High and Low Fashion

It's no secret that I used to be a fashion editor in my old life. There are countless articles on that very topic strewn around the store (yes, we are shamefully very public about our great press we have received in magazines like Travel+Leisure, ELLE and Marie Claire). One of the things I did as an editor was report on the latest trends but also how to wear them and how to get them at every price. I still practice what I used to preach in my new life as a shopkeeper. And today was the perfect example of how I like to mix my "high with my low."

We are fortunate to carry the awesome Brian Atwood collection at Trocadero. I know we talk about his line fairly often but it's because many people aren't as familiar with his shoe line as let's say a Manolo, Christian or Jimmy. Thanks to Sex and the City those lines became household names. While I still love my Blahniks and Choos and Louboutins, I have become a steadfast Atwood girl. In the photo above, I am seen wearing Brian Atwood's gold Elly Self in gold leather. The platform on the shoe along with the ankle strap just holds the foot in making it absolutely easy to walk in and comfortable to boot. I have not been known to be a high heel girl; I am often wearing my flats and spent many summers back in NYC wearing all sorts of flip flops (such as my stand bys from Reef). But these Ellys have changed all that. With spring-like temperatures finally here I am eager to have open-toed shoes to wear and let's face it: wearing heels really makes a huge difference on how your legs look. I might not have a 36 inch inseam on my jeans but at least I can feel like I do by wearing my jeans with heels.

Speaking of my jeans, I am also not a huge denim girl mostly because I find them to be very unforgiving when you're having a little weight gain here and there. There's nothing I hate more than that "muffin top" spillover on one's jeans. Ugh! So imagine my surprise when I was in Costco the other day to do some grocery shopping and I stumbled upon the center section of clothing. Seven Jeans? Really? At Costco? At over $100 they were still not in my price range (considering I have plenty of pricey jeans from Earl, Paper Denim and Cloth and others). I wanted a true bargain. And that's when I saw the Calvin Klein jeans for $24.99. I kind of was dreaming of classic Brooke Shields, 70s-era Calvins but these looked like they would do. With no dressing rooms I had to just wing it and hope for the best (or else return them later if once I tried them on at home they didn't fit).

Let's just say I'm loving my new Costco Calvin Klein jeans. I also like to tell everyone that I bought my jeans from Costco. Grape tomatoes? Check! Bulk toilet tissue? Check! Package of 9 steaks? Check! Giant bottles of alcohol? Check! Calvin Klein jeans? Check!

The finishing touch on my outfit is my jacket. It is one of my "investment" pieces that I bought years ago at the Marni outlet. It is ivory with gold brocade flowers and it is definitely one of the best items I ever purchased in my years of being a fashion editor. What I love most about my Marni jacket is how it really stands out and makes such a bold statement without being overly gaudy. It has gold thread so the "sparkle" factor makes it so versatile to wear both during the day and at night. I like it dressed down with a long tunic underneath with some slim fitting trousers, jeans, pencil skirts or bermuda shorts. Do you have items in your closet that you can't live without? Let us know by commenting below. Also stay tuned to see more of our wardrobe staples...