SPRING SHOPPING EXTRAVAGANZA PT II
Transcendent hats, Plus size shopping, dress matchmaking and much more
Welcome back to the Romantic Archivist Spring Shopping Extravaganza, where I answer all your burning questions. This is part II! Click here to read part I.
Let’s get right into it!
Transcendent sun protection
Q: I need a Wide brimmed hat so my face doesn’t get cooked again. Who can I trust?
A: You know I’ve been pushing the hat agenda for several months now so I couldn’t be happier to answer this q. The modern woman’s transcendent spring/summer hat wardrobe is from Eliurpi - the maxi boater, the sailor and the oversized pillbox. You’ll be the most sensational woman on the beach!
I also love the surrealist gems created by Maryam Keyhani: the soufflé hat or the Yves boater in pink.
If you’re after something less conspicuous, I spotted some sublime wide wired-brim toppers on the models in Eliza Faulkner’s SS shoot (styled by Nariman Janghorban). They were designed by Toronto milliner Tierre Taylor and are not on the site as of the date of this publication but I recommend getting in touch with Tierre!
Plus size shopping study
Q: Midsize/plus options that aren’t terrible ?
Q: Where to get nice pants/trousers plus size?
A: In my somewhat limited experience of shopping for plus size actors/personal styling clients, I’ve seen what a struggle it can be out there. Rack and racks of hideous prints on repellent fabrics that are either covered in frumpy ruffles or cut into shapeless sacks. IE: not chic. Here are some better options for pants and otherwise!
Boden - up to size 22
- a voluminous skirt is something I am constantly recommending to clients and this one is 97% cotton sateen! Ideal.
- this cotton polo dress is very maritime law. I want you to wear it with a hat: maybe a raffia pillbox or straw beehive?
Mara Hoffman - up to size 20
- if you have an event and a slightly more generous budget, this column gown is giving old Hollywood glamour
- and this shirt dress is unbearably chic in the sort of easy way that makes it seem like you host a lot of al fresco dinner parties
Fashion Brand Company - up to 6XL
- FBC makes clothing for weird girls, and some of it is rather bananas, but here are some smart trousers in a sturdy linen if you’re not a freak like that
- the step sister attack gown is an eccentric lite* option for this year’s roster of weddings - *simple enough to be elegant, interesting enough to start a conversation
- they also have matching sailor jackets for you and your toddler which is a vibe I wholeheartedly support!
Eileen Fisher - up to 3X
- We probably all know Eileen Fisher as a fine purveyor of shapeless linen sacks, but I love their delicately pleated crushed silk line! This simple skirt, the matching camisole and a scarf to drape over your shoulders luxuriously: exquisite!
Wray - up to 6XL
- the studio pant: a flowy yet tailored pleated trouser with no polyester in sight!
- another long skirt, this one a little more Lake Como summer
Good American - up to size 32 plus
- I won’t make a habit of shilling for the Kardashians in this newsletter, but I’ve heard Khloe can be trusted with plus size jeans, and GA also made this really good pair of wide leg cargo pants! I recently bought a pair of wide leg cargos and texted my bf and bff “can a pair of pants change your life?” I believe they can.
- these 90s relaxed fit jeans look pretty chill, too
Dynamic jewelry and accessories
Q: pondering everyday wear - jewelry/accessories, want to feel lived in but alive?
Q: favourite spring brooches and accessories?
A: Jewelry is so personal. I’ve never understood why tradition dictates trusting one’s betrothed to choose a piece of jewelry one must wear for eternity (or until divorce, at least). Without knowing personal details about you, dear reader, all I can do is share pieces that make my heart sing, and hope they will speak to you as well.
Some of my most worn pieces:
LEFT
Lapis bead bracelet - a talisman from the thrift
Beau Sterling midcentury starburst pearl ring - picked up in a shop in North Bay, Ontario while buying for a film - nearly identical one here
Solid sterling J hoops - purchased for me by my lover on a visit to Amarcord Vintage - similar here and here
Napier sterling silver ball bracelet - found last year on etsy by searching “vintage 925 modernist bracelet”
RIGHT
Brass fish collar - perhaps my most asked-about piece. I got this from the VV jewelry counter, but I think it was originally from Zara?! I don’t shop there nor do I recommend it but a good piece is a good piece.
Heart safety pin/shell brooch - made by attaching a broken scarf clip to a thrifted brooch
Vintage lapis earrings - I don’t remember where I got these, but they were probably thrifted. Lapis represents wisdom, courage and truth, so wearing it feels talismanic.
Completed Works Stratum hoop earrings - bought during one of Ssense’s many sales. cost per wear on these is practically negligible by now! Sold out, but similar here
MORE JEWELRY SUGGESTIONS
Brooches: Salvador Dali nose and mouth, pair of elegant hands, Jacky de G sun face, sterling clamshell, gold plated Ferragamo shoe pin, 1930s velvet orchid corsage
Unique lapis earrings: gold plated star drops, brutalist cabochons, 1940s fluted half domes
Modernist silver earrings: Bayanihan post backs that look like dancing flames, Taxco puffy daisy heads, clip on hollow beans, clip on Tulla booth discs with onyx beads
Chunky silver bracelets: chain link bracelet, modernist bangle, Arne Johansson boomerang bracelet, Bayanihan wave bracelet
ON BELTS
The accessory that will carry you through spring into summer: a fabulous BELT. In the heat of July when we can no longer rely on layering to add interest to our outfits, the belt is there saying “I’ve got this, babe”.
It has been brought to my attention, however, that some don’t understand how to wear belts! Allow me to simplify. A belt can be worn one of two ways:
1. practically, through the belt loops on a pair of jeans/trousers/shorts or a skirt. This type of belt is used to add weight and sometimes incongruity to an outfit. A studded belt on a preppy pair of striped cotton shorts is charming, for example.
2. ornamentally, cinched around dresses/skirts/trousers with a flat front or some volume. This type of belt is used poetically, added the way one would add statement jewelry. The prime example of this is the Elsa Peretti for Tiffany’s Equestrian belt, which I have coveted for years, but there is a surplus of vintage options.
Practicals: studded Anne Klein, vintage Marni with resin dipped buckle, Betsey Johnson with floral lucite buckle, reptile stamped Gianfranco Ferre, cherub buckle Calvin Klein, minimal taupe with silver buckle
Ornamentals: red beaded rope with tassels, patent leather with silver orange-shaped buckle, pink silk taffeta sash (imagining this worn dramatically with a mini skirt for an evening out!!!), silver plated chain, wide leather with brass o ring buckle, chocolate brown leather with brass Robert Lee Morris buckle
Summer dress matchmaking
Q: How to buy the perfect summer dress?
A: To answer this question, one must pose another: what kind of summer do you wish to have? Not all perfect summer dresses are created equal, and not everyone has the same summer dress desires. And this is about desire and not need, about summer fantasy rather than summer reality. Dress for the summer you want!
Maybe that’s bicycling through Provence and you need a green caped cotton sundress, Soleiado indigo mouche print, lavender striped Esprit or strapless madras peplum.
Perhaps you wish for a summer of sailing and shopping for Nantucket baskets. Find perfection in gauzy breezy Cacharel, striped cotton with Broderie Anglaise accents, white MicMac St Tropez or silk knit Agnes B.
Learning to blow glass in a cottage in the forest? This 70s printed shirtdress, 90s striped marimekko maxi or salmon colored smock dress may please you.
Sizzling on an Italian beach by day, drinking Aperol and dancing with your three best friends by night? Moschino silk patchwork slipdress, off the shoulder bodycon crochet or one shoulder Souleiado block print?
If none of these are quite your personal utopian summer, please let me know in the comments. Maybe I can do some summer dress matchmaking in a future issue.
Thank you for joining me for THE ROMANTIC ARCHIVIST, the newsletter in service of those seeking beauty and modernity. Do you have a comment or concern? A burning issue with which you require guidance? Please forward any and all queries to romanticarchivist@gmail.com! And please, like, share and subscribe if you enjoyed reading!