22 April 2009 , originally uploaded by academichic.
Sources:
- Jacket – J.Crew
- Blouse – thrifted, remixed
- Jeans – thrifted
- Sandals – Target, remixed
Endnotes:
Browsing though A.’s J.Crew catalog last night while watching Biggest Loser, I noted a common thread throughout their spring line; it’s all about juxtaposing contradictory fabrics (silk, cotton, jeans, chiffon, etc) and contradictory registers (casual, business, evening, etc) for a seemingly incongruous look. For example, model and Goodwill Ambassador Liya Kebede is wearing the casual ‘boyfriend’ jean with an evening clutch and an embroidered top. Another image shows her sporting a sequined evening skirt paired with an oversized grey cotton tee. Yet another contradiction is created between the torn and faded jean with a business-casual cardigan and jacket combo. This latter image was the inspiration for my outfit today.
I would never have paired this old and torn jean of mine with my elegant evening jacket and this blouse. I tend to dress within one register and don’t mix seemingly contradictory items, so this look was definitely new to me. I think it works for a day of meetings, a coffee date with a friend, and my last class as a student in my graduate career! Were it a teaching day, I might not be as bold with the torn jean, wanting to set myself apart from my students a bit more than this look allows. But overall, I like this bit of rogue fabric and register mixing inspired by J.Crew’s spring line, and like A. yesterday, am surprised to find myself pulling off a look I’d normally only admire in the pages of their glossies but would never envision on myself. S.
textures/patterns, originally uploaded by academichic.
You definitely pulled it off, it looks great! Enjoy your last class! That’s got to be a great feeling.
Wow! When I first saw this look, I thought that was a black sequined top and I was amazed how the distressed jeans made such an “evening” top appropriate for day. Now that I can see it’s a pattern it looks SO much more casual. Interesting how both looks are fabulous even though they’re so different (and one was imaginary)!
You look like you just waltzed off the pages of that J.Crew catalog, S. Well done – and I hope you’ll play around with this look again!
i love the contradiction! and i love how your jeans are “just so” distressed, but not totally ratty. it works very well on you! :)
as for me, i may be behind the curve a bit, but today, im taking inspiration from both your pattern-mixing module and your color combination lessons.
today is a solid caramel skirt with a similar colored top that has a stripey texture and a gold thread running through it. overtop of that is an orange-and-white zebra-print cardi belted with yet another pattern: a brown-and-blue, kinda floral belt. tan sequinned flats and chunky turquoise bracelets and earrings finish it off. it sounds busy, but i think it works in person. i never would have thought to try these things together if it werent for you gals!
maybe someday i will work up the nerve for photos!
Cute outfit! And congrats on your last class–on to dissertating! (Love that word.)
OMG, love it!! I am like you… have trouble logically mixing registers, I usually feel self-conscious when I try it… like I am clashing.
I really need to try this!
You look fantastic!! I really like the mix of textures and pattern. You and A are totally nailing the J. Crew looks!
I like this look
I love this look on you. You look great!
Thanks, everyone!
@Evanadine – Your outfit sounds great! I hope you do get to snap a picture, because we’ll be putting out a CFP on pattern mixing by the end of the week! (CFP – See top of page for explanation and examples, but it’s essentially calling for reader submissions and I’d love to see your look! )
I love how this looks! One of my favorite style mantras is achieving balance – whether is be between feminine and tough pieces, casual and dressy pieces, etc. Congrats on your last graduate class as a student! I’ve just got one more semester to go.
Congrats on your last class! You look great for it!
I have recently become very interested in this idea of balancing high and low garments. I have been looking at google images of fictional science ladies to get a sense of how the pro’s dress and style a female scientist. Dr. Temperance Brennan is a favorite of mine. I noticed that she is very often wearing a blazer+jeans+cotton shirt. I never thought of pairing a structured blazer with a cotton tank, but I realized that this hi/lo thing is a very versatile formula for getting that professional scientist look, without being so well dressed that people mistake you for the department administrator.
Plus, you get more chances to wear your best pieces! Great blog, btw, I read you daily.
I just love the depth of pattern in this look – it’s so interesting and layered, yet (perhaps because of the jeans) does not look forced. Fantastic!
This look is beautiful on you! Great pieces!
[...] Last week I mentioned the idea of “non-sequitur” shoes, and a couple of you pointed out in the comments that accessories like shoes and jewelry can be so-disjunctive-they-work not only in terms of color but also in material or level of formality. I think that S. frequently does a great job of mixing “registers” of clothing, like wearing a silky skirt for day or jacket and blouse with torn jeans. [...]
[...] to love the mix of stripes and flowers – the slouchy collegiate with the polished frill. S. refers to this as mixing registers, something often done in the J Crew [...]