NYFW Day 2: This vintage Donald Brooks two-piece from the 1970's was acquired from Cherie atShrimpton Couture. I actually found out about her perfectly curated shop of vintage gems on Instagram, and moments into perusing the website for the first time I came upon this stunning piece, it spoke to me immediately. I knew I would wear it to fashion week. Yet, one of the best parts of discovering Shrimpton Couture was getting to meet Cherie, she is so passionate and excited about her craft and business. It is that personal connection and care that can make wearing a piece of clothing an experience, rather than just covering yourself with cloth. The spirit which is infused into the garments and the attitude of the person wearing it makes it special.

When thinking of how I would style this piece I came up with a little DYI project—went to the garment district and searched for velvet ribbon with a bit of elasticity. I envisioned wrapping my upper body in the ribbon to give it an updated modern edge and did the same around my legs. I love this idea, it's so simple and makes quite an impact. The associates at M&J Trimmings thought I was a bit crazy, "You want to wrap this around yourself like a mummy?" To which I replied, "Yes, that's correct." Proof that when you have a vision or idea you have make it happen.

I want to give a shout out to my girl Kezi, who helped me bring this vision to life. When I ran the idea by her she loved it and was encouraging, she has such an amazing sense for these things. Just as I was going to say, "I want to wrap the legs too," she beat me to it!  Same page. We shot this look in Bridgehampton the week prior, where Donald Brooks had a home since 1954, as I thought it would be fitting and a way of honoring his unique design. I'll be posting that shortly!

My hope is that I will inspire others to think outside the box, be creative and follow your instincts, not just with fashion, with life.

  Photo credit:

1) W Magazine by Adam Katz Sinding

2) Racked NY by Driely S

2) PopSugar.com

3) PopSugar.com

4) Fashionista.com

5) Nylon.com by Alexandra Gavillet

6) Cosmopolitan.com