Of a Kind

I guess it’s Victor/Victoria day here on Of a Kind. Also as good on boys as on girls: BRIEFCASES! I do love a modern man with a briefcase, but a girl carrying one is sassy and adorable.

By Hlaska, whose name is a blend of Hawaii and Alaska (duh)—apparently, Hlaska, the 51st state, is “a state of mind, yet a true frontier.” Okay! I buy that. —claire

Evergreen Portfolio - Hlaska

A Case for…Oxfords for Girls

The only thing I’m more over than the ballet flat is James Franco, so I am fully embracing the slightly masculine lace-up. Added bonus: If you’re wearing something menswear-inspired on your feet, you worry less about whether your skirt is too short. These are the eight pairs I’d own if a had a shoe closet (and budget) like Sally Singer’s. —erica

1) Rachel Comey Nimbus lace-ups (at Bird): They’re ombré, but in a just-trekked-through-the-woods way.
2) Osborn Dust to Dust oxfords: If brogues and Toms were set up by a mutual friend, hit it off (surprisingly!), and had twins, this is what they’d look like.
3) Thorocraft The Ross shoes: Totally seasonless, they’d mesh with wispy skirts and cable-knit sweaters.
4) Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair Normal leather shoe (at Azalea): Normal? Please.

FACT: Oxfords, which originated in Scotland, were initially called Balmorals after a castle in Aberdeenshire—the one the Queen was staying at when Princess Diana died.

5) Opening Ceremony M17 Bump Toe Western oxford: They’re just country enough to earn respect without sacrificing mainstream appeal.
6) Robert Clergerie Two Tone oxford (at La Garconne): These would look fantastic with menswear tweeds—and something lacy.
7) Marais USA oxfords: Very off-duty model (and very $88).
8) Dieppa Restrepo Cali shoes (at Totokaelo): Let’s just say I wore my pair yesterday.

FACT: The oldest shoe with laces, the Areni-1, was uncovered in Armenia in 2008. According to tests at radiocarbon laboratories in California and, um, Oxford, it dates back to 3,500 B.C.

Of a Kind

BACKPACKS, BACKPACKS, BACKPACKS. If this trend continues for much longer, chiropractors are going to have to rely much more heavily upon Louboutins and the like for fashion-related back impairments. This cheery number is by Annie Larson. —claire

punkystyle:

Multi Super Stasher :

Of a Kind

Suede? Eighties prints? Braiding? $16? Why, thank you, Thief & Bandit. —erica

Bruce II—the diffusion line from designers Daphne Gutierrez and Nicole Noselli, who won the CFDA Perry Ellis Award for Womenswear in 2001 for their main collection—has been popping up at some of my favorite boutiques, and it’s looking like I should start filling the piggy bank for spring right now. I mean, hi, flamingo-pink pants. And, those little black culottes just above? I’ve already tried on the fall iteration of the style twice. —erica

PS: Did you all know that that’s how you spell culottes? I certainly did not. I seems so…fancy.

(via Fashionista)

Of a Kind

I don’t like pearls one bit, but I do have a thing for Emma Cook’s trompe l’oeil tank. It makes a lack of accessories look thoughtful and intentional instead of plain lazy. —erica

Of a Kind

But who needs a whole skeleton when this hand makes such an awesomely creepy collar all by itself? 10/31 is fast approaching!

By Delfina Delettrez, a fourth generation Fendi who splits her time between Rio and Rome. —claire

Of a Kind

This Kelly Bergin dress makes me think of The Princess Bride, and that’s a good thing.

Of a Kind

Emma Carroll crafts jewelry from scraps of Italian leather, and the multicolored pieces are making me hungry for some reason.

Emma Carroll Etc — Feather Earrings