012: MOLLY HIPPOLITUS
lives in straight-leg denim and late 90s vintage.
Are you an outfit planner? I decidedly am not (I’m simply too committed to leaving everything to the last minute) but I wish I could become one. Especially lately, when I’ve been feeling uninspired by my wardrobe. This closet malaise often creeps up when the weather changes. At the moment, I feel like I need to relearn last summer’s clothes - maybe I want to style things differently or incorporate one or two new hero items, I’m not totally sure. Regardless, the transition will take a little more time and effort than my usual autopilot way of getting dressed.
Looking for inspiration, I’ve turned to substack, which feels decidedly more personal and informative (and less packed with spam) than social media these days. While perusing I stumbled upon Outfit Notes by Molly Hippolitus. Molly, who works as a publicist in Virginia, is a meticulous outfit planner - that’s the nexus of her newsletter. She catalogs what she’s going to wear, when she’ll wear it, and where she’s finding it. She also shares a lot of very well-curated vintage and pieces from indie brands. I love Molly’s style which evokes, in her words, the spirits of Rachel Green and Joan Carol Clayton. Of course, I wanted to find out about the pieces she’s living in right now.
I have always lived in a pair of jeans. I remember begging my older sister to take me to the mall when I was around 12 or 13 so I could buy a pair of low-waisted flared jeans (which unfortunately was the style in the early aughts). Currently, I'm partial to non-stretch, straight-leg denim. After having my daughter in 2020, I was eager to wear jeans again after 9 months of stretchy clothing. My pre-pregnancy collection of vintage Levis didn't fit my new postpartum body, so I sprung for a pair of FEEL jeans in my new size and felt like myself again for the first time in over a year. Once my body returned to its pre-pregnancy size, I bought a few more washes in my old size and held onto my original pair – which I now love wearing for a slightly baggy, oversized look. I rotate among my FEEL jeans almost daily, they just get better with age.
The perfect-fitting pair of straight leg denim is my ideal base to mix in some of my favorite vintage pieces, which include a 1998 Chanel PVC tote bag I bought on eBay years ago and a 1999 Miu Miu jacket found at Ending Soon while in New York this past spring. I use the former far too much considering it's 25 years old, but I can't help but wear it daily. I reach for it for everything from meetings to a Whole Foods run. I tend to gravitate towards late 90s and early 00s styles when shopping for vintage, so when I saw this vintage Miu Miu jacket (pictured below) at Ending Soon, I couldn't leave without it. In colder months, a vintage leather jacket or trench is one of my most reached-for pieces, so having a lighter version of that silhouette for spring has been lovely. I've been living in it for the past few months and will continue to do so until the summer heat forces me to retire it. The denim and vintage pieces in my closet are some of my most prized material possessions, and I can't wait to share them with my daughter one day.
MOLLY’S MOST WORN:
Straight Leg Denim. I live in the white, blue ozone, and black washes from FEEL. My other most worn denim is vintage Levi’s 501s.
FEEL denim, Vintage Levis 1, 2, 3 all from Holdwest on Etsy - thank Molly for introducing me to this shop! Simple tees + tanks. I own and love all of the following and wear them all with my FEEL jeans often.
Vintage Picks. Some of Molly’s recent saves and a few on-brand selections added by me.
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