HOT 5 - 2/26/23
Hello Hot Friends,
March is only days away and we're beginning to see the light at the end of the winter tunnel! Like many, I struggle this time of the year when we've moved on from the holidays and the winter season mindset yet the cold weather is still with us and seems never-ending. We're so tired of all the layers of winter clothing but still need them on most days. Lately, we're hearing the siren call of new spring clothes but first, we need to survey our closets and do some purging and organizing before buying anything new. It's a lot! I'll be helping you with all of that in the coming weeks of Hot 5s, so stay tuned!
In this week's Hot 5:
!. Do We Have Enough Clothes?
2. Hot Pick- Pearls!
3. Hot Shops Uniqlo
4. Bisa Butler For Black History Month
5. Street Style From NYFW
1. Do We Have Enough Clothes?
According to a recent report from Bloomberg, fashion is responsible for up to 10 percent of global carbon-dioxide emissions and a fifth of yearly global plastic production. Also, a recent study from researchers at Berlin’s Hot Or Cool Institute found that we should only purchase at most five new garments a year in order to comply with the Paris Agreement's goals for limiting global warming. Wow, 5 items per year?! Actually, that sounds about right when I think of how little of my wardrobe I ended up wearing this winter. But let's face it, 5 things for an entire year would be pretty tough to achieve. Could you do it? And what would those 5 things be? Would you choose 5 elevated basics or 5 extravagant pieces to spice up your wardrobe? Thinking about this is a good way to get ready for spring closet purging. If you have a need for more hardworking elevated basics In your wardrobe look here for some ideas. For those of you looking for trend-driven ideas to spice up your closet, check this out. I'll share my 5 in the next Hot 5.
2. Hot Pick -- Pearls!
Pearls have been popular since the earliest days of civilization and some have been found that date as far back as 520 B.C.! They were popular during the Roman Empire as well as during Victorian and Georgian times and have long symbolized loyalty, purity, and clarity. Real pearls are the only gemstone cultivated by a living creature and they are most frequently found and harvested from oysters, but they can grow in nearly any mollusk shell. Faux pearls (the ones I'm sharing with you today) are made up of glass, ceramic, shell, or plastic to give them the appearance of real pearls. Speaking of faux pearls, Coco Chanel was the first designer to introduce large fake pearls with glittering gemstones which ignited a huge trend in the 1920s. This spring faux pearls are hotter than ever and it just so happens that there are quite a few great ones on House of Terrance. To motivate you to jump on the pearl trend we're giving a pearl gift with every pearl purchase!
3. Hot Shops Uniqlo
You probably know of the Japanese mega-brand Uniqlo, famous for casual as well as technical clothing at a great price. Don't we all live in their popular and extremely useful Heattech products worn as a comfortable and warm layer under everything in the winter? And there isn't a person on the planet who doesn't own some form of their fantastic packable puffer jacket. What I love about the brand are its frequent and well-thought-out collaborations with designers like Marimekko and Marni. I'm wearing a couple of pieces of their latest Marni collab in the photo above. The pieces tend to be very well made and work well when you want to go for a cool high/low styling mix. If you haven't already, check out the store's underwear and socks too. Those items I buy over and over again. They're so good!
4. Bisa Butler for Black History Month
I've been following the artist Bisa Butler for a few years now and her incredible textile art never ceases to amaze me! She uses swatches of vibrant fabrics, including African fabrics like Dutch Wax and Kente cloth, to create eye-popping quilts of life-sized historical portraits. I can't think of an artist whose work is more fitting to share in the celebration of Black History Month. Bisa Butler is a New Jersey-born African American artist with Ghanaian heritage. She studied fine art at Howard University where she began using fabrics in her painting and soon converted to quilting. Butler’s solo exhibition Materfamilias at the Gordon Parks Foundation Gallery runs through April 14. Her quilts are also included in This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World at the Smithsonian American Art Museum through April 2, and Reckoning: Protest. Defiance. Resilience. at the National Museum of African American History and Culture through April 1. I'm really going to try and catch one of these exhibits! Learn more about Bisa here
Amira Pinheiro and Terry
5. Street Style From NYFW
You'd have to be living under a rock to be unaware that fashion month is taking place right now in the fashion capitals of the world; New York, London, Milan, and Paris. The shows started in New York City in mid-Feb. and this season I was lucky enough to get invited to a couple of them. They were both fun and exciting with great clothes and engaged beautifully turned-out audiences. When I contrast these shows with ones I attended years ago I'm struck by how diverse the crowds attending are now. And of course, the best part might just be on the streets before and after the actual shows when the fashion flock turns out in its most expressive outfits. See what I mean in Refinery 29's photos here and also here from Vogue.
Terry xoxo