Shoes I Wear to JFK..

Welcome to a very special edition of the blog.. My sincere apologies for my absentee-ness lately. This and future posts will explain.  My entire Fall semester was spent helplessly devoted to a four credit class called "International Sales Law and Arbitration."  Taught by the fabulous Professor Graves, it is one of the most challenging, yet rewarding courses offered at Touro. It culminated, for four of us, in a spot on the "Vis Moot Team" (hereinafter, "Vis".. Couldn't help but throw in a little brief-ese).  

The Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot is a mock trial-ish competition that draws literally hundreds of teams from around the world to the final competition in Vienna, Austria.  Our team was selected post-finals week last semester, and spent all of Spring semester practicing, researching and preparing. The team practiced about 10-12 hours per week on average, and spent much additional time refining and researching some more.. Needless to say, it's been a long, arduous process. We have met and practiced with (against) many of the teams we will see in Vienna, at numerous "pre-moots" in the City, most recently at the gorgeous and stately New York City Bar Association. 

As I type, I am on [my iPhone, on] a plane to Belgrade, Serbia for one of the best and biggest pre-moots.. Swiss Air is absolutely fabulous by the way.. Note the telling photo.. Free red wine, Mad Men, and yes, that's my iPhone charging in the seat. 

Not to mention a surprisingly delicious and balanced dinner, (pictured) and a delightful breakfast featuring warm croissants.

So it's obviously necessary to get to the fashion part of this entry. I've bored you long enough I'm sure.

I'll note a few travel-friendly fashion tips, and if you don't mind, get back to my Mad Men (best style decade ever).

So I've attached a photo, taken outside the departure terminal at JFK. I am certainly not "well-traveled," as I've only been to Mexico (on a mission trip at that!) and never overseas. However, I have been all over the country and I'm not quite new to air travel.
Note the garb.. It's all on purpose. We'll start with a basic white tee ($2 Kmart sale..) and a cozy cardigan. Mine was a recent J Crew sale rack purchase. Mustard is in, and although it's a bit seasonal, Fall clothing like this can easily be transitioned with some Spring accessories. Hence, the melon pashmina scarf.. Believe it or not, a $3 find at Belk. It's all topped off with an essential black pantsuit from Michael Kors (outlet, of course). The details of this suit mean everything.. It's a poly-rayon-spandex blend. This means it looks like a suit but feels like sweats. The pants are a size too big which translates to comfy, and are adorned with a stylish zipper at the ankle. The jacket tops off the outfit, and layering is essential to air-travel comfort. Boarding planes and flying away always results in sweat and chills all at once.


Note a complete lack of jewelry (aside from some Stella & Dot clover post earrings.. Gold and silver and diamonds all at once to match anything).. This makes the uncomfortable security strip-down much easier.

Finally, the ensemble is completed with some two-tone Gap City Flats.. Yes, a $22 sale buy, in varying hues that come pretty close to the mustard-melon combination. They slip on and off with ease, and are super comfortable.

And I would be lying if I told you I didn't purposely coordinate my outfit to my beige and orange Calvin Klein luggage.

Ciao for now..

Stella and Dot.. my new best friends.

Sooo most of you probably know I have pretty boring taste in clothing.. much of what I own is black or white. But I get by with a little help from my friends. Meet Stella & Dot. I'm a soon-to-be independent stylist, so keep your eyes peeled for fabulous on-trend jewelry worn to class.. it's most likely from them. A fabulous piece of jewelry can dress up even the most boring skinny jeans, American Apparel low-V white tee, and black Loft blazer. While I tend to wear more chunky, statement pieces (of which Stella & Dot has many), I fell in love with their Signature Clover Necklace in gold. Long and lovely, this gold-plated chain is punctuated with our signature clover cutout motifs. Measures approximately 38" in length with a lobster clasp closure (safety first.. no one wants to loose their fave jewels). It even adorned the pages of the October 2010 Cosmopolitan magazine. Wear it long or double it up. Either way, it's a sophisticated layering piece. At just $59.. which may seem like a few too many workstudy dollars, it will last you long into your law career. You may as well splurge now, before you embark on your "emotionally" rewarding public interest law career.

Stella & Dot offer oodles of matchy-matchy options for earrings and bracelets, but I fell in love (again) with their Pave Clover Earrings. The best thing about them is that they are made with gold and silver. When I wake in the am, I tend to put my earrings on right after my shower, and I try not to think too much. I'm a grab-and-go kinda gal, and these two-tone earrings, with just enough sparkle, undoubtedly go with absolutely everything.

Check out the necklace and earrings at www.StellaDot.com. Browse the line.. if I was sellin' would you be buyin'?

xo

SOS: A call to women..

Ladies.. I have been seeing way too much of this. When you buy a women's suit, most will come with a simple "X"-shaped stitch across the bank slit of the jacket and skirt. There is only one purpose this serves: to keep it looking nice on the hanger. Please, please, when you get home, or sooner.. cut that stitch and remove the thread (see photo if you don't get it). Few things are more annoying than walking behind someone, looking at the thread dangling from their skirt slit, which was not cut, but broke inadvertently from walking, sitting, etc. And this technically doesn't go only for women. Most suits come with sewn-shut pockets on the jacket and pants.. again, just to keep them looking nice in the store.. rip those bad boys open. While these aren't visually annoying, where else would you put your iPhone and lip balm?

White shoes after labor day.. or "The right to bare legs."

In true Federalist Society fashion, the Touro Law Chapter held a Constitution Day celebration to commemorate the anniversary of the ratification of the second greatest book ever written (in my humble opinion). With Sam Adams on tap (and on special), the Executive Board welcomed members, old and new, and provided fabulous appetizers thanks to the SBA. Why Sam Adams? Well, we thought, "WWJMD?" (What would James Madison drink?). They totally were friends.

Many probably scoffed at my choice of the black side-zip mini, a fabulous steal from bebe.. and when I say steal, I meant I paid $30.. But the Constitution includes the right to bear arms. And since I chose a blazer for the day, I needed to bare something else. Any Federalist knows that the proper way to interpret the Constitution is by discerning the intent of the framers. Name one framer that would object from me reading an implied right to bare legs into the Second Amendment.

And what about due process? Who made the rule against white shoes after labor day? In my case, I donned them ten whole days after so-and-so said they should be packed away for the season[s]. But I think the stark white blazer compliments my stark white stacked heel stiletto pumps quite well, and it would be unfair to deprive them of their due process rights to be worn anytime they match my ensemble. America proudly wears white all year long, and man.. that flag is fierce.

Catchin' up.. overdue summer post.

Words to live by.. When in (fashion) doubt, just look to the plain and simple rules of the Suffolk County Courthouse. In the very least, they will prevent you from certain fashion disasters. Anyone who has been in the courthouse hall, however, knows these rules are widely unknown and unenforced. Now, I took a whole class in professional responsibility, and there were no rules about advising your clients to look decent. I guess telling someone to "wear their Sunday best" doesn't mean the same thing to everyone. I may have to work on an addition to the Rules of Professional Conduct.. Lawyers need to look good. But so do those they represent.

Looking this svelte should be criminal..

So it's Thursday, and for most second year law students, it's our last day of classes for the week.. Friday-ish. Many are in sweats, and I'm even in jeans, thanks to the last few sleepless nights I spent writing the Moot Court brief for the Bainbridge Competition.

Some of us, however, raised the bar (pun intended). On my way into Constitutional Law, I was uncontrollably compelled to bust out the iPhone and take a picture of one of my favorite law peeps. She happens to be President of the Criminal Law Society, (one of, if not) the largest student organization[s] on campus. And while she and I tend to be on the opposite side of the spectrum, politically, we are one hundred percent on the same side today, fashionably speaking.

Perfect daytime makeup, a sleek ponytail, and a rocking royal blue satin shift dress set the stage.. Note, not only is she wearing colors that match the Touro Law logo, but also the gold and blue lapel pin adorning the Criminal Law Society Logo.. (And I thought I was the only one that matched my outfit to my lapel pins). Finally, she finishes it off with great bronze flats with a fabulous punch-out oversize mesh design, and a brown button-down sweater in the same hue as the shoes. Fierce.

No doubt she will be the most fabulous-looking individual at the Criminal Law Society Meet-and-Greet tonight. Certainly, the fashion police will not be present.

Bags I roll to class.

So I finally took the plunge. After a full year of lugging totes around, and a miserable few months of summer classes in the city, again, schlepping texts around Manhattan, I have finally done the unthinkable. I bought a "rollie bag." My dislike for them is fairly unfounded. The variety just isn't there, and I'd rather fall in lust with and buy a new tote each season than wheel around a bag I just am not crazy about. Not to mention, they can be a bit pricey, and most are downright manly. Well this semester, the books are just too much to handle in a bag with, well, handles (only). Case in point; I scored a fabulous kahaki green, nylon Sequoia tote with a great cross-body strap at Marshall's this summer. The price was unbeatable, and the bag looked like something that would survive the Gulf War. Sequoia is a little-known (to me and mine) French luggage brand, and because the average Marshall's shopper probably hasn't heard of it, I got it at less than 10% of the online retail price, way in the back of the clearance rack (I meet most of my steals there). However, looks can be, and are deceiving. The handles began to tear after just a twice-weekly LIRR-to-Subway trip from Center Moriches to Wall St. Not ok. The bag is now in a discarded pile on my floor, undeserving of even a photo on the blog.

Back to my new pal on wheels.. Black or taupe, black or taupe, black or taupe? The choice was hard, but I went with taupe. This fabulous bag is adorned with black and white snakeskin, so it will coordinate with anything black, and the black bag was a bit severe looking. And with my black locks, I didn't want to channel my inner Selma Blair (Elle's Legally non-blonde nemesis) in my attempt to avoid looking like law school Barbie.

So taupe it is. Going with a rolling duffel, rather than a rolling briefcase bought me a generous 20" x 13" x 10".. and don't worry, I measured the books.. it will be a squeeze, but without upgrading to a carry-on, and looking like a flight attendant any time I decide to wear a skirt suit, this was the best choice. Really, on Wednesdays, with Constitutional Law, Evidence, Property and International Sales Law & Arbitration, and few breaks between, I needed a bag that does its job.

So kudos to my girl Diane von Furstenberg for producing fabulous, (mildly) affordable rolling luggage. The woman is walking fabulousity, and the epitome of class. And now I can be too, on my way to class. So this gorgeous bag.. she's mine, all mine, thanks to www.ebags.com. So if you want one for you, and especially if you go to Touro, opt for the trendy "Betty." She's covered in zippers and comes in an array of colors. Further, in effort to fend off any copycats out there, a gorgeous, vintage DvF scarf will be lovingly tied to the handle on my bag. So authentic, so fierce. Printed with the DvF logo, and her very own mantra, "life is love." Word.

Thanks, Di. www.dvf.com