I'm back & Germany Fashion Report (long)

You can see the whole album here: http://s374.photobucket.com/al.....ny%202009/

Well, I’ve actually been back a week but the jet lag combined with the flurry of activity to get back into the swing of things occupied most of time. We had a terrific trip – visited with family, explored my husband’s hometown (a second tier city in Northern Germany – equivalent to maybe a Baltimore or Philadelphia rather than a Boston or NYC) and relaxed. After a week of glorious, sunny, warm weather, it cooled off significantly and since I made every effort NOT to overpack this time around, my clothing options narrowed quite a bit. I have to admit that I didn’t do too much shopping although I did look around (details below). The exchange rate (almost 1.5 with fees) was a real downer and really made me think twice about any impulse purchases. The food was glorious as always! My father-in-law runs to the baker every morning for our bread/pastries so breakfast is always a delight. Here is a wonderful raspberry yogurt torte I had one day when we went out for tea:

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One thing that I did differently this time was that I borrowed a bike from my in-laws and tried to take a ride every day (helped to work off that raspberry torte). Since they live in the city (about 2km from the city center where all the shops etc are), I was able to explore and see so much! Plus, there are loads of amazing, scenic bike paths which I was able to enjoy. I have to say that is really one of my favorite things about Europe which would almost tempt me to live there!

My trip started out with a minor fashion disaster – I had planned to wear my microcheck pants (which seemed to stretch out an entire size during the trip), a navy v-neck top and my denim jacket. Literally moments before I left the house to drive to the airport (2+ hours away), I realized that I forgot to say goodbye to my cat so I tried to give him a hug, he panicked and ripped a hole in my top! I had to scramble last minute for a replacement which was tough since I had my outfit meticulously planned out in advance!! My denim jacket (relatively new) was quite stiff and a little uncomfortable at first but I think I broke it in quite nicely on the long trip as I wrestled with my two children (I traveled alone with both of them and my husband joined us in Germany a week later).

Fashion in Germany – jeans, jeans, jeans. I would say that almost 75% of people were wearing jeans as I walked around the city – even on the hot days. I have to admit that it was sort of boring in a way – it was as if people were wearing uniforms. Here it was 80+ degrees and sunny and nary a skirt or dress in sight. Almost no one in shorts – on men or women although I did spy a few manpris (man capris) on a few older gentlemen.. Plenty of women, especially older ones, in bad length capris so we Americans are not alone in this tendency. Skinnies and straight legs were the majority (over 60%) with bootcuts & flares to make up the balance. I didn’t see a single pair of rolled up, distressed, “boyfriend” jeans so I got the impression that this is an American thing. The standard outfit seemed to be: skinny or straight leg jeans with a longer length tee, structured jacket of some sort (twill/canvas/cotton on the warmer days and leather on the cooler days), scarf around the neck (how people wear scarves in 80 degree weather is beyond me!), compact cross-body bag and sporty sneakers/converse (for the teens) or ballet flats. Like I said, this was almost a uniform which I found a bit monotonous. Of course, what always distinguishes Europeans from Americans is grooming and the care men and women alike put into their appearance – everyone’s hair is neat & their clothes are pressed and clean, no one looks like they just rolled out of bed, no PJ’s, loungewear or sweats on the street and clothes always seem to fit really well (so no men wearing baggy jeans with their underwear exposed).

The city features many of the usual suspects in terms of Euro chain stores – Mango, Zara, Benneton, H&M, Esprit etc.:

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The shops were packed with plaid and microcheck pants (though I didn’t see anyone wearing them) in skinny, straight & bootcut versions. Though I see them in stores here in the U.S. too, they mostly seem dressier than the Euro versions – maybe because they are cut more in trouser styles?? Like here, plaid was exploding in the shops! This was a plaid tunic that I bought at zara – don’t know how I’ll wear it but it is exactly the same plaid as one of my beloved grunge era plaid shirts that I wore to death (on top of a white turtleneck, under a j crew roll neck sweater with leggings as pants and timberland hiking boots!!! Ahh, the 90’s..).

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Moto jackets were huge in a variety of colors. Fall colors in most stores were typical – lots of brown as well as aubergine, muted teal, muted dark fuschia and mustard.. Definitely not the jewel tones of the past few years but the more muted, muddy versions of the same colors. A few shops (Esprit collection for example) featured some of that gorgeous emerald as a foil to simple black and white. Benneton showed a lot of forest green with brown:

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I am always impressed by the shoe selection in Europe. Though they can be quite expensive, it is so much easier to find comfy versions of fashionable shoes. Ballet flats were ubiquitous but loafers seemed to be gaining in popularity. I thought these from esprit were pretty cute but not worth the 79 Euro price tag:

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Oxfords were big – I especially like the stacked heel versions (similar to the ones I wore in the 90’s):

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The slouchy boot (tall, ankle, mid-calf) was king – every store had a gazillion versions of comfy, slouchy boots and maybe just a few pairs of riding style boots. Just for Laura, I tried on a couple of pairs of cream slouchy boots - I’m not even close to being edgy enough to actually wear them so this was just for fun:
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And as for my own quest for riding boots, I definitely found quite a few boots that fit my calf:
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I don’t think the selection was quite what it might be in another month or so and I had trouble finding something that was 100% what I wanted but I did spot a pair of Paul Green boots that I adored on one of my solo forays. I was a little unsure about the buckles (gold) and planned to go on a boots-only quest with my husband once he arrived but to my great sadness, we never made it He was only there for 4 days before a weekend trip that my mother-in-law planned for the family to celebrate her birthday and we were so busy visiting friends and family, another shopping trip was just not in the cards. Sigh.

My purchases were relatively few. Other than a couple of clothing items, an entire suitcase of food (mostly chocolate) and some cosmetic items, I came back with my very first pair of Birkenstocks:

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With my problem feet, I figured maybe a pair of birks were in order. I’ve tried them on in the past and they always looked like Flinstone shoes one me but I quite liked this pair and it is a gold metallic color – hey at least the color is kind of fashionable, right???!!! I also got a pair of loafers which I really needed since I threw my beloved Steve Maddens away last winter after many years of use. These were not quite as funky as I might have liked but they are very comfy and I thought the crinkle patent leather gave it a bit of a twist:

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Here is a sampling of some of my outfits while I was there:

1. Ann Taylor Knit dress: (notice my how great my husband’s great aunt looks. Can you believe she is in her 80’s?):
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2. White J Crew dress + denim jacket: http://s374.photobucket.com/al.....G_2602.jpg

3. White BR Eyelet Jacket & jeans: http://s374.photobucket.com/al.....2661-1.jpg

4. ON tank, Gap Cardigan & jeans: http://s374.photobucket.com/al.....G_0014.jpg

5. ATL Sheath (these pics were taken at the end of the night and my dress became horribly wrinkled. I tried with and without a belt but ultimately went without since it kept riding up):
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So many changes at ylf - can't wait to catch up with everyone!!

16 years ago

Maya

Veteran

OMG Shana, I am dying to go shoe shopping in Germany now. Those cream boots! The Esprit loafers! Those LOW HEELS! Wow. Amazing. I think your Birkis pass the test especially with your fabulous purple toenails.

Love your plaid tunic. I have been searching for something similar, but leggings-appropriate in length.

It looks like you had a fantastic trip and were a superb style ambassador. Thanks for the writeup!

taylor

A stylish and wonderful trip. Thanks for sharing:)

*manpris*...that cracked me up....that would be the day...my husband would die first:)

bella

(website)

What a great report, thanks for sharing.
I loved all the outfits you wore in Germany. I love love loved all the boots that you tried on, I wish you could buy all of them!

Anonymous

I am so excited about traveling just looking at your pictures. Thankyou so much for taking the time to write about your trip and share the great pictures.
All of those shoes/boots you tried on are gorgeous. I love both pair of boots and wish you could have brought them home but I certainly understand that cannot always be the case.
Your Birks look so cute on you, I love the metallic, and your feet are so cute!
You looke beautiful in your AT dress with pearls.
You Great Aunt in law is gorgeous. What a stylish lady!

marianne

Active Member

Thank you for the great report, Shana. I wish I could travel!
All the boot pictures are gorgeous! Sorry you didn't get a pair. I also really like the oxford selection. Lovely outfits, you look amazing in white and black! And the plaid tunic is awesome, too.
I like the Birkenstocks, too - very cute! How are your feet doing?

Angie

Fashion Stylist

What an absolutely superb write-up! Thank you so much, Shana!!! And the visuals are just wonderful! WOW. The tart looks heavenly, but not quite as heavenly as those cream boots. I can’t believe you didn’t get them! Sacrilege!

Love your black and white outfit and your eyelet frock. You looked fab! I'm glad you had a wonderful time. I felt I just went to Germany with you :0)

rute

WOW Shana,
Thank you so much for the report!!!
I'm also in Europe and I agree when you say we wore a lot of jeans, tight skinny jeans (women here don't like boyfriend jeans, we like very tight jeans). I wear a lot of skirts and dresses but there are so many women who simply don't wear skirts or dresses and they are so feminine!
Great photos and love also the photos of european stores you decided to take to share.. finally stores familiar to me.. eh eh

yublocka

Shana I loved reading this post and seeing your piccies. What an amazing break you had!!! I have to say the cream boots stole my heart as well - the buttons are the perfect touch!!! Your bike riding around town sounds divine!! And the torte....mmmmm. That's exactly what holidays are for right?

I think your outfits looked great. AT dress is lovely and your denim jacket looked fab. Thanks so much for sharing!!!

Laura

Shana, I am absolutely beside myself at the photos of the cream boots -- thank you for the pictures, and WHY can't we get those here?? Also that array of oxfords just about had me on the floor. Those are the shoes I've been searching high and low for, and now I know where to find them: Germany. Sigh.

Vani

shana, welcome back! Glad you had a fun, refreshing trip. Everybody needs a fab vacation once in a while

You looked absolutely fantastic throughout and I'm besides myself with envy on seeing those cream boots! I simply cannot seem to find anything like that here

The yogurt torte is calling my name. I'm SO hungry now!

Alecia

Thank you so much for your post, Shana. Your trip sounds like it was so much fun. You had great outfits over there. Loved that last dress.

shana

Thank you ladies for the feedback. The boot thing was really disappointing but the good news is that I did buy a pair of boots this past weekend (here in the U.S.). I will start a separate post about them. I saw so many gorgeous boots - the brownish caramel one was really calling my name but I really needed to add a black pair to my wardrobe first. I also saw a pair of sporty/moto inspired geox ones that I loved but again, black boots had priority. Of course now that I found a pair, I'm thinking that I should have jumped on the others. On the other hand, considering I have rarely worn my other knee high boots (less than 5 times last winter), my boot mania is probably unreasonable. It's really too bad that those cream boots were not my cup of tea because they were cheap and incredibly comfortable.

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