Doors Wide Open: Can You Reinvent Your Wardrobe?

Posted by Styloko

Former Sunday Times Style Features Editor Ruby Warrington recently relocated to New York, where she’s now based as a US correspondent for the paper.

In her weekly Styloko column, Ny-loko, she dissects NY style through British eyes – will she ever dress like one of them?

A reformed shopaholic, her wardrobe mantra these days is ‘quality over quantity’ (check out her Lust List), while her idea of shopping heaven is her new West Village apartment, complete with walk-in wardrobe.

Carrie Bradshaw, eat your heart out.
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I have to tell you, I’ve been busting some serious outfits in NYC. This is partly because New York is so damn social. I get at least four dinner invites a week (going out for dinner is how people socialise in Manhattan, not least because our apartments are all too small to swing a cat in, let alone entertain friends), and I have always equated eating in a restaurant to an excuse to trial a new pair of shoes.

And of course, by its very definition, an ‘outfit’ is an ensemble that’s fit for you to wear out side the house. I used to choose outfits for work – on a fashion magazine, it’s kind of expected. But those outfits were often selected on the run, having just woken up and taking into account the walk to work (often in the rain), and the fact that nobody was really going to see them apart from my colleagues. My New York outfits are a whole more glamorous kettle of fish.

For starters, working from home, I have ample time to try out different combos. Items that haven’t seen the light of day for years (too colourful/too precious/I’d just forgotten I had them) are coming out of hibernation on a regular basis. Plus, moving to a new city has given me the freedom to try out a few new versions of me. In London, everybody knew that Ruby didn’t really do short shorts, midi skirts or leggings. In New York, nobody knows how I dress yet – in fact, the wardrobe doors are wide open.