Emilio Grossi's New England

He just might be the greatest American photographic artist whom no one has ever heard of. For five decades Emilio Grossi's minimalist portraits of life along the Seaboard have captured history and emotion without wide angle lenses, without color, simply by highlighting the texture of window panes and gray shingles or a wrecked barn in Rhode Island. 

Doorway, Milford

How can a solitary sand dollar move me to tears? Zooming in on the headlights of an old Chevy truck, paint chipped, tree branches reflected in the paint on the hood, Grossi makes America mythic - from the beaches of Key West to the strands of Cape Cod.

Check out more of this master (and my Grossi-inspired get-up) after the jump.

Jessica L. Pizzo: Girl American.

Through a tangled web of Newport connections, I recently made the acquaintance of Jessica L. Pizzo, globe trotter, tennis champion, designer of Tartan Hugs, and world-famous Cupcaketologist. We bonded over a shared love of the sailing capital's dashing sailors and now collaborate on blog projects and pipe dreams (to buy beach houses and fall off the grid).

But more than anything else it's Jessica's impeccable, effortless sense of style and wild appreciation for the Eastern seaboard that make her this week's Girl American.


Read my interview with Jessica and scoop her sartorial secrets after the jump.

A Christmas sail.

Last year I spent Christmas in Newport, R.I., dipping my Hunter-clad toes in the icy Narragansett. This year I am far from the ocean (as far as I can be), but Santa (a.k.a. Mom) was kind enough to bring the coast to me in the form of this fabulous Sea Bag.

This tote, the signature holiday Green Star Bag, was made in Portland, Maine, from reclaimed sails. Since 1999, all materials (from canvas to Kevlar) have been recycled, restored, and stitched together by founders and designers Hannah Kubiak and Beth Shissler.

I had never heard of this brand but quick research shows that I received more than just a beach bag: Kubiak and Shissler are incredible women working hard to improve the lives of their fellow Mainers. 

Causes and projects they support include:

Sail Maine Scholarship Fund: they contribute funds to help children learn to sail.

Maine Cancer Foundation: they design limited edition Celebration Bags with pink ribbon sails.

Maine Correctional Institute for Women

Portland waterfront preservation

Thank you, Santa. (And thank you, Mom!)

Kate Huether: Girl American.

To kick off my new blog feature Girl American, I turned to sorority sister, fellow Missourian, and long-time style standard Kate Huether of Joy & Cake to tell me a little bit about where she draws her inspiration and how she stays ahead of the pack in one of our country's oldest and most venerated cities.

Wearing American designer Rebecca Taylor.

Keep your keys warm with fox fur.

Last Wednesday, while we were literally rushing out the door for a dinner, my dazzling friend Liz surprised me with this natural red fox fur keychain. I suppose she thought my LV needed a little more rusticity. (See for yourself here or scroll down.)

For less than twenty dollars you too can channel Davey Crockett as you fumble for your keys...or Be Like Liz (as I often aim to do) and clip it to your handbag. 


You can find these keychains on eBay in a veritable spectrum of shades both natural and dyed. I think they're the perfect marriage of decadence and mountain man simplicity. 

New Feature: The Girl American.

Even in a nation so diverse there is still an element that makes a look or a place or a person distinctly “American”. The French have that je ne sais quoi, but we have something else entirely: youth, sport, ease of movement - a practical sensibility that somehow transcends all the cultural influences that have stacked up over four centuries and thousands of miles.

So what is the American aesthetic? Who and what define it? How can it be acquired?

Betsy Ross and her bonnie blue (and red and white) banner

I will try to answer these questions each week with a profile of a modern woman whom I believe best embodies the sensibility. Some of my subjects will be ladies I know personally; others I simply admire from afar. Their taste and inspiration vary tremendously - but the same could be said for anything in this country, be it cuisine, cars, or baseball teams - and it is that inclusiveness that makes the American aesthetic so vibrant and, sometimes, so maddeningly elusive.

By highlighting these women and their influences, I hope to in turn inspire myself and my readers to take a fresh look at their own wardrobes, their surroundings, and their country, and embolden the reticent to define their own American style.

Check back on Tuesday for my first Girl American, a friend and sorority sister from the Dear Old Varsity. I have others queued up, and I am very excited to turn the spotlight on their sartorial secrets.

Newport, Rhode Island

It's the coldest day of the winter thus far, and I'm barricaded in my apartment with a stack of magazines and Netflix. Christmas is two weeks away, but as usual I find myself craving the sea and the sand and the smell of steak over Kingsford coals.


It's days like this that I most miss Newport, R.I., this past summer's home away from home.

Gifted Gitman.

Yesterday Chris Olberding, creative director of Gitman Vintage, surprised me with a gorgeous hot pink plaid flannel shirt from Gitman's FW2009 collection. Not only was I thrilled to own my first piece by the storied label, I was also relieved to have something to wear to last night's lineup of holiday parties.


Gitman's shirts, crafted in beautiful Ashland, Pennsylvania and inspired by well-culled archives, are built for gents, but their narrow cut makes them ideal for ladies like me to steal. My wish for 2010 is to amass a small fortune in this American-made Technicolor plaid.

Against a sea of little black dress-bedecked ladies, I stood out at Butter, where I joined friends to support Guest of a Guest and the Tug McGraw Foundation's efforts to aid victims of brain tumors and trauma brain injuries. My dear friend Kate, shown above, joined me in killer vintage leather pants by Gap.

I think the key to wearing menswear-inspired looks like mine is to pile on the bright lipstick and jewelry. You'll never see a gentleman with a red lip or a bauble-stacked wrist or a neck draped in Lucite. I go wild with costume gems because, as a filly, I just can. 

To compliment my Gitman flannel, I also sported the following pieces, all by J. Crew:

• White vintage slim jean (to really make that pink POP)
• Gold laser-cut leather belt (no longer sold)
• Estate link bracelet (stacked one on top of the other)
• Golden ropes necklace
• Chandelier necklace (no longer sold)
• Harper crackle-metallic platform heel
• The ubiquitous boyfriend fatigue jacket

This shirt will look equally awesome next spring and summer when I pair it with cut-off denim shorts, Ray-Ban aviators, and a stiff, cold, rocks margarita. Or maybe belted over a chambray sun dress if I feel "formal".

Many thanks to Chris and Gitman Brothers for the gorgeous shirt.

To-Go Sleeves by the Cupcaketologist.

Whoa. Just as soon as I picked out the plaid for my Tartan Hug, Jessica sent another grand announcement: she is also designing and creating made-to-order coozie cups for the holidays. 

Can't you see Beau Brummell...or Amory Blaine...or Oliver Barrett IV...keeping his Starbucks warm in one of these dapper little mugs?

Shirley Ellis and "The Name Game"

New York City is receiving her first snow fall of winter 2009. I'm 
curled up in bed with a mug of Swiss Miss and visions of wassail 
parties dancing in my head. Christmas always puts me in a Motown 
mood.

That's where Shirley Ellis and her wordplay fit into the equation.

What do you say? Should we bring back the Name Game in 2010?

Tartan Hugs by the Cupcaketologist

My amazing, gorgeous, and incredibly talented friend Jessica L. Pizzo, the world famous Cupcaketologist, has literally just set up shop on Etsy to sell these adorable (and reversable!) stoles that she designs and creates herself.

Christmastime conjurs very specific visions for me: warms cozies, gifted frivolities, yard upon yard of bright, crisp tartan. There is so much ceremony involved with the unveiling of each holiday ornament - be it destined for a fir branch or for chilly, satin-draped shoulders. What better way to stay toasty than with a festive, (faux-) furry wrap?

Jessica is a force to be reckoned with: champion tennis player, wizard in the kitchen, ace iPhone photographer, globe trotter, lover of Americana, and now an entrepreneur slinging handmade "hugs". World, I have met my stole-mate.


I cannot imagine a more perfect gift for the holidays. This wrap makes me want to pin my hair up, slip into a pencil skirt, and do a gin-soaked twist at P.J. Clarke's.


Congratulations on your latest venture, Jessica!


Shop for Tartan Hugs on Etsy.

(Role) Model.

Since she appeared on the scene as the face of Ralph Lauren's Romance fragrance in 2002, Filippa Hamilton has been my absolute favorite mannequin.

Photographed by Matt Jones for the cover of Italian Elle in an RL buffalo check gown, September 2008. 

Look at that face! Despite a French background I think her air is entirely American. Mr. Lauren chose well.

She wore Ralph Lauren again to the American Museum of Natural History's winter dance in 2007.

What I love about Filippa is that whether dolled up in black tie, as above, or dressed down in her most summery casual, as below, she always looks completely natural and comfortable and beautiful without exuding much effort (or so it seems). 

I think that is what American sportswear is all about, and I think Ralph Lauren champions that philosophy, and I don't think anyone wore Ralph better than Filippa did.

Looking fresh and breezy at the Hampton Social in July 2007.

Unfortunately for fans comme moi Miss Hamilton's contract with Ralph Lauren was terminated this year due to a controversy involving an overzealous photo retoucher and poor public relations.

Photographed by Mario Testino for Italian Vogue, May 2002.

I mean, have you ever seen anyone (since James Dean) wear a tee shirt so well? The laceless Keds are just exclamation points.

Backstage at Ralph Lauren in September 2004.

 She took the term "fresh-faced" to a new level by looking drop dead gorgeous in hair rollers. If only we were all so photogenic (and confident)!

And like any good "American" girl, Filippa seems to know how to party, which is exactly what she did at the Shore Club in late 2005.

This is the cover of Italian Marie Claire from January 2003, but doesn't she look very current? I want the braces, the vest, the blouse, the jeans...

So how do we Be Like Filippa? I've narrowed it down to a few key elements:

1. Go easy on the makeup and heavy on the tan.
2. Let those eyebrows run wild.
3. Wear nothing but leather, cotton, and denim.
4. Find a great pair of jeans and a better white tee shirt.
5. Toss your mane of lustrous hair like you came to the ball straight from an afternoon fox hunt.

It will be so easy!

To view the bio or more photos of Miss Hamilton, please jump to New York's Model Manual.