Everything Old is New Again

My mom always taught me that a girl should make a show-stopping entrance.  

In her pre-mommy years, she went to F.I.T., created the dresses she wore to Studio 54, sketched designs, worked in the garment district, traveled to Europe and bought fabrics and patterns.  So she taught me everything I know about sequins and feathers and riding boots and white linen....

Whenever I have someplace to go, like someplace real to go, an event, an opening- my mom and I make a special shopping trip.  We seek out the dress, then the shoes, the accessory.  Sometimes it starts with a pair of earrings that we are instantly obsessed with and we go from there.  I like to remember my mother during these trips- the way she will hold the earrings up to my ear and then pick dress after dress off the rack and hold it up to me and squint and say something like, "This would work but you'll have to put your hair up- like really dramatic."  And I try to picture her vision.  We spend hours doing this.  It feels like by the end we'll have a masterpiece.      

This past Friday I got an email from my coworker that her daughter had a formal sweet sixteen to go to and she had nothing to wear.  She wanted advice.  I said, "Let's go shopping!"  Without skipping a beat.  

Her daughter is 16 years old and very tall, but super dainty and girly.  She's got perfect skin and naturally rosy cheeks-- never wears makeup-- didn't know what "macks" is (I had mentioned MAC makeup).  She runs track and wears retro, knit winter hats and always has a tiny leather purse that resembles an animal.  

When Daughter met us after work on Friday she was carrying a blowfish purse that held her chapstick.  How cute!  Just looking at her makes me think of homecoming and the fall musical.  

I made our first stop French Connection.  Daughter was giddy instantly.  I don't really know what the kids are into these days but she gravitated toward the old-fashioned styles- dresses with bows-- nothing strapless.  Very sweet.  She tried on about 10 dresses and when she came out to show us the last one she had a huge smile on her face.  We asked her what she thought.  She said, "Oh my God I love it.  It's so ME."  And as she did in each dress she tried on, she did a little dance so she could see what she would actually look like at the party.

We left there and headed up 5th Ave.  We were thinking about shoes and somehow got sucked into H&M (I hate that place! Especially in the middle of tourist central!).  We wandered through all three floors and then I found, hidden on a table of skinny jeans, a headband made entirely of black feathers.  It was the detail my mom would have insisted upon.  I showed Daughter how to wear it and when she looked in the mirror her face lit up.

OMG pampering the teenage daughter was becoming addictive.  So I suggested we go to the MAC counter at Henri Bendel.  It was like I was speaking a different language.  

Daughter could not stop blinking as the dressed-in-all-black makeup artist was applying the smoky mocha eyeliner.  I dont' think Daughter knew what to do with herself.  When she was handed a mirror she didn't say a word and then finally said, "It's so shocking..."  Mom bought the eyeliner and the mascara.  By the end of the night Daughter was talking a million miles a minute.

And from what I understand, the sweet sixteen was a huge success.  

I parted ways with them to have a gloriously uneventful weekend that involved watching Practical Magic (a present from Girl Friday yay!) and reading this month's Lucky mag, with Keri Russell on the cover.  On the last page (picture posted) I saw the dress we had just got for Daughter!  I officially felt like the cool Aunt. 

I'm ending this post with a list of the songs from my most recent playlist, which help get me in the mood to wear feathers in my hair, sequins on my scarf, fake mink on my earmuffs and red-red lipstick:

Honey Pie by the Beatles

Remember Me by Diana Ross

Southern Nights by Glen Campbell

Everything Old is New Again by Peter Allen