It Takes Two: Grace & Lindsey Rock Our ACB Cuff
Oooh, a new feature! Think of this as the opposite of “Who Wore It Best”: There’s some mad style happening around Of a Kind HQ, and we’re taking advantage of those fools silly enough to work with us by asking two of them to share how they’d each work an edition. Do it up! —erica
We’re at that weird stage when it might still be warm enough to go without sleeves…but you’re ready to yank on your boots. Here, Grace Canlas, the girl who does everything around here, and Lindsey Green, director of communications extraordinaire, have it both ways.
The Key Piece: Nevil Buckle Cuff by ACB by Annie Costello Brown
Grace’s Take: Sarah Loertscher earrings, Wren dress, and Provensen shoes.
Lindsey’s Take: Clu top, Current/Elliott pants, and Rag & Bone boots.
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In Tune: Wren
In honor of fashion week and all the new-collections brouhaha, we’ve asked Of a Kind designers to share the songs that found their way into their spring 2013 designs. Oh, and: These music picks come with sneak peeks of said collections. Keep up with “In Tune” posts here.
“’With a Girl Like You’ by The Troggs is the musical equivalent of Wren. It could be our theme song.” —melissa coker of wren
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Of a Kind
See that dress on our pal Laura? The buttoned-up but kinda wild one that would look damn good with tights and a blazer when the weather turns in a couple of months? Well, it can be yours for $86 (66% off). Shop our Wren sample sale now—it ends 9:30a ET Monday morning!—and then brag about your scores over drinks tonight. —erica
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Storytime: Wren and Of a Kind Go Way Back
Here’s a little tidbit we’ve been wanting to share but somehow never have: Melissa Coker of Wren was the very first designer we ever talked to about Of a Kind. When Claire and I conceived of the idea for the site in January 2010, we had no idea how anything worked. Was this concept pills crazy? Did designers want this kind of thing? How did retail even work anyway?
I had worked with Melissa for a little DIY project for ReadyMade (RIP—frowny face), and we thought she’d be the damn near perfect person to chat with to, oh, quadruple our knowledge. She somehow agreed, and she told us SO MUCH—but not that we were insane. (Maybe she kept that to herself?) We’ve obviously been dying to get her on the site ever since. There were talks of a leopard cape back in the day, but when she told us about these batik-print shorts, we knew they were just the thing. So not only are these suckers the *ideal summer butt-covering solution* but they are also a total Of a Kind milestone. —erica
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Next Level: Dipped in Blue
It feels like I’ve been running into blue-tipped things left and right these days, and you know what? I’m sweating it—especially when the starting point is canvas-white. Here are four ways to dip your toe (or torso!) into the look. —erica
LEVEL I: Your mom would love this Girl. by Band of Outsiders lace top. She wouldn’t even complain that the cut’s a bit boxy.
LEVEL II: Wren is the master of sweet-but-cool, as demonstrated by this dress. There’s a cutout in back that pushes things further.
LEVEL III: Somehow, the dipped calfs tone down these Rich & Skinny jeans.
LEVEL IV: Do you need a blue-and-white short-sleeve blazer? Ok, prolly not. But this J. JS Lee jacket makes a hard sell.
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Of a Kind
It’s not that these little cotton Wren shorts are dressy, exactly. It’s just that they and their motif—hand-dyed by a fair-trade women’s co-op in Africa—can go both ways: They can do day at the beach, sure, but they can also hang with a structured jacket or silk button-down for a night out. Basically, with all they play they’re bound to get, your cut-offs are going to be way jelly. —erica
Read more about Melissa Coker, the lady behind the line:
+ On ditching the magazine world for the design one.
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Of a Kind
This, my friends, is a look that would make Liza Minnelli’s jaw drop. Melissa Coker of Wren has all kinds of holiday tricks up her sleeve. —erica
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Six Lines That Have Made Los Angeles a True Fashion Mecca
We hope that following our L.A. month—our last edition from Mctega is coming tomorrow morning!—is making you realize that even though Los Angeles isn’t touted as a fashion capital, the city plays a vital role in that world (um, hello, entertainment industry and red carpets) and is a breeding ground for a ridiculous amount of sartorial talent. Below, some major names who launched their lines in—and have remained loyal to—L.A. —jiayi
Rodarte sisters Kate and Laura Mulleavy, who taught themselves the ins-and-outs of clothes-making by dissecting a Chanel dress and who started designing from their parents’ kitchen table in Pasadena.
Scott Sternberg, who left his agent job to start Band of Outsiders and credits his line’s edge to living outside of the New York fashion bubble.
Wren’s Melissa Coker. Fun fact: She named her line after Jenny Wren, a dressmaker for dolls, from Charles Dickens’s Our Mutual Friends.
Merrit Elliott and Emily Current, who lend their talent and last names to their popular denim line Current/Elliott. The girls initially bonded over bell-bottoms while at UCLA.
This super-agent to the stylists Margaret Maldonado created L’Agence, full of lots of good pieces for her clients to call-in. (And, oh hey, the guys at International Design Group work with her.)
Rick Owens. OK, so he moved to Paris finally, but when you think of Rick Owens, you think L.A.
It’s still L.A. month here at Of a Kind! Right this way for more.
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Of a Kind
The shape of this Wren dress is classic enough for a Sterling Cooper company picnic—which is a good thing considering the paint job is louder than even the juiciest office gossip. —erica
