The Search for Small Perfection

This is my favorite t-shirt:

I feel a little silly saying that I have a favorite t-shirt, because t-shirts are such basic items that one wouldn't think there could be much variation in them. Au contraire, mes amies. This t-shirt is so perfect in its small way that it has become a garment I do not want to live without, and every time I take it off the hanger I kick myself for not buying more than one. It's Simply Vera by Vera Wang from Kohl's, part of the very first collection she did for them. (One part of its perfection is its extremely reasonable price -- I got it on sale and it set me back less than 25 bucks. I assure you I've gotten my money's worth.) I wear it by itself, I wear it as a layering piece under sweaters & cardigans, it even looks great under a fabulous cap-sleeved tiger-striped vintage shift dress I adore.

What's perfect about this shirt? Well, the fit is fantastic. I'm long-waisted and this t-shirt is nice and long. It is actually tuck-in-able, or comes down over the waistband of a skirt and does not hoik up in the back when you sit down. (I HATE futzing with my shirttails, don't you?) The fit is slim but not skin-tight, and the fabric is a super-soft 90% modal/10%silk blend that has washed beautifully and is thin enough to layer but not so thin it looks tacky on its own. (Modal is a cellulose-based synthetic, similar to rayon. It's popping up a lot these days.)

Last weekend, attending a wedding, I fell in love with a bright yellow cotton cropped-sleeve waist-length jacket that a friend of mine was wearing. It was absolutely adorable, and when asked she told me it was Vera Wang from Kohl's. Monday I hit the Kohl's website to look for a photo to post here. They didn't have the yellow jacket, but they did have this, which got me all excited:

Another t-shirt! And they're on sale! Woo-hoo! This shirt isn't exactly the same as the black one -- it's apparently 100% cotton, not the silk/modal blend, but I'm taking a chance. I ordered it in white and this color

which is called "Violet Night." (What?? Honestly, who comes up with these names? The white isn't even "white," it's "Simply White." As opposed to "Complicated White." Oy.) I have no idea how this color is going to translate in real life -- my experience is that the Kohl's website is not a faithful representation of the color truth, and Wang's palette is a notoriously muted, dusty one, so this may wind up being deathly on me and going back to the store. But I'm hopeful.

There are several great items in this line right now; some really good basics that are wearable and yet still infused with Wang's design sensibility, which tends to the cocoon-ish and semi-dark. Her shapes may look a bit off to some people because they are not usually sharply tailored, but those well-placed pleats and gathers make for comfortable clothes that flatter less-than-perfect body types. I have a skirt from the first collection that I've worn a bunch, and it still looks great after several machine washings. Up close, no one is going to mistake these clothes for high-end designer, but for the price point I think they've done a great job with them. They're at least as good as the Mizrahi stuff for Target.

I'm expecting the t-shirts at the beginning of next week, so I'll report back. In the meantime, let's hear about your small perfect items. Do you have anything in your closet that isn't a "wow" garment, but is still perfect in its own small way? Tell me about it!

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Photos: Kohls.com

Wherein Style Spy Makes Approving Noises and Opens Her Wallet

So today I hied myself to Kohl's to do a little research -- specifically, to check out the new line Vera Wang has done for the low-priced department store, called Simply Vera.

I like Vera Wang's design sensibility quite a bit. When I first heard 7 or 8 years ago that she was going to be showing a regular collection, I was afraid that everything was going to look like a figure skating costume or the ubiquitous strapless a-line wedding dresses she was most famous for. But she's a lot funkier than that. Her color palette is usually subdued, even somber, and she likes to play with shapes and layers. Her clothes aren't typically what you'd call sleek, but they are interesting and look very forgiving and easy to wear, and she obviously has a deep love of wonderful fabric.

(Spring 2006)

(Fall 2006)

She's a fan of the bubble skirt, Vera, and so am I. I wish more women would get over their knee-jerk hatred of the bubble skirt and embrace it. It is a friend to the pear-shaped (camouflage) and reedy (creates curves) alike. Yes, we all had a bad taffeta pouf thing that we wore to prom in the 80's. Does that skirt above look like your hideous electric blue Debbie Gibson homage? No, it does not. So again I say -- get over it!

(Fall 2007)

(Fall 2006. Pay attention to this dress. There will be a quiz later. )

She definitely has a vibe, if you know what I mean. And I like it. And I've been loving the ads I've seen lately for the line, and was ready to check it out. So how was it?

Readers: I went, I saw, I bought.

I bought this skirt:

Which I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes my most-worn black skirt this fall. (And I have a LOT of black skirts. I could wear a different black skirt/white blouse combo for at least a week without repeating.) The fabric is polyester, but it's a nice poly, with a good hand to it, and moves well. And what you can't see in this picture is that while the front of the skirt has all that foompety-foomp going on with those pleats, the back is a completely basic, plain a-line. I like this -- there's no extra fabric in the place where I definitely don't need any extra bulk, but there's still detail & interest in the front.

I also got this:

Simple tissue-weight layering t-shirt that I'm in love with because the modal/silk blend makes it the softest thing besides Shine's tummy I've touched all day today.

(Unbelievably soft. If only I could make sweaters out of that.)

This t-shirt is the perfect sort of layering item that a gal who lives in a warm place like central Texas can use a bunch. It's nice & long, so it's going to stay tucked in, and it flares out at the bottom so it fits over my hips and doesn't bunch up at my waist. The sleeves are really loooooong, cut narrow, and have pretty high armholes, so you could wear this under anything and it's not going to bulk it up. I'm really digging this t-shirt.

I was tempted by this coat

which is also available in black and is really, really cute on. It's unlined and doesn't have a fastener besides the belt -- a fall coat, definitely not a winter one if you live in a cool climate, but a really great piece. The website tells me it's no longer available, but there were plenty in the store.

And this dress is really lovely

(look familiar?)

It's black jersey with a steel-gray silk panel in the front. Very soft, very flowy, very comfy. It could be worn with or without the belt, I think. A note: the website says this is a pull-on dress. It is not -- it has a back zip.

I thought the sizing of the clothes was pretty good -- I think of myself as a fairly medium-sized person and sure enough, the mediums fit me. I got the above skirt in a size 8, although I had to go up a couple of sizes in the pencil skirt that's part of the line, but no surprises there.

Complaints? Well, the color palette wasn't all that I would have loved. It's primarily black, white and and gray, with some muted purple thrown in. There is one blouse in a royal purple that's pretty, but the other purple items are all a very grayed-out version of the color, and those sorts of dusty colors look really awful on me. I would love to have had that t-shirt in a few more colors, and I'm thinking about going back for a white one and possible another black one, but the silver, dusty purple, and oatmeal colors would all be deadly on me. They're showing it in blue on the website, I think I might throw them an order for that. (I'm seriously smitten with that t-shirt, and I'm not one of those people who gets excited about t-shirts.)

Also -- it would be nice to have these things in women's sizes and petites, because the design really is quite nice. (If you are petite, you're going to have to be very careful with this stuff -- most of it is pretty long and has a lot of fabric. You'll run the risk of being overwhelmed by it. I find this a bit ironic, considering how teeny-tiny Ms. Wang is her actual self.) I'm seeing some industry reports online that the sales are actually exceeding expectations, so here's hoping that Kohl's will feel motivated to invest in expanded sizing. (Send 'em a letter! ) And everything is on sale now for 30% off, which will make it move even faster, I suspect.

As for the accessories...

The shoes were pretty good. I was actually kind of taken with these boots

and there are some really cute flats. Shoes are leather, for the most part, and look nice.

The handbags, on the other hand, are not mostly leather.

The store I went to had a framed, handled version of this little clutch and the shape of it was absolutely adorable. Unfortunately, it's made of vinyl, and it looks like vinyl, and the plastic of the frame is thin and a little cheap-looking. This bag was leather,though,

and looked much nicer. It was a great everyday bag with a magnetic closure and the perfect length strap.

There are other accessories in the line -- various scarves & knitted hats & gloves, which are all cute but nothing really noteworthy.

All in all, I think they've done a good job with this stuff. It's not exactly YSL, of course, or Wang's regular line, but for the price point I think you won't be disappointed -- especially while this sale is running. Let me know what you think!

Photos: Style.com, Kohls.com