layer me ombré

Ombré.
Loved it. Then h.a.t.e.d. (most of) it.
Then I came across these pieces by Jessica Sturman's Madison Marcus last week (Shopbop, Revolve Clothing, Intermix). The quintessence of chic simplicity, these silk tanks are super stylish and versatile.
Little aside: Yes, I understand that it is supposed to be worn as a top. I got one (in black) last fall and it doubles very nicely as a dress on my 5'1 frame (ha!) every time I've worn it ― esp. paired with a chemise underneath; sheesh I still pretend to cover up!!

Ombré, the more restrained cousin of the tie-dye ― defined (of a fabric) as having a dyed, printed, or woven design in which the color is graduated from light to dark¹ ― made a few appearances on the fall 2005 runways, before its more recent splashes last fall. And I loved it, for the most part. It was the runways!! (Right: A new fave piece from Lacroix's recent fall couture collection.) But, the pleasurable sartorial decadence that rules the runways, often times turns annoyingly dull and washed out after the customary filtering through fashion editors, buyers and the overcrowded workshops in Shanghai. It's exactly what happened with the ombré trend, especially in the more contemporary brands/styles. So, I developed an averse reaction to its every simulation. Worse still, I missed the memo explaining the rationale for the acid-white + color gradation this season. And it wreaked havoc on my central and peripheral nervous systems².




I'm wont to say that these pieces (from Behnaz Sarafpour and Badgley Mischka) might singlehandedly responsible for the egregious retina-searing pattern that hurts my eyes and brain each time I erringly spot one!! (Even though, these pieces are, themselves, pretty! and a softer white. Another version of the Sarafpour dress is at Net-a-porter.)








Lipstaining blackberry kisses.
P.S. I want a nude/peach/pink-purple ombré piece. Argghhh.



Footnotes:
1. I am a dork.
2. Go ahead, say it, I am the biggest dork. You may or may not have read an excerpt of a (seemingly useless) covert physiochemical essay.