Keeping it simple – with a twist
I’ve been thinking a lot about simplicity and styling over the last week (more of which at a later date). What works and what doesn’t, and why. Margaret Howell’s spring/summer 2015 campaign photography by Alasdair McLellan illustrates this beautifully (I’m sure I’m not the only one who squirrels Margaret Howell lookbooks away for future reference). Shot at the wonderful De La Warr Pavillion in East Sussex, the perfect modernist location for a traditional British brand:
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| Interiors photos are Tumblr, not Alistair McClellan. |
I’d wear the first outfit in a hearbeat – though I might have to think twice about the, borderline Granny Takes a Day Trip, socks and sandals scenario.
It’s a signature look for the ever-so-stylish, British Vogue fashion director Lucinda Chambers, who always looks fab:
To sock or not to sock? What do you reckon?
Discussion (40 Comments)
Claire – but Lucinda Chambers wears them in real life and I think she looks lovely in the first photo…
I'm going to go out on a limb and say I think whatever she does is fashionably awesome though perhaps not for everyone. She has an essence of uniqueness that paves the the style street for ingenuity and consistence of choice. It works. I love it and I love her. #LyonsLifeStyle
Well, I am sock mad, but I also like the bare ankle with cropped trouser look, too. I love that dress you are wearing, but to be honest, the socks aren't great with it. Kudos for daring, though.
I love the top photo without the socks…for me socks are to hide inside by boots! And for working out…that's it.
It's not the socks, it's the skin. So socks with sandals if they are tights or socks with sandals if there are pants. Especially if you could actually be a granny.
Granny chic. Old before her time?That said, back in the day my Dad would wear black socks with his sandals. Maybe it's an homage thing?
Suits Ms. Chambers brilliantly — probably because the look, on her, is built from the inside out. There's an integrity that just works.
Oh… too granny for me. Not that my granny ever wore socks…stockings and dresses every day of her life, until she died at 93. The better to show off her neat ankles. The women in my family have always had nice ankles…even when everything else has fallen apart!
It's freakish how socks and shoes work so beautifully on this woman. I love when stuff I hate looks fantastic on someone else… that's style.
It's freakish how socks and shoes work so beautifully on this woman. I love when stuff I hate looks fantastic on someone else… that's style.
I know socks with sandals are trending…spring around the corner and banish the tights. Just don't wear white socks. That said, there is something about the last photo that screams, "I'm outside at fashion week."
I like the knife pleat skirt with the socks and sandals, though. Makes me think of Wendy Hiller somehow.Love the Margaret Howell but think I will leave the socks alone except for pilates class.
Only works with the right socks and the right sandals. I've been doing this for years with chunky platforms, but I've never got it to work with Birkenstocks…
No. Always vaguely weird if not downright disturbing. Fashion equivalent of "I'm mad, me!"
We know.I only wear socks if absolutely necessary in winter (with boots) or when I go to the gym. First thing I take off when I come home, are my socks!
Paired with a skirt and heels or sandals – never.Annette | Lady of Style
Crickey ……the plot has finally been lost! Touch of the emperor's clothes here. Socks are to be worn with trainers to stop them rubbing, with boots & with my evening ensemble …pjs & fluffy dressing gown, glass of wine, fire roaring watching The West Wing ( currently)!
I, too, collect MH lookbooks for all sorts of inspiration.
About the socks: why are in such a tizzy?! Wear them or not. Wear them on some occasions and go bare-ankled on another. What's the big deal? If one doesn't like the sock-and-sandal look, there are plenty more to choose from! I think Lucinda Chambers looks very individual in that photo.
I love this look but I dont think I can pull it off!! They have such personal cool style so I think they can definitely get away with the socks!
Depending on the shoe, I'll sport a pair of socks with them. I'm a SOCK-a-holic!!!
I think LC looks amazing, but I suspect that many (most?) women would find that a hard look to pull off. To appear chic, you'd need a pair of very trim ankles -sadly, not a feature I've been blessed with!
Love your blog, Alyson, and looking forward to the book, although will have to wait until my next visit to the UK to get my hands on a copy…I love a sock with a heel, and even with a sandal, a la LC, but it has to be the right sandal (preferably metallic). It is VERRRRRY tricky to pull off. If you look at the Chanel ad campaign from SS14, there were black pointed low heels withs thin black socks pictured with a black dress. It looked superb, and at a glance looked like a low bootie. Doing socks + heels "lite" like Chanel is an easy way to be Stylish without looking too bonkers.
I'm amazed at people who won't even wear socks at home. Not that I particularly like socks, but many of us live in cold climates. I'd be freezing without my merino socks.
I've seen socks and sandals working very nicely with a boho vibe. Not for everyone, of course, but it doesn't necessarily connote incipient senility.
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Sorry but socks and sandals are just plain wrong, no matter how achingly cool you are! Just saying!!