Derby Days

Many GW students are taking a break from the books this weekend and donning their Sunday best to head to Charlottesville, Virginia for the annual Foxfields Races. A classic preppy affair, no one really goes for the horses; instead, it's all about the fashion, and well, the libations. But back to the fashion...

"I have absolutely no idea what to wear," Carly Messina said, a sophomore attending the races this weekend. "GW doesn't have tailgates, so no one knows what's appropriate."

Foxfields, and similar races like the Virginia Cup and the Kentucky Derby, are known for being more formal than a typical tailgate. Even the websites suggest a "Sunday Best" attire.

But what exactly does this mean?

Well, this southern girl will tell you!

First, for the gentlemen. Because it is springtime, it is a perfect opportunity to don khakis or seersucker and bright colored Oxford shirts. Patterned ties (and bowties!) are perfect for this occasion. Top it off with some Sperry's and Ray-Bans and you will be prepped out.

"I think I'm going to get a bowtie at Vineyard Vines for the races," senior John Wilson said. "It's probably the only time I can wear one and not get made fun of by my friends!"

Now, for the ladies.

Most women wear sundresses for a day at the races. Occasionally, you'll see some skirts or pants, but for the most part, it's dresses, dresses, dresses. A lot of girls go for Lilly Pulitzer or Vineyard Vines. Both designers offer perfect choices for race day. But no need to spend that much! Any colorful or patterned sundress will be perfect. Old Navy has some great ones right now, as well as Lulu's (available only online), all for amazing prices.

"I tend to choose dresses that are breezy and flowy," Maria Bono said, a senior who has gone to the races for the past three years. "It gets really hot and sticky, so clingy just won't work."

The pièce de résistance of a race day outfit is the hat. There's even a hat contest at the Virginia Cup every year.

"Everyone goes crazy over hats at the races," Bono said. "It's the first thing that everyone notices that day."

There are many companies that offer custom made hats, but you can totally DIY for a fraction of the price.

Buy a plain straw hat  from Walmart or Target, and pick up some embellishments and ribbon at a craft store. Glue gun everything to your heart's desire, and voila! You have the perfect, custom derby hat.

Sip your mint julep, and you're ready to go. And they're off!

Dress for Success

As the semester begins to wind down, final papers are handed in, rooms are boxed up and GW students are ready to turn the page to another season.

However, unlike most college students around the country, this does not mean jetsetting off to Turks and Caicos or volunteering at a summer camp in Maine. Most GW students set up shop in New York City or Washington, DC, ready and eager to intern their summer away.

Whether your internship is at a hip, non-for-profit, a bustling federal agency or even the highly coveted Capitol Hill positions, they all have one thing in common: most of them are unpaid.

And because housing and living expenses in big cities are astronomically priced, you may find yourself in debt before you even begin your first day. So how are you supposed to afford work clothes when you're not even getting paid to work?

"I think a lot of GW kids don't know what business casual actually even means," senior Lilly Walmish said. "It's not easy to find affordable work clothes that don't look stiff or underdressed."

Oh, but it is.

Here's your guide to everything a female needs to begin your young professional career. (Sorry boys, writing an entry about just suits and ties would bore me to tears.)

ESSENTIALS

1. A pair of structured black trousers.

Ann Taylor Loft makes a great pair that will last you several seasons. Banana Republic also has great trousers, as well as Gap. DC gets very hot in the summer so I would recommend sticking to cotton and linen blends.

Make sure that they are the right length, and don't be afraid to get them hemmed if not!

2. A navy or gray pencil skirt.

My favorites are the suiting skirts from J. Crew. They are little pricey, but you can also find similar options, like this one from Forever 21. The reason I recommend gray or navy is because these are great alternatives to black that go with many different patterned tops.

3. A black blazer

Simple, classic, and can be thrown over almost anything to make an outfit look crisp and professional. My favorite is from The Loft, but you can find great blazers at H&M (sadly, no catalogue website for this store).


4. A structured work dress in a basic color.

You can either go with an A-line dress, like the one above, or a wrap dress. I recommend staying away from white (it'll look too casual and is often unflattering) or bright prints (no Lilly Pulitzer, save that for Foxfields - hint at future post).

My go-to work dress is one similar to this Banana Republic one. It's breezy and classic, and never clings, even in the summer heat.

5. Last, but not least, a silk (or silk-y, for those penny pinchers out there) blouse. Make sure to get something that breathes! and in a bright color, or white. You can find these at all the above mentioned stores, and even stores like Express.

Now comes the fun part! Mixing and matching. Blazer + dress. Skirt + blouse. Skirt + Pants. Skirt + Blazer + Blouse. Pants + Blazer + blouse. Add in a statement necklace and pair of flats, and you're good to go!

"I find that I really only need a few items to get me through the work week," Sarah Fisher said, a senior who has an internship every summer since her freshman year. "It's a great time saver to not have to go through a million articles of clothing!"

The great thing about buying these five essentials is that you can have them forever, and always embellish them with new tops, shoes and accessories. Not only will you look successful on the job, but the confidence of dressing appropriately will make you excel in your summer of slave labor!

These shoes were made for walkin'

This time of year, it's not uncommon to see swarms of camera-clad, fanny-pack wearing tourists from all seven continents ooh-ing and ahh-ing around the District. Ahh, tourist season. The sun is out, the air is a perfect mix of warm and cool, and GW students are creeping out from every corner just to be outside.

"Every spring, it seems like our student body grows by about a thousand," senior Michael Gray said. "Everyone is taking monument walks, or forgoing a cab ride to Georgetown for a nice walk because we all just want to be outside."

So if you're inspired to go tour the Museum of Natural History for the first or tenth time, you want to properly adorn this season's hottest transportation device: your feet.

DC is a walking city. In fact, when architect Pierre L'Enfant designed Washington, D.C. in the late 18th century, he outlined the city so that each monument and area was pedestrian friendly and accessible. Thus, the best way to tour the District is on foot. But all that pavement can really tear up your feet, if you don't have the right footwear.

First of all, since it's finally warm and you'll want to expose your newly pedicured toes, make sure you don't just grab a pair of rubber flip-flops.While these may be great for lounging pool-side, they give you no support and can actually do great damage to the arches of your feet.

Instead, if you choose to go the sandal route, make sure you choose a pair with leather soles. While these will be a bit pricier, they will SAVE your feet and will last much longer than a cheaper rubber pair.

Not only are these more fashion-forward, they are more comfortable for long distance walking. My personal favorite are the classic Jack Rogers Navajo sandals. I wore my pair every day last summer while commuting to my internship and they still look brand new.

"Jack Rogers are my spring shoe of choice because they literally mold to my feet," sophomore Ellen Kaplan said. "And they still look cute after wearing them day after day."

For those more toe-shy, a classic ballet flat will get you through spring, no matter how many steps you take. Make sure to buy the right size, however, or you will be covering your heels in band-aids until next fall.

"My favorite ballet flats are made by Kate Spade," junior Jessie Lockhart said. "They never give me blisters and literally feel like I'm wearing slippers."

Other popular flats seen around GW are Tory Burch and J.Crew brands. But you don't have to spend a fortune on a great pair of flats. Target always has great options, as well as DSW.

If ballet flats or sandals aren't your thing, check out flat espadrilles, or Toms, which are both in this season. Happy exploring!

Lagging a bit? Throw on leggings!

Just Google "college fashion don'ts" and I can guarantee you one article of clothing will show up on every don't list: leggings. Fashionistas everywhere rag on these spandex delights, harping on how unflattering, inappropriate and cheap they look.

Well, let's face it. College women have worn leggings, do wear leggings, and ALWAYS WILL wear leggings.

Sometimes, we just want to be comfortable! It's acceptable for boys to wear loose jeans around, why can't we have our comfy pants? Anti-feminism, that's why! But that's another story...

"Leggings are a perfect solution to that rainy day where are you really wanna do is lay in bed," sophomore Lauren Pench said. "They look relaxed but put together at the same time."

The key to making your leggings look chic but not shabby starts with the actual material and fit. Buy a pair that has a little more heft. They should be thicker than stockings, but thinner than nylon workout pants.

Hue makes a great pair of leggings that come in many colors and a very manageable price tag. ShopBop has a great selection as well, while they tend to be pricier.

"I get all my leggings from Wolford at Neimann Marcus," freshman Kasey Fritz said. "Their leggings are my favorite because they are soft but hold up for so long!"

Some don'ts about leggings:
- DO NOT wear "kind of dark, kind of sheer" tights as leggings. Do the bend over test to see if your leggings are see-through.
-DO NOT wear leggings with lace fringe on the bottom. They make your legs look squatty, no matter how tall you actually are.
- DO NOT buy leggings in colors other than neutrals. I remember seeing a girl on campus wearing orange leggings and had to double take to see if she just had a really bad spray tan at Relaxed.

Some would argue that even if you buy a $200 pair of leggings, you'll still look horrendous in them. However, with the right top and accessories, leggings can be chic!

"I love to wear slouchy sweaters with leggings," Pench said. "They balance out the bagginess of the top."

The fact is, you really can wear anything with leggings, as long as it COVERS YOUR BUM. Nobody wants to see an exposed boo-tay out and about, so make sure your sweater/T-shirt/V-neck is long enough.

Urban Outfitters has some great long tunics, like this one. You can even wear tanks with leggings, as long as they are on the longer side, like these from J.Crew.

Note: Buy tees a size larger if you intend to wear them with leggings. There's already enough clingyness on the bottom of your outfit, you don't need anymore at the top!


Last but not least, what shoes do you wear with leggings? Personally, I believe flip-flops and sneakers make leggings look too casual and shabby. I think that your best option are flats.

"Simple flats, like my Steve Madden ones, are the best compliment to leggings," Fritz said. "They make your legs look long and graceful."

Because flats expose the ankle, they elongate the leg, whereas sneakers make them look stubby. Any pair of simple ballet flats will top off your outfit.

Leggings also look great with rainboots (see previous post)!

So don't feel bad next time you just roll out of bed and throw on your ol' favorites. But make sure you follow these tips so you'll look chic and sophisticated in no time!

Rain, Rain, Go Away

It seems like Mother Nature is taking over on campus, thwarting plans and outfits everywhere. The amount of rain that GW students have had to deal with in just the first month of spring has been a bit overwhelming. Even GW Program Board's annual Spring Fling, an event that is focused around an outdoor concert, had to be moved inside due to this past weekend's April showers.

"Every year, spring arrives and everyone just wants to be outside," sophomore Lindsay Kelly said. "But what people seem to forget is that there is usually one day of nice weather for every five days of rain."

Not only have this spring's frequent showers affected outdoor activities, but they are taking a toll on students' fashion choices.

"When I wake up and have to go to class in the rain, I don't really care what I wear, especially because it will probably just get wet," Kelly said.

Well, here's a few ways to stay dry while looking fly this season.

The key to rainy day gear is to have the few essential items that are functional to keep you dry, and then you can wear whatever you want! My suggestion is to invest in a really great trench coat. Rather than a generic looking Northface rain jacket, a trench coat looks more put together.

Best of all, a trench can be worn over anything, and is long enough to keep your pants dry.

"I'm not really sure what I would do without my trench," junior Michelle Jakinski said. "I probably wear it every single day when the weather is a bit bleak."

The second key essential is a great pair of Wellies, or rainboots. GW students have gotten this one right, as Hunter rainboots can be seen all over campus in every color of the rainbow.

"I think rainboots were one of the first purchases I made when I came to D.C.," freshman Maria Duper said. "I promise you, they are worth every penny!"

J.Crew has some great rainboot choices, as well as Target, if you're looking for a lower price point. Wear these with some thick socks, and your feet will stay toasty and dry all the live long day.

Last, but certainly not least, a well-accesorized GW student MUST invest in a good umbrella. I cannot tell you how much money I have wasted buying $15 umbrellas from street corner vendors that break in a matter of seconds when exposed to the DC city winds.

"My favorite umbrella is this bubble one my mom got me for Hannukah," freshman Justin Weinberg said. "It looks so stupid, yes, but it keeps me, my stuff, and even the guy next to me incredibly dry."

So spend a few extra bucks and invest in a good umbrella. Don't try to find the smallest one you can, they are normally the flimsiest. You can find quality umbrellas at department stores, and even designers if you're looking to get a bit fancy.

If you stock your closet with these three items, you'll be sure to stay dry and look fresh as a spring dew droplet in no time. Happy spring!