What’s that first clothing purchase that changed your life?

I’m not one to over dramatize, so let me explain further….

My memory is terrible, a movie character I relate to deeply is Dory. In fact, when I was writing this I had to google “what’s the forgetful fish’s name in Finding Nemo?” Because, alas, I had forgotten her name. What I do remember though, always, is what I wore and how it made me feel. Whether it was the navy sweater layered over a baby blue and white button down with a trouser skirt for my first day of school in 6th grade, or the black skirt and top with an olive band that was part of a set marketed as “Units,” it stuck with me. That 6th grade ensemble made me feel so mature, while the Units set in all black gave me a chic and special feeling at my southern college awash in floral dresses. I remember those outfits because they made me feel a certain way. But they didn’t change my life.

And then, it happened.

The year was 1993. I’d moved to NYC to work for American Express and had a closet full of items that worked specifically for the weekend, for the office, and for the evenings. Hot dates, weddings, a club, you get the picture. Melrose Place was my source of inspiration, straight up.

And then I met Donna, and this striped suit in particular.

I tried it on at Barneys, it was a fortune, it was navy blue. My shoulders relaxed. It made me want to do more, be more. I imagined wearing it in meetings where people would say, “wait, let’s hear what Amy has to say.” The jacket was going to work over my shrunken tees and my Levi’s, hiked up and belted. And on that date to Gotham Bar and Grille with that hot guy Frank on the 37th floor - I’d wear the pant’s belted and tucked into my cowboy boots with a big navy sweater paired with chunky gold Anne Klein lions head earrings. It didn’t just make me feel good, this suit was like a string of DNA that helped me better understand myself. It told me what my ambitions were, it confirmed how I saw myself, and it gave me the flexibility to be both Creative and Pragmatic.

When Traci and I created the Spring ‘25 collection, we didn’t talk about trends. Those are fleeting. We didn’t talk about influencers, because what does that even mean? The people in my office, in my DM’s, visiting our stores, styling in our stores, if you mean that by influencers, then yes. What we did talk about is what those pieces were, in our past, that helped us either change course or affirm our direction. We scrubbed them hard to identify what it was about them that landed with us so thoughtfully.

The answer was clear. It was the ease of wearing the elements through all facets of our life. Not ease as in “oh it’s easy to throw on” or “I know I’ll look good wherever I go.” Rather it was that by wearing it across all of our activities and our days, we felt deeply connected. We weren’t ricocheting from one style to another based on another person’s style. Instead, we were grounding ourselves in our own personal style. That continuum, it makes us feel whole and it GIVES US EASE rather than just being EASY.

So I present to you the Dominic Stripe Pantsuit. My version of a life changer, from 1993. Here. I’m curious, what’s yours?

So this is me. Now. The same me from 1993. I’ve changed, for the better. Age will do that to you, hopefully. But my style here, if anyone in the cubicles next to me at Amex’s Headquarters downtown is reading this, I bet you’d recognize me, even without the head.

Here’s what I’m wearing, if you’re curious and would appreciate the help:

The pant Here, that perfect grey sweater, Detached lapel blazer, bleached jean, the slip dress, the long trouser skirt, the liam vest, and the best ever pant which isn’t too full and def not too skinny Sculpted pant.