Da Fashionista.com

The Scene
So Peaches and I are big ole nerds for USC. We’re talking BIG like our appetites.

We were both on big scholarships and ended up in the super involved nerd crowd - really active in lots of organizations all across campus.

So involved that he got named Mr. USC and my name is etched on the Wall of Scholars...twice! Meow.

We sucked the marrow out of every moment of our undergraduate time. Feel indebted to our alma mater for so many opportunities, a stellar education and even better friends. We bleed us some cardinal and gold.

Today, we arrived at SC giddy with anticipation. It's been NINE years since we were on campus together!!!

Have fun catching up with one of our advisers in the morning. Followed by a quick raid of the bookstore. The bookstore is a Trojan wonderland. You can score anything and everything your little heart could possibly desire with USC emblazoned all over it.


One of my best friends, a die-hard Bruin, noted a few years ago that Trojans don’t just wear a T-shirt or a cap to football games. We deck ourselves out from head to toe in our Ronald McDonald regalia...all at once :)

I was burning up with sartorial envy when I discovered the uppity little "boutique" that’s opened up on campus since we graduated. It’s full of Ella Moss, premium denim and a full KIEHL’S wall!



WTF???? We didn’t have none of that. No fancy tunics or designer jeans or delicious soaps. Humph. Only at the University of Spoiled Children.

We meet Mr. Diabolina for a sushi lunch in downtown at Takami then head back to campus for our official CART tour. Yes, that's right: old-alums-who-can't-walk style. The baby tour guides do an OK job (we both gave campus tours in our day so we might have obnoxiously high standards.)

Strolled around campus all afternoon. Talked about where life has taken us, our careers, how young we still feel, how much more life still lies ahead.

As we discussed some weighty topics, we’d interject “Uggs at nine o’clock” or "Uggs on a bike" whenever we’d see Peach's beloved furry boots on a coed.

We'd then wait for her to pass by to confirm whether they were real or fakes by inspecting the little label at the heel.

We quickly decided USC really stands for Uggs of Southern California. SERIOUSLY THEY WERE EVERYWHERE.

I would say the fake to real ratio was 40/60. Wonder if the stats are the same for hair color or boobs on campus?

Head to Philipee’s for a piggie feast then meet Mr. Diabolina at Seven Grand for some scotch then Canter’s so he can grab dinner too.




The last time Peach and I were at Canter’s together we were 21. It was 4 am. We were on the road to being drunk as skunks. And dressed in tuxedo bow ties and tails. It was the beginning of our Skull & Dagger initiation day. One of the best nerd days ever.


Loved today's Trojan trip down memory lane. Loved a time and place that gave me so many of my favorite characters a decade later. 

The Outfit

Old Navy tank

Citizens of Humanity jeans

Chocolate wrap sweater

The Accessories

Marc Jacobs Irina tote

Marc by Marc Jacobs aviators

3 bangles

Banana Republic flats

The Grade

B

The Commentary

This is one of my latest Old Navy purchases. Love the neckline. Especially flattering, slim silhouette from the side.


Also liked this version and color combo. Very Marc.

Loving how the shades of brown all compliment each other - the top with the bag, the sweater with the shoes. Can’t wait to work it in the summer with lighter hair and darker skin. Wanna pair it with some gold sandals and white pants and turquoise accessories.

Think we blended in with the students fairly well. OK maybe not the baby-faced undergrads but maybe the seen-a-few-things grad students. At the very least, don't think we looked like 30 year olds trying to recapture their glory days, right????  Sigh.

Peaches looked long and lean and preppy. His Prada shoes are funny NYC sensible to me but he is so delish he can work anything he wants.

Saw one girl wearing my shoes with a short black dress and ethnic jewelry.

Very cute. In addition to the Uggs, I saw loads of very fashionable flats on the hot young chicks.

Tried to recall some of my personal go-to outfits as a student but couldn’t. I think I was a bit preppier in college, definitely more casual. Lots of jeans, shorts and flip flops. Surfer chic was very in so I was pretty sporty spicy in Billabong and such nightmares.

My frat party looks were mostly disposable downtown finds. Jean Bean and I would also hit this store across the street from school quite a bit. It was called Elegance but wasn't :) Oh god and remember the black stretchy pants???

I still have all the fancy dresses (lots of Laundry by Shelli Segal) that I rocked for formals. Have always tended to go classic in my evening looks instead of trendy so they hold up. Should try some of those dresses on to gauge my weight loss. Am I the only crazy that does that?

So strange to think now that I can’t remember the clothes I absolutely loved back then. Memory can be so funny, so selective, so elusive.


Glad this blog will serve as a kind of priceless snapshot of this moment 10 years from now when I am forty, fearless and hopefully even more fashionable ;)