History

Jacket | Vintage Mary McFadden Couture
Dress | Alice + Olivia Lillyanne
Shoes | Kate Spade
Clutch | Reed Krakoff x Kohls

This was another outfit from the aforementioned wedding weekend (print and embellishment were highly encouraged), and take a seat, because there is a bit of a story here. This dress is contemporary Alice + Olivia (purchased in 2015 from Saks Off 5th), and this jacket is vintage Mary McFadden Couture (after looking into it I'm not sure of the exact year, but I think it probably around 50 years old), and after having both of them sit in my closet for a few years, I never thought to pair them together, until this night. Now that I have, it seems crazy I never previously saw how complimentary they were.

This jacket is one of my favorite pieces in my closet and it gets compliments every time I wear it. I purchased it in 2014 for $50 from the vintage warehouse sale of a company that looks like it has since gone out of business. I almost didn't buy it. I remember trying on the jacket, being in love, but also trying to be practical. Where was I going to wear a gold embellished jacket? This wasn't really indicative of my day-to-day personal style, and I surely couldn't wear it to work. Not only that, but it had enormous shoulder pads and was a size 10 (that last part didn't really matter as much because, shoulder pads aside, I liked the sleeve length and the way it fit). I stood in front of one of a few communal mirrors in the warehouse and tried to pinch down the shoulder pads, and imagine what it would look like.

Then, oddly enough, I thought about Joan Rivers. I've always liked Joan Rivers (and recommend the documentary on her, "Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work") and have fond childhood memories of watching her confidently interview (or eviscerate) a red carpet and I always think of fashion when I think of her (although in her early career she did general comedy, not just related to style). She had actually just passed away (she passed away in late 2014) which is probably why she was top of mind and for whatever reason it was the extra push I needed to buy this jacket. I thought it looked amazing (the gold embroidery is incredible) and I didn't want a lack of confidence to be the thing that stopped me from buying it and wearing it.

As you can probably guess, I ended up taking it to a tailor to have the shoulder pads removed and shoulders brought in - which you really need to go to a pro for, and he did an amazing job. I ended up paying something like $100 (I don't totally remember because it was over 3 years ago but it was definitely more than the jacket) because I wanted someone who wouldn't mess up the embroidery on the back of the jacket, which runs across the shoulders and mirrors what is on the front. The shoulders aren't pristine in these photos because I am actually wearing a layer underneath this jacket, for warmth (photos below).