Everyone (again) wants to look rich
(Originally published in my column in Lasha)
Between the hysteria surrounding Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski trial wardrobe (spoiler: she is entitled) to the obsessive preoccupation with the clothing of the stars of the Heirs series (whole and effective Instagram pages are dedicated to the subject) to the abundance of Tik Tok instructors, it cannot be denied that the current hot trend is to look rich. When was it unfashionable to look rich, you ask, and rightly so, but the current wave directs us to the wardrobe of the rich who don’t want to be seen as rich. Quiet luxury, they call it. Luxury may not scream its truth, but that doesn’t stop those rich from building their wardrobes on cornerstones in the form of generic $1490 polo shirts.
The outstanding advantage of this trend is that it seems to be born to help those of us who aspire to put together a minimalist wardrobe. After all, minus the almost secret super brands and the prices that seem reasonable only to those who travel from place to place in a private plane, these are temporary clothes that can be worn over and over and over time. In fact, when we come to embrace the quiet luxury, we are looking for the quiet and not the luxury.
On the way to a quiet luxury wardrobe (within your budget):
1. Good materials. Good cuts. In simple words: a preference for natural fabrics and clothes that a cursory inspection makes you believe will not get messed up after the first wash.
2. Forget colors. The scale you want to focus on: all the shades of coffee, cream and navy blue that the chains and designers have to offer (in winter, black and gray are also possible). Bonus: this is a preference that will focus you and make three quarters of a store irrelevant.
3. Minimum decorations and tricks. Of course logos are off limits. If a name or initials appear on your garment or bag it will be your name, specially stamped.
4. No items that scream “2023”. In fact, the quiet luxury wardrobe is the wardrobe you want to pack for time travel to every year between 1950 and now, and that will allow you to fully blend in with the crowd.
5. If you want to get smarter You will be able to combine in your quiet luxury wardrobe really cheap items, those that scream their taxis, pretend you are really rich and these are just a few items of clothing that aim to prove your absolute mastery of the principle of respect. Example items: a brimmed hat bought at the airport or a t-shirt from a tourist shop.
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Like-quiet-luxury, summer edition
The subtext: I’m rich enough and I’m certainly not working to bully you with my clothing choices
Black dress /// Light cotton shirt Almost sleeveless for a tourist look in the Near East /// white suit /// Gold Chain which seems to have been inherited. Michelle Maitland, the costume designer for Heirs, told Town and Country magazine that Shiv’s jewelry cannot be found in any store. They should look like she inherited them from her mother. In fact, most of them came from antique stores and Michelle’s private closet /// Sunglasses in a light frame or transparent /// Flat leather sandals (a reminder that until Thursday there is a 15% discount with the code SHELLY23) /// White t-shirt in good shape /// Buttoned linen shirt
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Reading permission (or: more on the same topic)
Uniqlo for billionaires – Gwyneth’s wardrobe
Clean is the new classic
The Roy family’s Norwegian vacation
The look of Nora from the series the watcher
Hashtag old money
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She’s like a millionaire
Walkin’ on imported air