My Most Worn. Bazaar Editors share their favorite fashion pieces in the closet. Halie LeSavage is a fashion commerce editor and explains here how the dress she chose from Duster, the label’s new collection, became her official summer uniform.
A friend once told me that “busy” is the worst possible answer to the question, “How are you?” She reasoned that everyone has a lot going on; there are better, more thoughtful answers to give when someone’s checking in. Yet over the past month, “busy” is the only word I could think of to describe myself. In the summer of 2013, I attended back-toback-toback weddings and covered a series of fashion-focused events for work. (Thank you Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale) And moved to a brand new place. This last item on the calendar opened a black hole of related errands and logistics I haven’t yet escaped—and had the potential to wreak havoc on my wardrobe.
The other 10% I packed in my Away suitcase for ease of access when moving. The month was going to be spent in matching onesie sets and workout gear, so I could roll my luggage and respond to emails while lying on the mattress. In case I felt like dressing up, I packed a Duster button-front midi dress. It was this dress that I ended up wearing more often than any other during my zero-rest and relaxation month.
Duster: The All Things Duster
Duster: The All Things Duster
Duster was launched in virtual form by Andrea Racey (founder of Helena Quinn), a silk designer, and Melissa Magsaysay (a journalist, author and consultant for luxury brands). They have a joint venture that specializes in dresses designed to make women look stylish and polished no matter what the day brings. Their designs also emphasize women’s empowerment economically. These dresses were inspired by dusters worn traditionally by Filipino women to do housework. Magsaysay, a Filipino-American woman, grew up watching her mother and grandmother wear these. They have been reimagined for today’s women with embellishments like structured necklines and bright fabrics. Moms First receives two percent of the proceeds for each dress. This organization creates advocacy and policy campaigns that support working mothers.
It is a personal tie-in for the founding members. According to their brand-release story, the designers wanted to make dresses that could handle the demands of their lives as working moms—and give them a break from leggings and sneakers. Duster’s original collection of eight dresses emphasizes comfort and flexibility.
In the month I was on the go, the “All Things”, duster dress with its short sleeves and pointed collar, did just that. Duster’s button-up dress became my everything when I needed it. In the same comfortable dress I went from picking up cardboard to early morning writing shifts, and only switched the footwear to leather sandals when it was time for dinner. In the peak of June’s sunshine, the dress was comfortable and light. The pockets were a bonus for transporting all my miscellaneous belongings from apartment to apartment.
Wearing my Duster dress with Celine sunglasses, Reformation sandals, and a Janessa Leoné bag.
This dress is relaxed, but not too bucolic. The crisp poplin fabric and pointed collar made me feel like myself—polished and put-together on the outside—while everything else that was “me” was bubble wrapped, boxed up, and otherwise inaccessible.
Post-move, I hope to have better adjectives to describe myself than “busy.” Whatever tasks I must cross off my checklist or events to attend, I know I can handle them all wearing my new favorite dress. I hardly even mind that the rest of my closet hasn’t been unpacked yet.
Style Commerce Editor
Halie LeSavage, fashion editor of Harper’s BAZAAR. She covers a wide range of topics, from reviews on the top designer brands to profiles of emerging designers and labels. Previously she worked as the retail writer of Morning Brew Fashion associate Glamour.