the directrice 
My career has spanned eras. When I started working, people wore suits every day. And then came Business Casual, which set off shockwaves in law firms. And then the pandemic, which normalized athleisure as workwear. As a result, the Business Casual of today is not the Business Casual of the aughts. It probably needs another … Read more
Directrice scholars will remember that some years ago, this blog published a series of posts titled Sweaters of Substance, explaining how a sweater of substantial weight and style could substitute for a jacket in a business casual environment. If you’ve forgotten, it’s here, here, here, here, and here.
Hello, hello! It’s a great little sweater: cashmere with a nice feel, cropped length perfect for wearing over an untucked blouse, and STRIPES. My summer is now coming (on October 31) to a close. Tomorrow, I start my new job. Last week, my former co-workers threw a lovely goodbye party for me. This brings me … Read more
We’ve had a lovely fall in Washington, D.C., warm (but not too hot) through September and into October. Lovely temperatures, but they do create seasonal dissonance — which we will define as “the psychological unease occasioned by wanting to dress for the season while needing to dress for the weather.” That’s a working definition. Please … Read more
Where does the time go? I was supposed to finish the summer clothes in mid-September and then move on to our favorite of all the seasons: Sweater Weather. Instead, I’ve been dithering and am now showing you sleeveless summer-weight dresses in October — which must be causing seasonal dissonance. Except for my readers Down Under! … Read more
The summer was so busy that I didn’t manage to write and publish some important posts. Things I’ve been meaning to show you for months and, in some instances, years. So I am going to flush out the summer ideas this week and then we’ll embark on fall next week. Agreed? *+ Some advice regarding … Read more
This is it, Directorate. The final holiday post, excluding suitcase post-mortem, which will come later. The last leg of our trip was an 8-day sail around the Galapagos Islands, which are part of Ecuador and (primarily) reached by flights from Guayaquil and Quito. We flew from Quito through Guayaquil, but didn’t have to de-plane in … Read more
Directorate! We were silent last week because the Internet coverage in the Galapagos Islands was very spotty. That’s not a veiled complaint. I’m amazed we had any Internet access on a boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. But the coverage wasn’t steady enough at any point for me to crank out one of … Read more
Today, Directorate, a break from my penetrating travel writing about people, places, and things for a brief discussion of my suitcase. I’ll start with the headline. I am going to grade my packing for this trip a “B” — but there is a chance that grade will rise next week. It may also drop. Dress: … Read more
