We all look up to classic fashion icons like Audrey Hepburn but there are other, less obvious inspirations that shape our style. My secret style inspiration comes from the film noir heroines I was first exposed to during college film study courses. To a young woman starting to deal with the duality being soft yet strong enough to make my way in the world, these women were revelation. Their flawless hair and lipstick, fabulous shoes and fitted pencil skirts became hard wired into my sense being well dressed and to this day I don’t like to go into a meeting without a fresh slick of lipstick and I always choose trim pencil skirt when I want to present pulled-together image. If you haven’t tried the power of the pencil, there is no excuse for not doing so this season because there are so many great ones.
The modern master of this sleek shape has to be Narciso Rodriguez. After admiring his work for years, I finally indulged in a Rodriguez skirt this summer and it has quickly become a wardrobe workhorse for me. I would love to add another this fall, perhaps in charcoal gray. You can wear a solid color pencil skirt forever, and with Narciso’s price tags (from $650 at Neiman Marcus and Marshall Field’s) I’ll have to, so gray it shall be.
Theory ($165-$230 at Bloomingdale’s and Saks Fifth Avenue) is another favorite source for skirts that put a wiggle in your walk. I’m not sure who the fit model for this company, but all Theory fans owe her a big thank you because these skirts fit perfectly. And while we’re at it, shout out to the Theory design team well for the spot-on colors and subtle tweeds and pinstripes that somehow manage to be exactly what a girl needs to the hole in her closet.
Wear your pencil skirt with a jacket, sweater, a crisp white shirt–whatever tickles your fancy. Just wear it. And with pointy pumps. Femmes fatales do not wear round-toe shoes.
———-
E-mail michellecrowe@mac.com
