When I like a style, I like it … Joan Jett released “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” in 1981, and I’m wearing a version of her haircut FORTY YEARS LATER. Designer Stephen Sprouse put DayGlo colors on the runway in 1984, and I’m still obsessed. And I’ve wanted Freddie Mercury’s cool star sunglasses since Queen’s…
80s style
Jewels of the Month: Tolula in a Tiara and More
In 1985, I listened to British singer Belouis Some‘s song “Imagination” on repeat. Kids these days don’t appreciate the dedication it took to play a song obsessively back then! It was a delicate operation, what with lifting the turntable needle up from the vinyl record and moving it to that flat, grooveless space in between…
Throwback Thursday: Another Round of Neon
I walked by Macy’s the other day and was so happy to see neon colors in the window that I took a picture. DayGlo is a longtime favorite of mine. I really liked the cropped blue jacket with the long pink dress. Eventually, I figured out why the combination appealed to me so much: I…
Throwback Thursday: 32 But Looking Brand-New
I’ve been neglecting the laundry so, yesterday, I was forced to dig into the “things I never wear” layer of my dresser. When I say I never wear something, I’m not kidding, because this 32-year-old sweatshirt from my graduation from Columbia University looks brand-new! I’ve never been a fan of gray sweatshirts. They’re too drab…
What Wendy Wore: Art by These Pink Lips, Part 2
In September, which was either last month or a thousand years ago, I introduced you to Iris Barbee Bonner, who creates wearable art — the best kind of art! — under the name These Pink Lips. You’ve seen Iris’s custom work on Cardi B … and me. View this post on Instagram Here’s a solo…
Throwback Thursday: Madonna’s Leather Haring Jacket
Madonna needs to let me rummage around in her closet because I’ve been blogging about her pieces by artist Keith Haring — one by one — for 10 years. I need to take a complete inventory, because this is getting ridiculous. In 2010, I reminisced about the covetable Keith Haring skirt Madonna wore in her…
Throwback Thursday: Leather Painted by Lyko
My painted motorcycle jacket has already appeared on the blog numerous times. Artist Andrew Lyko customized it for me last year, and now I like to wear it when I’m going to be arrested. I’m so glad I never purged this jacket from my closet like you’re “supposed to” with clothes you never wear. This jacket…
What Wendy Wore: Vintage Madonna
Madonna was at the Brooklyn Academy of Music this month with her “Madame X” tour, and of course I was there — twice! I’ve never missed one of her tours, and I do like to catch two performances per tour. You can find out more about my decades of fandom from the YouTube video I…
Throwback Thursday: Guess and Gladiators in 1985
In a 2008 post about gladiator sandals, I wrote: “I’ve loved this style since 1985, when I had a pair of flat white gladiators. I felt so chic when I wore them with my Guess ankle-zip jeans and oversize blouse! I’ve been searching for a photo that shows me wearing those shoes for a while…
Foot Fetish: 1980s Booties and Boot Styles
There hasn’t been a shoe that’s interested me in quite a while, but this Dior caught my eye because it reminds me of a Peter Fox style I had in the 1980s. You can just barely make out those Peter Fox shoes against my crazy striped tights in this poorly lit photo from 1986. Madonna…