The Clothes In Your Closet #025

Feat. Erin Allweiss, co-founder of No. 29 and Enough.

The Clothes In Your Closet is a series where I style people in their existing wardrobes and share how to make the outfits your own.

Five minutes with

Erin Allweiss

, and I’m wishing I had a pen and paper to jot down the names she just mentioned. No I haven’t heard about that brand, but I’ll check it out (Baserange). What’s the name of that Mississippi organization? (MS Black Women’s Roundtable). The co-founder of No. 29, a communications agency that works with purpose-driven brands, artists, and organizations, and Enough., a podcast and newsletter celebrating people tackling broken systems, Erin has the pulse on a certain kind of information I seek: sustainable fashion brands to shop, political activists to follow, and advocacy organizations to support. She seamlessly weaves the political with the everyday, making issues I often find overwhelming accessible, and inspiring me into action.

I first learned about Erin and her work six years ago, after chatting with Mara Hoffman’s VP Celine DeCarlo about how I could apply my marketing background to the sustainable fashion movement. “You should meet with No. 29,” Celine told me. They were the only communications agency dedicated to sustainability and impact at the time. This was before the words became so buzzy.

Some months later, following an event at Mara’s office, Erin and I shared a train back downtown, chatting over my rented dress. I immediately took a liking to her. Erin is smart, kind, and generous. She fights for what she believes and importantly, champions the joy in coming together, for community is exactly what we need right now. Sustained action requires it.

Last December I met Erin at her home near Prospect Park. “This is Gumbo,” she smiled, introducing me to her dog; Erin is a New Orleans native. She led my through the art gallery that occupies the first floor of her building—which seemed very appropriate after seeing all the works of art adorning her walls—and up to her apartment.

Oh man were the clothes good. Erin had laid out several beautifully-made, scrumptious pieces, many of them garments from brands she works with, or just believes in. I got Erin trying on things, seeing how they fit. There was so much color! A real treat, coming from my primarily black, navy, and blue palette, which got me thinking: maybe I should let some color in too…

Below are four of my favorite outfits styled from our time together, with guidance on how to make the concepts work with the clothes in *your* closet. Enjoy.

OUTFIT 1

First these fantastic Caron Callahan pants: shiny maroon, with a pleat in the front. What a delight! Kinda reminded me of candy. I paired them with a mint green Rachel Comey long-sleeve knit top, the mint functioning as a neutral in the same way the maroon was. The colors aren’t SO out there from black and white; they’re a nice cross-over. Then this Calvin Klein leather belt Erin has had for ages, and these Grey Matters almond-toe pumps with a Pepto Bismol pink heel. Nice, just oh-so-very-nice.

Now I was really feeling the color vibe. Deep, somewhere lodged in my brain were these color charts from the InStyle Secrets of Style: The Complete Guide to Dressing Your Best Everyday, a book I used to pour over in my teens, hoping that one day I might become a stylishly dressed woman. Man I wish I still had that book. Might have to buy it on ThriftBooks. Anyway, they had this thing on color, how to wear different combinations, which continued in the pages of the magazine. I found some of them on the internet while I was styling my friend Christina. They’re so freakin’ good. Give them a look.

I’d been eyeing this burnt orange Rodebjer coat, a structural treat, since I arrived. On it went, with a good cinch-of-the-belt and roll-of-the-sleeves; I can’t help myself—these styling gestures really do make a difference! I tried a pair of turquoise hoops, but they felt a little costume-y with everything else. I nixed the earrings for a vintage silver herringbone necklace, which I ended up using for the rest of the looks, and a silver Luz Ortiz cuff that subtly referenced the belt’s buckle.

“No earrings?” Erin asked. “I always wear earrings.” “Nope!” I’m not anti-earring, I love an earring! But with all these colors, I wanted to keep the jewelry minimal, make the focus on her. Erin was game.

I layered on her maroon LINDQUIST bag, a No. 29 client who makes their leather products in Providence, RI, and got so jazzed about how it looked over the coat that I snapped this closeup of all the colors and textures. Divine. Doesn’t that make you want to never wear black again?!