In with the old. In with the new.
Our first-ever guest editor, Liana Satenstein, on how a vintage obsessive navigates newness. Plus, a fall loafer guide and what Tory's wearing while working on the Spring/Summer 2024 show.
Liana Satenstein is a jack-of-all-trades in the fashion industry. Longtime Vogue writer, merchandiser, host of Ladies Who Lunch, founder of Neverworns and the force behind The Sale of the Century.
I started thrifting in high school, mainly because I didn’t like what I saw in stores but also because it was budget-friendly. It wasn’t until I worked at Vogue that I started to obsess over true vintage. I mean Tom Ford-era Gucci crushed velvet pants. Flirty Stella McCartney-era Chloé peel-them-off jeans with a horse on the back pocket. My then-boss had a ’90s Gucci bag that transfixed me, and compelled me to eBay and Etsy to snap up vintage Gucci at good prices before the Kardashians started wearing it. Now, about 90% of my wardrobe is vintage. Everything is bought because it is singular. A zebra print Tom Ford for Gucci shirt for which I haggled endlessly with a guy on eBay. A Chloé zodiac T-shirt by Stella McCartney, discovered on an obscure Japanese site. (I’m not even into astrology but I am a Taurus, and I had to have that shirt.)
Behind each piece is a haggle, a hunt, and the eventual hoorah.
With vintage, there’s a story that rarely comes with brand-new pieces.
That said, I’ve been slowly venturing into new-dom, though it takes a lot for me to buy a new piece of clothing. My baseline criteria is that it must look like it could exist now, 20 years ago and 20 years from now. I dislike wearing things that make me look like I’m fanatically cosplaying a noughties socialite, or as if I snatched it off the runway last week.
I do newness out of necessity. I’ve had some particular issues with vintage shoes. I was walking recently in an incredible pair of logomania Fendi kitten heels when the heel got caught in the crack of the sidewalk. Crunch. That killer ’90s block heel snapped right out from under me. I was left heelless in heels.
A good kitten heel has been hard to nail since they were ubiquitous in the early ’00s. The heel has to be the right height for the right amount of metered sass and bare enough on top to have that city-minded sauciness. A former Vogue colleague and current Tory Burch staffer tipped me off to the Miller kitten heel sandal, which I love. It has that bold, can’t-miss-it Tory Burch logo, a naughty little arch and that delicious ’90s-era square-toe.
I’ve long been a fan of the circular Tory Burch logo, which made its debut on the Reva flat almost 20 years ago, close to the vintage mark. The brand’s new Claire flat is the heir to the Reva. I love these flats for their comfort and, for me, they are also a bit subversive. When I was an intern at Women’s Wear Daily, I would see CV-toting midtown career girls trotting to work in their Reva flats. I, on the other hand, would be trudging to work in whatever I could cobble together from Buffalo Exchange.
Years later, I love the idea of reinterpreting the Claire flats with my own side of freak. I love taking them out of the cubicle context and wearing them truly out. Last weekend, I wore them to my wedding afterparty at a pizza shop with my matrimonial skirt because…why not? The flats always feel like an angel is kissing my soles.
The Tory Burch Marshmallow was inspired by a ’90s doctor bag and meets my now/then/later requirement.
I’ve long praised the greatness of a good shoulder bag. You can solder that thing to your arm, and it’s safely tucked away from prying hands. Sometimes, when I wear a good shoulder bag, I imagine whacking a pickpocket in the face with it. Even better, you can stuff it to the gills with the fun going-out-gal necessities.
Another thing I buy new are jeans. I wish I could wiggle into a pair of those vintage Levi’s 501s and look like the late Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, but that is for my next life. I need a great pair of jeans to hug my butt, cinch my waist, and not make me feel like I’m an overripe tomato bursting out of its skin. Tory’s cropped and kicky pair of flared jeans has a 1% whisper of stretch that helps them fit perfectly. I’ll venture to guess they’ll look fab in 2043. Until then, I’ll be making my own stories in them.
— L.S.
THE FALL LOAFER GUIDE
Real talk: Loafers are never not a thing. But they have recently been swept up in a particularly potent fashion wave. Read on for a breakdown of four distinctive styles.
THE JESSA LOAFER
Essential Character: Continental elegance. They wouldn’t look out of place padding through a palazzo.
Distinguishing Details: A minimalist profile, jewelry-like horse head hardware.
Spiritual Ancestor: Venetian slippers
The Inside Scoop: The equestrian elements stem from Tory’s childhood love of horseback riding, and she once did an entire horse-themed collection.
THE CLASSIC LOAFER
Essential Character: East coast collegiate. Think Ali McGraw in Love Story.
Distinguishing Details: Scalloped edges, a delicate logo, deeply cushioned insole.
Spiritual Ancestor: The traditional Norwegian slip-on that made its way to the U.S via tony European resorts.
The Inside Scoop: According to staffers, the Classic is incredibly comfortable with zero breaking-in period.
THE RAIN LOAFER
Essential Character: Meteorologically prepared.
Distinguishing Details: Water-resistant rubber construction, breathable interior with jersey lining.
Spiritual Ancestors: Old-school wellies and rubber duckies.
The Inside Scoop: If primary yellow isn’t your thing, you can go under-the-radar in black or coolly modern in white.
THE BALLET LOAFER
Essential Character: Hybrid duality. The masculinity of a loafer crossed with femininity of a ballet flat.
Distinguishing Details: Softly ruched sides that hug the foot. Podded treads on the sole.
Spiritual Ancestor: A driving moccasin.
The Inside Scoop: A favorite of Tory staffers as well as one Ms. Gigi Hadid.
WHAT TORY WORE: PRE-SHOW EDITION
Tory and the design team have been in the studio working on the Spring/Summer 2024 runway show—watch live tomorrow, September 11th at 8pm, here or here. Despite the long hours, Tory is always dressed. We particularly love her trompe l’oeil cardigan, which gives you a layered fall look without the risk of overheating.
SPOTLIGHT ON: JEANNE GANG, FOUNDER OF STUDIO GANG
Though Jeanne Gang is responsible for the world’s two tallest buildings designed by women architects, that muscular, competitive side of architecture isn’t what drives her. Instead, the Chicago-based architect, who founded her firm Studio Gang in 1997, finds inspiration in how architecture can impact social connectivity and social justice, and the convergence of nature and technology.
There are elements of all of the above in Gang’s newly completed project (and the venue for our Spring/Summer 2024 runway show): The Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation in the American Museum of Natural History. The soaring canyon-like interior feels at once Space-Age and Stone-Age, and Gang’s design does its part to improve the flow of visitors through the maze-like museum complex. (Note: It’s now much easier to find the Hall of Gems.) And an awe-inspiring work of public architecture the promotes an interest in science might be exactly what the world needs now.
WHAT SHOULD I…READ?
What’s on our fall reading list: Zadie Smith’s latest novel The Fraud is her first foray into historical fiction, but the sprawling cast of characters will feel familiar to fans of her debut White Teeth. In Never Enough, journalist Jennifer Wallace explores solutions to the toxic achievement culture in American education that leads to stress, burnout, and even criminal behavior like the Varsity Blues scandal. Just in time for back-to-school! Lastly, Marisa Meltzer’s much-anticipated Glossy delves into the story of Glossier, the millennial beauty brand whose sharply instinctive founder Emily Weiss aspired to be the Apple or Nike of skincare and cosmetics.
❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥