Fashion Month Street Style

A few weeks ago, I went to the first fashion show I'd been to in the 18 months since leaving Barneys. I'd been invited to some London shows last season, but I just wasn't ready to dive back in - not going still felt too good. I actually hadn't ever been to London fashion week before (always opting to see the London collections in Paris instead of spending the extra week away from home), and I especially wanted to see Erdem's show in person. I am a big fan of Erdem the person as well as Erdem the designer. So off I went.

Once back in the circus of a fashion show, I noticed pretty quickly that my view of all the fashion and people around me had changed. My eye was looking for style, not fashion. I didn't any longer recognize which designer women were wearing and what season it came from - my eye wasn't trained to detect that anymore. I just noticed if they looked good in their clothes and if their clothes suited their body, their face, their coloring, their age. I noticed if they looked at home in what they were wearing.

While looking back at fashion month street style photos this week, my new perspective was cemented. Any one can be noticed wearing the brightest, shortest, furriest, most printed, most clashing, most outrageous outfit one dares to wear, but more interesting to me are the girls that do the most with the least. It's not easy to get noticed in a jeans and t-shirt - the fit, the cut and the way you move in them has to be spot on.  Simpler clothes don't cover things up, they reveal who you are. These days I'm thinking that it's better to be seen than to be noticed.

Malgosia's outfit may look effortless, but it's hard to get the proportion of these simple pieces right without some self-knowledge and practice.

Do you have a white t-shirt persona? For me it's a crew neck, always. I also like a slightly sheer fabric, like a slub cotton or linen blend. I'm not fussy about the pocket - I have white t's both with and without - the choice depends on the rest of my outfit. Daria's v-neck really suits her here. Makes me want to try one. I also like that you can just slightly see her black bra underneath.

I love how soft her trench is. I always have an idea in my head that a trench should be stiff - that it should sit up at attention. This look makes me question that. 

I haven't put patches on my jeans since I was 14 and used old Laura Ashley dresses to patch my Levi's.  I think the sequins here work with the simplicity of the rest of the look, but what's most interesting to me is the symmetry of patches. Makes me think about which jeans I can patch and what material I'd use. Maybe it's more a look for my 12 year old daughter than it is for me....

I love everything about this look - the chic cut of blazer, the all black color palette emphasizing the shape and proportion of the clothes, the cropped pants with the Converse, the lack of jewellery. Just perfect.

Everyone was wearing some version of Vans-inspired sneaker this season, but I particularly noticed these in the more subtle grey flannel with the denim fringe hanging over them.

While the styling of this look is great, I know I'm not going to be wearing short shorts like this anytime soon. The inspiration I got is how good the mixed denim looks with a black and white accessory. Makes me want to try out a double denim look with my old school checkerboard Vans.

What I admire most about Emmanuelle Alt's style is that she always looks comfortable in her clothes without sacrificing an ounce of chic. That may sound like a strange thing, but trust me you see a lot of people at fashion shows hobbling around on towering heels, or discreetly struggling to breathe in too-tight clothes. Looking at her here, I'm thinking I may have to try a kitten heel, having sworn them off for many years.

It's amazing what an accessory can do. Without the hat this outfit looks like something I would wear in my 

day-to-day life on the farm, but add the wide brim and suddenly she's a Paris street style star!

I just love everything about this girl. She's adorable - the printed hoodie, the overalls, the tweed 2.55, the long hair. I'm going to show this picture to my daughter for inspiration.

Sometimes Saskia's high fashion look is a bit severe for my taste, but I love how she looks off the runway, wearing little (if any) makeup and her own clothes. What a great white shirt.

Here's what I wore to Erdem's show. The ripped jeans are old ones from J Crew, and everything else is Céline commercial collection. I bought the shoes, bag and sunglasses at Barneys a few years ago and the rest is newer - from the Céline outlet near the farm. It's funny how the wind makes my classic trench look more like a subversive Junya one.

The Nikes make this look for me. Yes, everything else is working too, but I love how something unexpected, yet mundane can add personality to an outfit.

Here she is again. Love her. All classic pieces worn in such a stylish way.

Gaia. So elegant. Always.