April’s birthstone is the diamond, so my procrastinating ass is going to squeeeeeeze in an April Jewel of the Month post at the last possible moment! Behold, the black-diamond version of my 2010 single-stone platinum Gravity band. This design was originally created as a unisex wedding ring, but I made the new ring as a…
Same Time, Last Year: Braving the Outdoors
One year ago today, I ventured out of my neighborhood for the first time in six weeks. New York City had locked down for COVID-19, but I decided activism couldn’t wait any longer; I didn’t want the former guy to become a lifetime dictator with the help of a pandemic. I met up with activist…
My Best Dressed at the 2021 Oscars Is …
I’ve written before my lifelong love for DayGlo colors. Photos prove that I favor neon-pink for special occasions, like the first day of my last year of high school. Seriously! Check out my 1984 first-day-of-school top by Guess, peeking out from under my popped-collar denim jacket. Twenty-nine years later, I wore a fancy version of…
Throwback Thursday: Tiger Morse, Vikki Dougan
I’m always fascinated by the life stories of a wide variety of women. 12th-century empress? 20th-century fashionista? They’re equally compelling to me. Today was my lucky day in the 20th-century fashionista category. I’ve been interested in 1960s fashion designer/amphetamine-queen Tiger Morse since reading the Edie Sedgwick biography Edie by Jean Stein in 1986. In December…
What Wendy Wore: Megan Renee Hoodie
I haven’t taken a proper outfit photo with this yet, but people have been stopping me on the street to ask about my new python-print hoodie, so I want to show some love to designer Megan Renee. I wondered if this pattern was too distracting to wear when I went out postering last weekend for…
Abolition Now
It’s been difficult to know what to blog here, while police all over country continue committing acts of violence against Black and brown people. For 20-year-old Daunte Wright to be shot to death by a veteran cop at an unnecessary traffic stop in Brooklyn Park, Minn. — mere miles away from where Derek Chauvin is…
My Best Dressed at the 2021 SAG Awards Is …
I didn’t tune in to the Screen Actors Guild Awards last night because this year’s virtual ceremony — a pre-recorded, hour-long Zoom — wasn’t particularly appealing, but I’m glad I checked out the fashion after the fact. Leslie Odom Jr.’s suit and matching turtleneck by Berluti deserve my prestigious Best Dressed/Wear What You Want combo…
Trans Visibility and The Stonewall Protests
Yesterday was International Transgender Day of Visibility. In New York City, the celebration in Washington Square Park defied the persistent rain. There were impassioned speeches, songs and poems … … voguing (to Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion — yay!) … … line dancing … … and fashion. Organizers also set up a shrine to…
Jewel of the Month: Inspired by Lil Nas X
In 2019, 19-year-old rapper Lil Nas X vaulted from TikTok meme maker lauded by Justin Bieber to record-breaking mainstream success with his country-rap song “Old Town Road,” and there are so many things I love about this story. First of all, this song appealed to every age group, from toddlers to their grandparents. If you…
Throwback Thursday: Cold-Shoulder Top Has Its Moment
Ten years ago, I wore an outfit that made me look like Blanche Devereaux if she were trying to dress like a New Yorker. On casual day. That cold-shoulder turtleneck was already “old” to me at the time. I had gotten it on eBay years earlier, thinking it was going to look more punk, only…