmark, $350) / vintage Bottega Veneta Intrecciato hobo bag, $985

The torrential rain hit just as my Uber was pulling up, so I quickly changed into something weather-impermeable. The truth is, I could have gotten away with wearing whatever it was I had on at the time (who even remembers anymore?), but at this point, I was desperate for a few hours of incognito mode, slicked hair and all. Herein lies some of my recent fall shopping in action, dressed up as literally as one can imagine. I reveled in these hours of shushed dressing.

Day 6, Look 2

Mansur Gavriel linen coat, $127 via The RealReal / Mansur Gavriel Pencil Case bag, $395 via Fashionphile / vintage Alaia ballet boots (similar from The Row, $1,320)

Can you guess where I was headed by this outfit? Mansur hosted a block party, for which I broke out my cherished coat from their short-lived era producing apparel. I’m begging the brand to bring back clothes and heard a rumor at the event it might be on its way. Mansur-heads like me will be keen to learn there’s a decent hoard of RTW on TRR right now.

Day 7, Look 1

Mara Hoffman Popcorn dress, $725 / Mara Hoffman x Mercado Global tote, $195 / A. Emery sandals (similar, $170) / Santangelo Pronto anklet, $150

I was determined to wear this Mara dress despite it being a Monday morning. The balmy weather begged for it, and I’m glad I followed that instinct, because this is one of the most comfortable, self-aligned things I wore this week. The dress can easily become occasionwear, but it was just as easily disarmed with a few casual accessories (the Santangelo anklet pulled more that its weight).

Day 7, Look 2

Lemaire tank top, $120 / Remain Birger Christensen suiting skirt, $280 / Michelle Del Rio Catalonia belt (as necklace), $280 / vintage Louis Vuitton sandals (similar, $300) / Bottega Veneta Sardine bag via Vivrelle, $4,200

The final look doesn’t suggest it, but I referenced Lemaire as a starting point for this outfit. Mainly, I wanted to emulate the brand’s castanet necklaces, which, alongside The Row’s corded combs, have been a jewelry fixation of mine for the season. I had successfully resisted splurging on either (even I couldn’t negate that what was effectively a household item on a shoestring would be a frivolous purchase), which is how inspiration struck to loop my favorite MDR belt around my neck like a bolo. It’s moments like these when I remember that restraint can be the most powerful friend of creativity.

Day 8, Look 1

Maryam Nassir Zadeh Apollo vest, $294 / Entireworld t-shirt (similar from Leset, $70) / Lauren Manoogian Base pants, $370 / Martiniano High Glove heels, $536 / Maryam Nassir Zadeh Lara tote, $490 / Wolf Circus Tidal necklace, $325

Day eight versus day one…I have to laugh. I literally wore these knit pants schlubbing around my apartment for the first few consecutive hours I’d had all week to work, and when it was time to head out to appointments I said, “This will do.” As these things go, naturally this was a top-three look for me.

Day 9, Look 1

Posse Val dress, $239 / SCHA scarf (similar from Eckhaus Latta, $250) / vintage Bottega Veneta Intrecciato hobo bag, $985 / G.H.Bass Weejuns loafers, $175

Hi. I’m wearing this right now. The dress was fresh from the tailor after sitting with Ramon for over two months, which of course provided the onus to wear it immediately. But, oh look, might it rain? Better pair this lovely linen mini with a near-indecipherable scarf-collar layering piece and call it a day. Is FW over yet?