The Window Shopper plays in Plato’s Closet

Payton for NWAFW-4164
[CLICKABLE: –> SEE ALL THE PHOTOS FROM THE SHOOT!]
Hi pretty people! I hope you are well and getting excited about NWAFW! Are you following @nwafashionweek on instagram? liked on facebook? Just looking out for you! Isn’t it surprising/wonderful how many fashion conscious people there are in our little neck of the woods? I found a few to help me with this project. They areridiculous talented. Quickly, let me give credit where credit is so very due.
L to R Mallory Berry, Kory Simpson, Payton, Taylor Johnston, Lindsey Wright
THE TEAM:
Photography: Mallory Berry [web | fb | insta | email]
Hair: Taylor & Lindsey of Guillotine Hair Lounge [web | fb | insta | 479.582.8770]
MUA: Kory Tyler Simpson @ MAC [ insta | email]
Stylist, Blogger, Model: Yours Truly, Payton Bridewell [web | fb | insta | email]

Ok, did you catch my first NWAFW Window Shop collaboration with Maude? If not, head –> here !
If so…let us venture on! Up next, window shopping in Plato’s Closet.
 was thrilled to hear that Plato’s Closet (PC) was participating in NWAFW. I am in my element buying resale. I was already a stopping by PC on occasion, attempting to sell clothes and typically buying some instead. I’m a treasure-hunter by nature and I enjoy perusing and browsing. I tell myself I won’t buy unless I can’t live without it. But I’m really good at convincing myself of that, especially with the affordability factor. I almost always find something special hiding/wait! They recently opened a new, much larger location, everything is really streamlined and they have GOBS of shoes in every size. Just last night, I went back and found some Jeffrey Campbell cutout platforms (regular retail: $100+/ PC: $20).I found Marc Jacobs, DVF and all kinds of name brand jeans almost immediately. I kept my closet in mind and settled on a mix of pieces. As their Facebook page explains, Plato’s Closet “specializes in gently used clothes and accessories for teen and twenty something girls and guys”. They will also pay cash for clothes, if they’re on trend (mine usually aren’t…boo) and allow shoppers to drop off their stuff and leave, returning anytime that day. I don’t know for sure but I think that several of the boutiques send stuff there after the current season… I can’t wait to see what PC shows on the runway because I love that we have the option to buy “green” clothing that is has been worn and loved and is now CHEAP! I’m not kidding when I tell you that you could spend HOURS in there and not see everything. Thus, I was able to widen my range at PC and pulled favorites from my personal collection to create looks.
Staci Deal is the proprietor of the local Plato’s Closets. With her family, she opened the Fayetteville location in 2008. They quickly expanded to Rogers and Fort Smith in 2009 and 2010 respectively. Staci and her husband (Rob) have three dogs and spend a lot of their free time outside. She’s obsessed with Rachel Zoe & Taylor Swift and says that “fashion is everything.”
So I styled & piled. My team fluffed & puffed. Then magic! Oh and keep your eyes peeled for my hubby as a very handsome prop in one look :)

ALL THE PHOTOS FROM THE SHOOT IN THE NWAFW ALBUM –> HERE.

Details
1. Plato’s Cisano red cotton pant | worn with red Pendleton blazer, black tank from Maude, Stuart Weitzman heels, earringsMae’s (location: Dickson st inn)
2. Plato’s Rory Beca long black sheer skirt | worn with Stefanie peter pan blouse, Jessica Simpson heels, Target sunnies, Kate Spade ring
3. Plato’s Judith March silk china blue strapless dress | worn with forever 21 leaf necklace, Stuart Weitzman heels (location: Dickson st inn)
4. Plato’s free people beige tank dress | worn with vintage scarf, bow Forever21 necklace/earrings, Michael Antonio heels, Bebe fuzzy (location: Dickson st inn)
5. Plato’s Danny & Nicole striped blazer | worn with unlabeled vintage white mini, vintage baubles from Mae’s & Cheap Thrills, Kate Spade cocktail ring, vintage belt, Jeffrey Campbell platforms {on Ro – thrifted pinstripe suit, ray bans} (location: Dickson st inn)
Most vintage is either locally purchased at thrift shops or Cheap Thrills in Fayetteville, AR
Special thanks: the Dickson Street Inn in downtown Fayetteville for being quite the gorgeous backdrop / to my hubby for being a handsome prop

NWA FW Window Shop: Maude

by mallory berry

by mallory berry

Hi everyone! This is our first window shopping adventure together! I am so excited to share these collaborations with you. This project has been incredible so far and it has just begun. Before we get to the good stuff, I want to share a little more about your tour guide, me. I’ve been keeping Fayetteville funky for the past 20 years (with a four year detour to NOLA for school). My style is lighthearted & eclectic, I’m a collector of all things fashion and I love treasure hunting.  I love: trying new things/trying on new things, classic feminine shapes, funky details and clean lines. I love piling and styling. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but it gives me great pleasure to play dress up every day.
One of the wonderful things about Fayetteville is the abundance of cool people. Cool people open great shops and great shops want to be involved in amazing community events like NWAFW. When I spend money on my wardrobe, it absolves me to spend it in a way that supports a local business and furthers the community.
 Maude was the first stop for the window shop. I remember when Becca opened Maude in 2007. I still have a dress that I bought on my first visit. Personally, I think Maude was the tipping point for a wave of boutiques that have opened since, offering a variety of contemporary apparel for women who love to look good. Becca (and in turn Maude) was a trailblazer. She started small, cultivated interest in the community and expanded when the time was right. As demonstrated by her interest in NWA Fashion Week, she is proactive and has a vision for community partnership. The store’s website details, “A Maude Girl is much more than her closet, but the one she has should be full of clothes that help her feel confident as she makes her dreams happen.”  What a feel-good place to shop, right?
I went shopping on a Sunday in early January and quickly found it hard to narrow down my selections. Ultimately, I chose examples of styles I already love. I wanted to pull from my own collection to create looks that you wouldn’t necessarily find at Maude but compliment their aesthetic.  I found corresponding pieces in my closet to complete the looks and was lucky enough to snag some of the best creatives in NWA to transform me. They really deserve all the credit (more on them below).
Maude’s High Heels, High Hopes takes to the runway at the Hotel Chancellor on the Friday Night of NWA Fashion Week.
Payton for NWAFW-4193 Payton for NWAFW-4383 Payton for NWAFW-4425 Payton for NWAFW-4484 Payton for NWAFW-4272
NWAFW Window Shop: Maude
DETAILS
  • floral skirt-like trouser by Greylin {worn with a vintage Leslie Fay cropped pink blazer, necklace from Forever21, thrifted sunnies and chunky Jessica Simpson heels}
  • open-back sheer maxi by ark & co {worn with pink Gianni Bini heels}
  •  gold paneled crop by mystree {worn with a Lillie Rubin gold lame leather skirt, my mom’s gold star earrings, locket & chunky necklace a gift from my hubby from Mae’s Heirlooms, Miss Me sandals and a vintage hat}
  • high waist black & white trouser by Line & Dot {worn with a vintage velvet Doris Dodson Jrs, vintage /Forever21 necklaces, Lulu Townsend pumps}
  • floor-length print skirt by Line & Dot {worn with a backwards vintage lace jacket, collar from urban outfitters, heels from Forever21 }
The TEAM!
Photography: Mallory Berry, MGB Photo [ instagram.com/mgbphoto ] [email]
Styling/Orchestration: Payton Bridewell, The Window Shopper [instagram.com/mspayton] [email]
Makeup: Kory Tyler Simpson, MAC [ instagram.com/korytyler ] [email]
Hair: Taylor Johnston & Lindsey Wright, Guillotine Hair Lounge [ instagram.com/guillotinehairlounge ] 479.582.8770
Most vintage is either locally purchased at thrift shops or Cheap Thrills in Fayetteville, AR
Featured Items: Maude Shoppe in Fayetteville, AR
Special thanks to the Chancellor Hotel in downtown Fayetteville for being quite the gorgeous backdrop for #3 & #4
More about Maude…

What I Wore: Halloween

what I wore: fabulous spandex dress – vintage td4 by eletra from cheap thrills (find it on etsy), thigh high boots – aldo, socks as gloves

*

For someone who loves clothes and dressing in general, Halloween is a veritable holiday. I always look forward to it and this year I found my costume in the form of this spandex dress early this summer. I knew I had to have the dress but honestly couldn’t foresee any appropriate occasion. Then…a light bulb: Morticia Addams (a la Anjelica Huston of course). I’d been devising and conniving for months but it didn’t really come together until late last week when I found the perfect suit for Ro’s Gomez. Ro will pretty much dress as whatever I suggest but he cannot be counted on to procure his own costume. You may find it hard to believe but I really don’t mind shopping for him.  It was as if the stars aligned, I was attempting to find a semi-suitable suit for him without him present which is next to impossible. I happened upon a gray Halston pinstripe ensemble at a local thrift store that was listed at $20. I thought it might be close enough to his size but I wasn’t sure and if it happened to be too small or too short, I would be out $20, which I never enjoy, even with a bargain. I got it home and it literally fit better than some of his tailored suits. I was in thrifted nirvana. We had a fabulous time and I had an excuse to look sullen in photos – which of course, I don’t need.

years past

Going Platinum

I am a woman that has very dark hair.

blonde.

I also have a blonde mother, and when I was growing up she was on the local news. She always looked glamorous and had more than her fair share of admirers/imitators. I’m sure those early images of her ultra-light hair is the root-cause, I’ve always harbored a deep, dark desire to be a blonde.

My mom in the early 1980s

A lot of women fall into the not blonde/ not brunette range and they can flip and flop between. For those of us with the darkest locks, it’s mostly more of a pipe dream (due to cost, upkeep or finding a stylist that can do it). While I know that my hair and my wallet do not want me to turn to bleach, I still really really want to but have never really come close. I’ve had the occasional highlight, which has gone awry more than once. And I’ve gone darker, to give myself the illusion of a “change”. I’ve told myself that one day I’ll chop the whole thing off and dye it blonde, which would be considerably easier on my mane but in the back of my mind, I know it’s not true. It’s just not meant to be…
sequin baseball t.
Enter Erika Bearman aka @oscarprgirl (above). She is the PR exec for Oscar de la Renta and an enviable force in social media. I keep up with her via twitter or instagram to see what she’s wearing and admire her for being a woman in a high-power/ high-influence role. It doesn’t hurt that she’s charming and visually lovely. Like me, she often expressed an ambition to become a blonde. I sighed along with her while perusing editorials and street style snaps of honey to champagne-shaded tresses.

blonde ambition.

Suddenly, earlier this week, she announced her intent. OscarPRGirl would be a blonde. I became excited and anxious to see the results. But also – I felt nervous for her and the finality of all that bleach, like only a fellow brunette would. Luckily, she took vogue.com (natch) along for the ride to document the lengthy (12.5 hour) process. I’m looking forward to seeing what she does with the wildly transformed hair color. I know she will rock it and ultimately help all of the lonely brunettes out there to decide whether or not to take the plunge. Full story here.

Vogue Daily —

What I Wore: Tails

what I wore: top – cinnamon stick (thrifted), skirt – ny & co, platforms – target

What I Wore: Blue Jean Baby

what I wore: jeans – vintage levi (seen here), top – thrifted, beads – grandmother’s, heels – kelsi dagger, small rings – vintage from mae’s & a converted toe ring from claire’s

One Year Ago…

Happily celebrating one year of marriage with my sweet.
If you want to reminisce with me, there are more details here. photos by Mallory Berry.

What I Wore: Moody Maxi + Criminails

what I wore: dress – thrifted one to watch, nails – PISTOLpolish in criminail, booties – gianni bini, ring – black cherry vintage

So my extremely wonderful and talented friend recently started a subscription nail polish company. It’s similar to birchbox but you get full sizes.  Basically, you pay a monthly fee and two full size polishes are sent to your door in up-to-the-minute current hues. I was so excited to get mine that I immediately put it on. This is a sparkling gunmetal called criminail. Check it out here —-> PISTOLpolish, follow twitter @PISTOLpolish or find it on facebook.

Also, I found this dress for $3 at a local thrift store. I love the details like the high back neck and the slit. The colors do date it but I don’t really mind, especially for the pretty price tag.

What I Wore: Spotted

what I wore: blouse – thrifted {similar here}, pants {similar here} – paulnkc via maude, heels – bcbg, earrings – vintage via mae’s, sunnies – gas station {similar here}
Here’s a little peek at the teasing that’s involved for this giant-bun.

And the rest…

What I Wore: The Green Gene

what I wore: dress – vintage via grey dog, earrings – vintage, ear cuff – the icing, platforms – FRH, rings – vintage via mae’s
This is one of the first dresses I bought from Grey Dog and it’s still a favorite. I typically wear it on St. Patty’s but also like to bring it out other times. Wearing green makes me feel lucky for some reason. The (gigantic) hair was a bit of an accident. I put leave-in conditioner on dry hair and put it up before I went to sleep. When I took it down this in the morning, I put it in hot rollers.