Also known as day 1 or “The plain day.” You just wear a sweater and jeans the same way you’d order a bagel with cream cheese — by expending little thought and expecting a reliably satisfying outcome. I put on two gold bracelets and matched them to a pinky ring, and applied a swipe of red lipstick, then rubbed it off just so to give me a bit of, but not too much, lip color. The shoes are mocassins and function the way a pair of walking sneakers might, just cooler. They’re from The Row. But also, not no, not no.

I added a scarf, that’s all. Doesn’t it make a difference? Could be looped through holes on jeans as a belt too, adds a little something to break up the simplicity — if that is what you’re after.

The story behind this outfit is that I saw a man walking down 85th street and he was basically wearing this outfit, the only difference was that his loafers were neither faux croc or with kitten heel. I liked the look and realized that I had almost all of the ingredients to make it, so here we are, plus tiny heels on my loafers, cat-eye sunglasses, and the same swipe-and-rub of color on my lips.

The footnotes:

I’ve been doing this thing where I wear fitted t-shirts over pants that aren’t so-skinny-they-might-as-well-be-leggings. There are a number of shifts taking place in the style lexicon, which I’ll dig into in a forthcoming post. A sampling: shirts are getting more fitted because pants are getting looser.

The footnotes:

But I guess while we’re here, the suede bag with gold finish groups together more seamlessly with denim and beige, which it gets from the sweater and the jeans — but then the black jacket with rhodium hardware, plus rhinestone shoes and pearls create a welcome incoherency within the style narrative. Plus, the knit helmet is a standalone star for the simple reason that it is A KNIT HELMET.

Dressed to fit in among my compatriots of the Upper East Side with a camel jacket two shades darker than the sweater, which is two shades darker than the shirt w the Victorian collar. Remember: it’s always good to buy your winter jeans about a size larger than you normally take so that you don’t feel like shit about yourself when you try to tuck your sweaters in. The boots are divine, but I $$returned$$ them.

The details:

TGIF! Or is it TGIHARTGTJWF (Thank God I have a reason to go to Jack’s Wife Freda).

I call this one, the homecoming — clothes so easy to slip into I barely realize I’m doing it. Most of the style cues are actually below in…

The footnotes:

Night, really. You can do this with a tube top or a bonded bandeau or even a strapless bathing suit top if you have one and it def works better if the jeans are relatively loose. Then add your most formal shoes (preferable if color can tie back to your tube top) ey vwala: the end.

Thanks for coming! See you later this week for the first installment of How to find your style.

Signing off,

Helga G. Pataki