My exit from the world of fashion was precipitated by a single moment in 2005. I walked into the Coterie, an essential industry show, and peered down the length of the aisle. Buyers lined both sides, anxiously trying to predict the desires of their customers for the coming season. They sat at the vendor’s booths with their backs to the aisle. All I could see was an endless row of low-rise jeans (with many a thong sticking out over the top) extending down the length of the building. And it was all wrong.

For several years, I had been struggling with how to fill my shops for my customers, mainly women between the ages of 30 and 70, at a time when fashion was clearly geared to (and influenced by) teenagers. Several seasons of tight tops and low bottoms had left me cold (a big no-no in my book; see my 10 style tips here). I could no longer discern which denim brand delivered the most interesting wash, complete with “whiskers” and “fraying”, neither of which anyone should ever have to pay extra for. Worse, I didn’t care. After 25 years of a fantastic career, ranging from owning my own boutiques to vice president of a retail chain, I was done.

Fast forward eight years and I don’t much miss it. But fashion, as trivial as it is in the scheme of things, is in my blood. And for the first time in a long while, this season is a good one. Shapes are easier to wear, there is infinitely more choice, heels are reasonable, and the return of menswear for women is right up my alley. As my hero, Bill Cunningham, said after the Spring shows, the most important trend right now seems to be taking pictures. Which means, anything goes. Here are some favorites from local shops.

love, erica

p.s. That’s me and Lisa, the manager of my first store, Chona, circa 1985; Joan Vass sleeveless turtleneck and Katharine Hamnett pencil skirt (I know; I’m an idiot savant when it comes to labels, never forget ’em) two pieces I’d  sport almost 30 years later if I could only squeeze into them!