Home Arts & Entertainment Silent Nights? No, ho, ho!

Silent Nights? No, ho, ho!

Written by Catherine Nash

Wednesday, 30 November 2005

The thing I love most about the holiday season is also the thing I hate – deciding what to wear to all the festivities. From four o’clock office shindigs to late-night soirees, it’s tempting to snap up something new for each occasion – but, unless you’re Melania Trump, appallingly impractical. What a girl needs is a few stunning pieces that can work double-time. First things first: prepping the canvas means phoning Tre Balm for a seasonal facial. Pumpkin and cranberry? Red wine and peppermint? So many choices. The pumpkin facial ($120) includes a scrub and enzyme peel that smell so good I wouldn’t mind licking some off my chin, but decide instead to let them do their work fighting nasty free radicals and making my skin radiantly clean. The red wine facial, developed in Europe, hydrates and firms, while the accompanying peppermint foot treatment incorporates a footbath, scrub and massage to make my tootsies soft and supple ($150). Tre Balm also stocks hard-to-find skin care and home fragrance lines from as far away as Hungary so I can quickly cross the stocking stuffers off my list. Next up? My feet. When I’m overextended, running from one party to the next, they’ve got to hold up. I never thought I’d say this, but thank God for Easy Spirit! Their new kid suede pumps ($295) are the love child of comfort and style, thanks to some help from designer Tara Subkoff, one of the creative forces behind the edgy Imitation of Christ label. I’m tempted to splurge on a pair of mauve platform heels from C Label ($385). The silky rope ties, metal grommets and open toe will take any outfit from drab to fab in minutes – which brings me to my next point. Dressing smart means dressing up the basics. If you don’t already have a pair of tailored black trousers and a sexy skirt, get thee to the just-opened H&M, then add Vince’s black silk camisole to either ($145). It’s simple enough to throw under a jacket for work, and its raw chiffon edges are a nice touch with sleek pants for evening. (And hallelujah, it’s long enough to cover the danger zone left by low-rise pants! Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and I don’t love my plumber that much.) It can double as sleepwear in a pinch if I drink one too many eggnogs. If a woman looks great in candlelight, I figure I’ll look nearly as good in Diane von Furstenberg’s shimmery pewter-toned wrap ($298). The lacy piece can double as a shirt or a short-sleeved jacket. As I tie it (hmm, front, back or side?) I rehearse my response to strangers wondering how I got my shoulders to look so good: the fluttery capelike sleeves truly flatter. (“My trainer’s name? Aren’t you sweet!”) What to wear it with? Since denim, my uniform du jour, isn’t luxe enough for this time of year I’ll upgrade to Blue Cult’s velvet 5-pockets ($152). Without question velvet’s the fabric of the season – designers from Calvin Klein to Marc Jacobs to Banana Republic are putting out tailored jackets and whimsical shrugs – and the stretch in these “Kate” pants will be forgiving if I overdo it with the canap&eacutes. Once the last cheek has been kissed and the last present unwrapped, I can curl up next to the fire with my honey in LaRok’s cropped winter white hoodie ($288). With 30 percent cashmere it’s soft enough to pet, and sequins dot it like softly falling snow. Who needs a white Christmas anyway? Tre Balm, 3255 Sacramento St. (between Lyon and Presidio), (415) 292-5129. For Blue Cult velvet denim call (323) 588-8455 ext. 502. All other items available at www.shopbop.com. Shop Scoop ... The two much-anticipated H&M stores opened near Union Square on November 19 with more than 52,000 square feet combined. The Stylehound was among 2,000 lucky invitees at opening night festivities two nights prior, but an unprecedented turnout kept hundreds of eager shoppers cooling their heels outside for up to an hour while the Jack Falstaff nosh and H&M specialty cocktails disappeared. A mad rush in the first half hour prompted the fire marshal to get tough, and even journalists like yours truly weren’t able to get in. A polite request on behalf of Northside for a peek inside got me a snippy brush-off from the Woman in Black working the front door. With an opening like that, there’s no doubt H&M, whose policy is not to comment on sales, is off to a smashing financial success. But lose the ’tude, folks. You’re in San Francisco now. H&M Flagship, 150 Powell. Women’s-only store at 150 Post. Send your fashionable questions and comments to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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