December 4, 2001

Recycle Chic

Make your wardrobe new again

You open the closet door.

You see them.

Those sad, lonely castoffs. You wore them once, if at all. (To think you bounced the rent check to pay for them.) You vow never to be trendy again — and then Marc Jacobs comes out with the cutest top, and well, like a rat hitting the feed bar, you whip out the AmEx. Here you go again.

Justification only goes so far, sister. The cure? Recycle!

Exhibit No. 1
The wide-belt trend. Jimmy Choo is doing it; why can’t you? Dress up a boot and put a wide belt around it.

Exhibit No. 2
That pashmina was expensive! And now it’s over! This may seem like sacrilege, but take out a ruler and some scissors and — it’s okay, you can do it — cut the scarf in half. The result is the season’s must-have: the thin scarf . (Recycle the recycling: Wear it as a belt.)

Exhibit No. 3
You spent so much on cashmere socks, and no one even sees them. Good news. Armbands are in! Remove the feet of the socks and, presto — arm warmers!

Exhibit No. 4
The mini, times two. At last, the fashion elite have approved of wearing a short skirt over pants. And just in time, too. Our legs were getting cold!

Exhibit No. 5
The stupid, stupid skinny belt. (What were we thinking?) Hermes and Louie to the rescue: Wrap the belt around your arm, and wear it as a bracelet.