What would Leandra do?

A fun styling challenge to shake things up 321 days into my no buy

Editor’s note: FML what a week! I started writing this a week before the Los Angeles wildfires. On Wednesday evening we had a bag packed by the door, ready to evacuate should we need to. Surreal doesn’t begin to describe what this past week has felt like, but I am beyond grateful we are safe. LA is my home, and it has been now for the past eight years. It goes without saying I am devastated for the many who have lost their homes, and my heart goes out to everyone affected. At this point I think like many people in LA i’m still in shock and disbelief at to the total devastation the fires have caused, places I know and loved that are no longer. Thank you for all the kind messages checking in. If you would like to help/donate to help those affected by the wildfires the LA Times has a list of resources here.

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I often wonder what certain stylish people would pick out for me if they were to come to my home and rummage through my closet. Whenever I feel bored or I want to shake things up I have a wardrobe playdate (I talk about this in my styling course), and more times than not the question I ask myself is…..what would Leandra Medine Cohen do? If she was in my wardrobe, what would she pick out? What would she be drawn to and how would she approach putting things together? Maybe this could be a fun feature to do inspired by other style content creators, let me know in the comments who else I should do? I hope this is also a good example of how I approach putting pieces together and a bts of my thought process when i’m playing in my closet. Without further ado, this is my attempt at some

Leandra Medine Cohen

inspired outfits.

Trousers - Sweater - Belt (old Mango) - Earrings - Cardigan (old Uniqlo) - Choker antique

First up I knew I wanted to experiment with layering other pieces of clothing to create shape and interest. Using a go to base of pants and a turtle neck, I used a cardigan in the same color palette to make a collar. I liked that it created these ruffles that from some angles also looked like a cape. Paired with my antique silver choker, silver lie studio earrings, and silver buckled belt it takes the edge off of the black. Black, silver and grey is such a good combo (note to self for future outfits). I enjoyed this look, it felt fun and creative but still something I could see myself wearing.

Dress (old H&M) - Shoes (old St Agni) - Clutch (Vintage Dior) - Necklaces old - Sleeveless Blazer

Ok, stick with me with this one…I was initially drawn to the idea of print on print, and forgot I had this leopard print dress (donkey’s years old from H&M), which next to my vintage Dior clutch I quite enjoyed. But I needed another element of me, which is where the sleeveless blazer from Cos came in. I think if Leandra was wearing this it might have worked, but the whole thing felt a little too boho on me, a little off. However, something was there, so I continued to play. This is a good example of one of my styling philosophies (the Bridge outfit) in action.

A moment for the jewelry here, mixing in some gold necklaces with handmade bracelets I made with my nieces.

Here I added: Thrifted menswear blazer - Vintage Prada bag - Belt

Now we’re getting there. While I liked the clashing prints and the element of tailoring I knew if I could ground the look with some darker pieces, i’d be able to come up with a look i’d actually enjoy wearing out. One that felt a little more me. I kept the minimal sandal because I like that it exposed more skin to contrast with the length of the dress and the long sleeves. I kept the necklaces, and choose to wear one of my oversized blazers with a belt and a vintage chocolate brown Prada bag. Warmer warmer.

Added another old leather belt on top of my Anderson one

After adding the blazer and the belt, I felt a sense of this is so nearly there but something is still missing. In this situation I always ask myself, What do you like? What is working (in reference to my own taste)? I liked the belt, the way it changed the shape and proportions of my oversized blazer, and as a result I felt called to layer a second belt to emphasize this focal point. That finished the outfit for me while adding a touch more Leandra to the outfit, but in a way where I still felt like me. The evolution of this outfit is a great reminder not to give up on the first attempt. It’s a reminder that styling your pieces is a process that involves your own intuition as much as a knowledge of how to put things together. This is my understanding of intuitive dressing. It’s based on what I feel good in, what speaks to me, vs how I think I should look. It is for myself.