Bad Ideas in Fashion: J. Crew’s Hairy Leg Tights

Via Gawker:

Preppy clothing enthusiasts recoiled today when J. Crew put a model with hippie-hairy legs on its website. Has J. Crew found its “inner feminist”? Is a disgruntled web designer playing pranks? We reveal the startling truth…

None of the above: Turns out these tights replicate the exact texture and appearance of super-hairy legs. These will either become J. Crew’s poorest-selling item, or best-selling—Halloween is coming, after all. Maybe they could market it as a sexy Chewbacca accessory?

In all fairness, the zoom on these tights reveals what nature and the design minds of J Crew intended - your standard run-of-the-mill lace pattern, and not some sort of hippie chic look. It appears that the choice of the “fawn” color on the models was particularly unfortunate in adding to the hairy legged illusion

Clearly the public ridicule has reached corporate’s ears, because not only have the lifestyle tights shots been pulled from main pages, but the gallery view has been changed to a more discreet, more obviously lacy image of the tights in their packaging.

It was good for a temporary, schadenfreude-laced giggle, though.

Image credit: Gawker

Trends Not to Try: Harem Pants

I keep seeing these blog posts and articles on “how to wear harem pants,” and really, if you need a primer on how to wear something, should you be wearing it at all? In the harem pant equation of 2x + y = z, where x is unattractive fit and y is a costume-like appearance, z becomes “what the hell kind of top am I going to wear with this?”

In our current economic situation, we should all be filling our closets with pieces that lean a little more towards the classic side of things. The harem pant trend may come back 20 years from now, but do you really want to be Princess Jasmine every year for Halloween until then?

Standard pants can get a little dry, so do try a cropped pant with a slight slouch instead (we featured a couple of good pairs in yesterday’s Sale Roundup). They’re more versatile, fit a wider variety of body types, and you won’t have to shove them in storage or cart them off to Goodwill at the end of the season.

Fergie photo credit: The Insider

Trends Not to Try: Granny Caps

I was blissfully unaware that people actually thought Katie Holmes’ sloppy knit beanie look was worth emulating until those darn NYC Prep kids came along. On last night’s episode, Jessie, who desperately wants to work in fashion, walked into a Charlotte Ronson interview wearing her granny cap. While I am admittedly not particularly interested in the arc of Jessie’s future career, I found myself muttering, “take off the stupid hat. Please take off the stupid hat for the interview.”

There are trends that are a little controversial, and there are trends that almost seem specifically formulated to mark you as a blind follower. Granny caps, with their propensity to instantly render their wearer frumpy, belong squarely in the latter category. Hats in general can be a little tricky to work and can be a detracting factor from an otherwise well put together ensemble, which is why most of us avoid them on a daily basis (unless weather forces their necessity).

If you find yourself desperately yearning for a granny cap despite reason and aesthetics, try a beret a la Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde instead. It’s a cleaner look overall, and will make you appear to be more woman of mystery, less bag lady.

Katie Holmes photo credit: Daily Mail