I get my fashion inspiration from all over, but the women who truly inspire me are my grandmother, great grandmothers and great aunts. All of them were truly unique women who possessed such amazing style. They were fearless in their fashion choices, be it a Sunday afternoon or a gala, they always looked impeccable. My grandmother in particular really shaped the way that I approach dressing. When it came to her take on jewelry, the bigger the stone the better. Her way of getting me to improve my reading and vocabulary skills as a child were centered around trips to the jewelry store. One of the first words out of my little impeccably over-dressed self was “jewelry”…and my friends and Darling Boyfriend wonder why I am fashion obsessed. However, her everyday style was always clean, classic and elegant. I love looking back at old photos of her as a young bride in Dior or sitting on the deck of a boat in chic summer whites. I lost her a few years ago, but I like to think that I keep a little bit of her with me daily by wearing her watch.
The Ladies…my grandmother is the portrait hanging on the wall and my great grandmother is the portrait is on the chair
And to all the petite women out there, you can thank my great aunt Hannah Troy for creating a size geared totally toward you. People know her as the woman who adapted the Italian styles for consumers in the United States and the fashion world knows her as the woman who set up couture shows in Florence in the 1950s. Her career spanned decades; Bergdorf’s and Bendel’s carried her line, and even the wives of American presidents wore her pieces. I have two of her dresses that are packed away for safe keeping since they are so delicate after many loving years of use by my great grandmother, but every once and a while I’ll take them out and try them on. I guess you can say I never quite got over my love of dressing up.
My great aunts, Hannah is in the pink on the left and my great grandmother is in the white on the right
My other great grandmother and my great grandfather on the day of my grandparents wedding
My grandparents wedding, St. Regis Hotel in New York City
Dress: Chanel
Shoes: Christian Louboutin
Jewelry: Vintage pearls from my grandmother, necklace and ring
