All Editorials

Black Pleated Skirt: Dior's Corolle, 1947

Black Pleated Skirt: Dior's Corolle, 1947

A black pleated skirt was part of the most famous collection in postwar fashion, since on February 12, 1947 Christian Dior showed his Corolle and Eight silhouettes at 30 Avenue Montaigne. Vogue singles out the pleated black Corolle skirt as voluminous in a time of fabric limits. Here is how to pick a black pleated skirt that swings the way it should.

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Sun Dress: Claire McCardell's 1945 Answer to the New Look

Sun Dress: Claire McCardell's 1945 Answer to the New Look

A sun dress is American sportswear at its easiest, and FIT's timeline shows a 1945 cotton sundress by Claire McCardell held in the Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Met. Two years later Dior's New Look arrived, yet young women still chose McCardell's less formal dresses. Here is how to choose a sun dress that works from a beach walk to dinner.

Wrap Skirt: Tehuana Tradition and Frida Kahlo

Wrap Skirt: Tehuana Tradition and Frida Kahlo

A wrap skirt has a deeper history than a seasonal trend, and the V&A describes Tehuana wrap skirts as a pre-Conquest tradition on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Frida Kahlo wore floor-length versions at her 1929 wedding to Diego Rivera. This is how to choose a wrap skirt that ties well and stays put.

Zip Up Hoodie: Nicholas Daley and the Reggae Klub

Zip Up Hoodie: Nicholas Daley and the Reggae Klub

A zip up hoodie can carry a lot of history, and the V&A sells one by Nicholas Daley that commemorates his parents' Reggae Klub. The V&A says the club, founded by his Dundee-born mother and Jamaican father, was the first reggae club night in 1970s Scotland. Here is how to choose a zip up hoodie that is as good as the story behind this one.

Palazzo Pants: Irene Galitzine and the Roman Pajama

Palazzo Pants: Irene Galitzine and the Roman Pajama

Palazzo pants began as the palazzo pajama invented by Irene Galitzine, a Russian princess turned couturiere in 1960s Rome. Vogue credits her with creating the shape, and says her friend Diana Vreeland gave the ensemble its enduring name. Here is how to wear palazzo pants in a way that looks modern and not costume.

Gold Chain Necklace: From Run-DMC to Every Day

Gold Chain Necklace: From Run-DMC to Every Day

A gold chain necklace carries a bigger story than most jewelry, and The Henry Ford documents part of it through Run-DMC, whose look in the 1980s included gold chains and Adidas Superstars. Vogue noted that the American Museum of Natural History's Ice Cold exhibition traced hip-hop nameplates and chains back to early examples like Biz Markie's. Here is how to choose a gold chain necklace that works every day.

Cross Necklace: Sixth-Century Gold, Still Worn

Cross Necklace: Sixth-Century Gold, Still Worn

A cross necklace is among the oldest pieces of jewelry people still wear. The Cleveland Museum of Art holds a sixth-century Byzantine gold and garnet pendant necklace with a cross, made for faith and for protection. This is how to choose a cross necklace that feels personal and not ornamental.

Navy Blue Dress: Royal Navy Origins and Chanel's 1932 Day Dress

Navy Blue Dress: Royal Navy Origins and Chanel's 1932 Day Dress

A navy blue dress has a naval name, because the National Portrait Gallery says the Royal Navy introduced uniform in April 1748 in dark blue, giving rise to the term navy blue. The New Yorker described a Chanel favorite in 1932 as a navy-blue ankle-length dress with a jacket, suitable for the street. This is how to choose a navy blue dress that looks smarter than black.

White Maxi Dress: A 1968 Idea That Never Left the Beach

White Maxi Dress: A 1968 Idea That Never Left the Beach

A white maxi dress has been in fashion since 1968, when Oscar de la Renta showed a long design at the Elizabeth Arden fashion show in New York. The Whanganui Regional Museum notes it quickly suited the bohemian mood of the late 1960s. Here is how to choose a white maxi dress that looks fresh and not fussy.

A Line Dress: The Triangle Dior Named in 1955

A Line Dress: The Triangle Dior Named in 1955

The A line dress got its name from Christian Dior, who called his spring 1955 collection the A line after the H line before it. Vogue called the silhouette the prettiest triangle since Pythagoras, and the shape has been flattering people ever since. Here is how to pick an A line dress that moves the way a good one should.

White Mini Skirt: Courrèges, Space Age and the 1964 Hem

White Mini Skirt: Courrèges, Space Age and the 1964 Hem

A white mini skirt belongs to the Space Age, and the Museum at FIT dates Parisian Space Age miniskirts to 1964 to 1969 and describes the styles as almost exclusively white or pale. The V&A says André Courrèges gained international publicity for a couture collection with short skirts in April 1964. Here is how to choose a white mini skirt that looks crisp and not costume.

Best Vitamin C Serum for Face: What SkinCeuticals Got Right in 1997

Best Vitamin C Serum for Face: What SkinCeuticals Got Right in 1997

The best vitamin C serum for face starts with a few facts, and SkinCeuticals says it introduced its Serum 10 and Serum 15 in 1997 as its first stabilized, pure L-ascorbic acid antioxidants. The company credits founding scientist Dr. Sheldon Pinnell's research and says effectiveness depends on the form, the concentration and the pH. This is how to choose a serum that works for your skin.

Plaid Pants: Westwood's Tartan and Punk's Uniform

Plaid Pants: Westwood's Tartan and Punk's Uniform

Plaid pants have a punk pedigree, since the V&A dates Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren's archetypal Bondage suit to 1976. For her 1993 Anglomania collection, Westwood commissioned a tartan that the ASU FIDM Museum calls a nod to punk. Here is how to choose plaid pants that look sharp and not like a costume.

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Black One Piece Swimsuit: Annette Kellerman and the Stockings

Black One Piece Swimsuit: Annette Kellerman and the Stockings

A black one piece swimsuit has a pioneer in Annette Kellerman, and FIT says that in 1905 she sewed black stockings onto her tight swimsuit after it was barred from a performance before the British royal family. Powerhouse credits her with doing more than anyone to make the women's one-piece acceptable. Here is how to choose a black one piece swimsuit that fits and holds up.

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V Neck Sweater: Mary Quant's 1963 Cricket Jumper

V Neck Sweater: Mary Quant's 1963 Cricket Jumper

A V neck sweater has a sporty lineage, and a V&A record dates Mary Quant's exaggerated V-neck jumper for John Laing to 1963, drawn from men's cricket whites. The V&A says the buyer Stella Kateb recalled it flying off the shelves at London's 21 Shop. Here is how to choose a V neck sweater that flatters and lasts.

Black Leather Pants: Sandy, Grease and a Stitched-In Finale

Black Leather Pants: Sandy, Grease and a Stitched-In Finale

Black leather pants have one definitive screen moment, Sandy's finale look in the 1978 film Grease. Costume designer Albert Wolsky dressed Olivia Newton-John in a black leather jacket, skintight pants and red heels. This is how to choose black leather pants that you can wear and sit down in.

Mineral Sunscreen for Face: Zinc, Titanium and the White Nose

Mineral Sunscreen for Face: Zinc, Titanium and the White Nose

Mineral sunscreen for face uses zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, natural minerals that Smithsonian Ocean says block UVA and UVB and first appeared in sunscreens in the 1950s. Those early formulas left a chalky white cast, which surfers turned into neon war paint by 1986. This is how to choose mineral sunscreen for face that sits well under makeup.

Black Leather Skirt: A Quiet History in Designer Archives

Black Leather Skirt: A Quiet History in Designer Archives

A black leather skirt turns up in designer archives, from Bill Gibb's printed leather skirts in 1972 to a Yves Saint Laurent black leather couture mini. The V&A also catalogs a Gianni Versace skirt suit from winter 1983 and 1984 with a black leather skirt. This is how to choose a black leather skirt that looks sleek and not costume.

Red Cardigan: Mister Rogers and a Smithsonian Sweater

Red Cardigan: Mister Rogers and a Smithsonian Sweater

A red cardigan has a famous patron in Fred Rogers, whose mother knitted his cardigans and whose red sweater now sits in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. When Mister Rogers' Neighborhood began in 1968 he wore button-down sweaters, and zip-ups arrived in season two. Here is how to choose a red cardigan that feels like a hug and looks like a decision.

Black Hoodie: From 1930s Workwear to a Symbol of Solidarity

Black Hoodie: From 1930s Workwear to a Symbol of Solidarity

A black hoodie is more than a comfortable layer, and the Smithsonian traces the garment to Champion Products in the 1930s, made for athletes and laborers who needed protection from the cold. After 2012 the dark hoodie also became a symbol of solidarity and protest against racial profiling. This is how to choose a black hoodie that fits well and lasts.

Flare Pants: The 1960s Shape That Keeps Coming Back

Flare Pants: The 1960s Shape That Keeps Coming Back

Flare pants widen from the knee, and the V&A says they first became popular for men and women in the 1960s as the hippie era approached. A 1964 Sunday Express illustration in the V&A collection shows Coco Chanel's bell-bottom trousers, called her latest brain child. This is how to find flare pants that lengthen your legs and not shorten them.

Emerald Necklace: From Cartier Deco to the Everyday Green Stone

Emerald Necklace: From Cartier Deco to the Everyday Green Stone

An emerald necklace has long been the jewelry of film stars and heiresses, and Cartier made two of the most famous in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The Smithsonian holds the Post Emerald Necklace, a platinum Art Deco design with 24 baroque emerald drops. Here is how to wear an emerald necklace today in a way that feels modern and not museum-like.

Black Jumpsuit: The Halston Idea for Dancing and Dinner

Black Jumpsuit: The Halston Idea for Dancing and Dinner

A black jumpsuit has been a night-out answer since at least 1976, when Halston cut a black silk jersey version for the Studio 54 dance floor. The Museum at FIT holds one, with cutaway sides made for disco. Here is how to choose a black jumpsuit that works as a one-piece outfit from desk to dinner.

Gingham Dress: Dorothy, Biba and 17,000 Orders

Gingham Dress: Dorothy, Biba and 17,000 Orders

A gingham dress has one of fashion's great origin stories, because the V&A identifies Dorothy's blue and white gingham pinafore as an Adrian design for The Wizard of Oz in 1939. AnOther reports that a 1964 Daily Mirror feature on Barbara Hulanicki's pink gingham Biba dress drew 17,000 orders. Here is how to wear a gingham dress that feels fresh and not folksy.

Bodycon Dress: Alaïa, the King of Cling

Bodycon Dress: Alaïa, the King of Cling

A bodycon dress has a clear origin story, and Vogue wrote it in December 1982 when it called Azzedine Alaïa hotter than hot and narrower than narrow. His Lycra-infused designs earned him the title King of Cling. This is how to find a bodycon dress that fits like his, close and comfortable at once.

The Coach Bags Edit: Five Lessons for the Slouchy-Bag Era

The Coach Bags Edit: Five Lessons for the Slouchy-Bag Era

Coach bags invite five lessons in the archive, slouchy shoulder shapes, tactile leather, printed canvas, and the small goods that travel with them. I like a useful detail best when the backstory is just as good.

The UGG Edit: Five Lessons for the Great Sheepskin Comeback

The UGG Edit: Five Lessons for the Great Sheepskin Comeback

UGG's five lessons run from Classic boot proportions to slippers outdoors, hybrid clogs, weather-ready pairs, and accessories that finish the story. I like a shoe that can go from a chilly post-surf idea to the train without pretending it is a different shoe.

The Button-Down Shirts Edit: Five Lessons in Leaving One Cuff Unfastened

The Button-Down Shirts Edit: Five Lessons in Leaving One Cuff Unfastened

Five notes for button-down shirts: poplin, stripes, borrowed volume, silk, and denim. I like a shirt that can look composed while the rest of the outfit stays a little loose.