Classic Style, Modern Sensibility

Julie Skipper

Rachel Jarman, out with boyfriend Chris Myers, updates her classic-shaped V-neck jersey-knit shift dress with a fun belt, cowboy boots and tights.

by Julie Skipper
March 9, 2011

As the saying goes, “Everything old is new again,” and that most certainly rings true of Jackson’s renaissance. It’s true of cool, old spaces and hotspots and neighborhoods across town, and it’s also true in fashion. The best looks often involve old standards wearers have reinvented.

I tend to have a go-to statement accessory each season. Currently, it’s a necklace with several strings of (fake) pearls. This updated version of a classic staple—the pearl necklace—got me thinking about how other folks are reworking classics around town and in fashion.

I typically play around a lot with clothes and makeup, so my cosmetic bag has within it a veritable rainbow of eye-shadow colors. Itching to try out even more new shades, I headed to Maison Weiss. They’re always a great source for achieving any look that’s classic but updated.

At the counter, rather than playing with new colors, Debby Downey treated me to a makeover that covered all the basics and gave me a fresh take on the timeless neutral eye. Honestly, it’s a staple I often forget about since something from a Technicolor palette is my go-to look.

A Trish McEvoy makeover is really a skin-care and makeup lesson combined. The McEvoy representative does one side of your face and then lets you do the other. This is immensely helpful; it prevents your floundering and feeling clueless when you get home. Thanks to Debby’s skillful instruction, I have tips I’ll continue to use, and some great new eye shadow, too.

Also classic and helpful is the Trish McEvoy deluxe makeup planner, which is not unlike Mary Poppins’ spoonful-of-sugar carryall bag, with its ability to hold everything but the kitchen sink. Who knew that so many tools and products could fit in such a tiny package? It’s one of those things that can improve your life.

Classics aren’t just for makeup and fashion, though. In Mississippi, we have a rich cultural heritage, and it doesn’t get more enduring than a living legend. Bluesman Pinetop Perkins recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts to add to his three Grammys, and I can vouch for the fact that he is not only still an incredible talent at 97 years young, but he’s also quite the ladies’ man.

At the awards reception at Nunnery’s at Gallery 119, Perkins sported a piano-key-print tie and socks, and worked the crowd with the best of them. When I headed downstairs to Underground 119 for some music, I spotted Fondrenites Chris Myers and his girlfriend Rachel Jarman (who was working a bright green jersey dress in a classic silhouette, but updated with a funky belt and a great pair of new cowboy boots she eagerly showed off). Well done!

Another of my regular haunts also beautifully brings new life to the old. When you go to Parlor Market, be sure to ask your server or Craig Noone, the chef/owner, for the history of the building. Everything, from the tables and countertops to the purse hooks under the bar, has a story and a reason behind it. This creates a stylish blend of old and new that makes the restaurant a really special place. Speaking of which, Noone has added outdoor seating, so you can soak up a little downtown hustle and bustle while you dine.

It’s more than just the atmosphere. Parlor Market’s cocktails will be standards for years to come, because they’re already time-tested. From the Eudora, named for the one and only Ms. Welty and incorporating the writer’s love for celery soda, to the authentic pre-prohibition cocktails (try the Corpse Reviver No. 2 and the Last Word), it doesn’t get more old-school cool.

On my last visit there, I ran into fun couple Elizabeth and Chad Frazier enjoying a date night at the bar. Elizabeth’s style is impeccable, and she’s got the enviable panache to pull off a pixie cut. Elizabeth’s hair reminds me of a modern-day, funky Audrey Hepburn. Dressed in a fab sweater dress—I adore winter white (hat-tip to my grandmother for that)—and the right combination of simple, familiar elements, she proved that with interesting touches, you can always be current.

As we head into the spring season of fundraisers and events, there will be more places to go and people to see. My fashion plan of attack will definitely include a nod to the classics with a hint of never-know-what-you’re-going-to-get. My pearls and I will see you out and about!

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