With everything going on at the time, I had to sit out the Spring 2016 collections, but the good news is that Pre-Fall has begun! I’ve probably said this before, but the Pre-Fall collections are my favorite for lots of reasons. Chief among them may be the timing. These are cold weather clothes that we get to peruse while there are still months of winter and winter-int0-spring weather ahead of us, so inspiration can actually be applied immediately. (As opposed to looking at Spring collections in September, for instance.) They’re just starting to roll out, and there are no significant knits for us to talk about yet, but I’m obsessed with this Karen Walker ensemble up top. For me, it’s not possible to wear denim and khaki together without feeling like I’m about to clock in for a shift at the Gap, but this outfit gets my wheels spinning anyway. I’ve been searching for perfect wide-cropped khakis since seeing this pair on Leandra Medine awhile back (loooove them with that indigo-and-ivory embroidered top). And all I can think about since the day I pulled my favorite sweatshirt on over my linen dress is more short and wide sweatshirts — but in slightly more dressed-up fabrics. I’m still dreaming of the Linden in boiled wool, and so on, and I am totally crazy for the proportions of this Karen Walker top — especially those cuffed elbow-length sleeves!
Bottom line: this top and these pants together make my heart sing. What doesn’t work for me is the shoes, but I’m all about Zac Posen’s approach of putting shiny combat boots with wide-cropped pants. (And culottes, and dresses! Swoon.) (What can I say? I’ve never gotten over grunge.) So that’s my perfect outfit number one right now. My new quest:
THE TOP: I could definitely use the Linden pattern to make a raglan version of this top, but I’m into the combo of the slightly dropped shoulder and the cuffed sleeves. So I’m thinking it might be better to tweak the Hemlock Tee for this. Mine won’t be denim, but probably a speckly black-and-white wool I’ve got in my stash, and yes, the boiled wool idea. This is also what I’m wanting in sweaters right now — this very shape. It’s more or less what I’ve started with my grey wool sweatshirt, and I wake up now every morning wanting one in solid black Lettlopi.*
THE PANTS: I had the perfect version of these pants from J.Crew in the aughts, wore them to tatters, and have been in search of their equal ever since, my longing compounded by the aforementioned Medine pic. But to no avail. I fear I’ll have to break down and attempt to sew pants. If it comes to it, I have a Liesl Gibson pattern in mind: Lisette/Butterick B6183, with slightly widened legs. Anyone got other suggestions, or a source for a really good khaki twill?
THE BOOTS: I’m currently scouring the internet for the closest affordable thing to the ones shown in Posen’s collection.
*By the way, I can’t believe I did a whole post about black yarns and left out lopi. Ever since wearing Kathy’s black Stopover for the holiday lookbook, I can’t get that yarn out of my head! If you haven’t seen all the great black yarn recs on that post, make sure you check out the comments!
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p.s/unrelated: The maple hand loom kits are back in stock!
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PREVIOUSLY in Idea Log: The mildly folksy tunic