So here I am, sitting at home in my pajamas writing this article. Little Miss Sunshine pants and a hand-me-down Long Beach Island sweatshirt. Real classy stuff. Who would ever think that people would wear articles of clothing with the same name (here being “pajamas”) out in public? Not me. When I say people, I don’t mean fifteen-year-old girls in Connecticut going to their high school football game.
As usual, the Man Repeller was way on top of it before we saw it coming (approximately a year ago, plus a few days). To be fair, Harper’s Bazaar also spotted the trend on the Spring 2011 runways, with designers like Calvin Klein and Michael Kors pioneering the movement. But last summer’s pieces weren’t quite as hard core and distinctly “PJ” as the more current versions.
Let me explain this a little bit. If you haven’t ever heard of pajama dressing, you’re probably sitting there thinking, “Good Lord, they’ve really gone downhill this time.” And I don’t blame you. It sounds pretty lazy, doesn’t it? It’s actually quite the opposite. It takes even more work to look chic in silk top and matching pants than usual. The main idea with this trend is that you wear sleepy-time inspired pieces either separately or as an ensemble outdoors as opposed to in your bed. Vogue and Hanneli Mustaparta collaborated a little while ago on this precise topic, so I checked out what the model/photographer had to say about innerwear as outerwear.
Despite the difficulty of making yourself look presentable in pajamas, Hanneli claims it’s worth the trouble: “People really compliment you because you look so different,” she told Vogue. Sounds worth it to me! She was able to rock black-and-white-striped Céline silk separates by adding some nice boots and a cross-body bag (and a dog?). Switch out the matching pants for a pair of cropped black jeans, a white clutch for the bag, loafers for the boots and sunnies for the dog, and you look like a real human being instead of someone fresh out of prison. Or, you can dress up a pair of white silky pants with a trench vest and flat shoes for a casual cool look.
Then there’s always Leandra Medine and her crazy cat antics (so many animals involved today!). She paired an Equipment blue and white striped silk top similar to Hanneli’s Céline one with high-waisted sheer vintage Dior palazzo pants and her Del Toro x Man Repeller loafers featuring flamingos that are reminiscent of bedroom slippers. That was a mouthful. Add a snazzy necklace (hers was from DANNIJO), and you’ll look comfy chic if nothing else.
Final example: Emily Weiss of Into the Gloss wore an Olatz pajama top with The Row leather pants. The balance of motorcyclist and nap time is genius.
So what’s the verdict? PJ dressing is a go! And you don’t have splurge on a Stella McCartney outfit in order to achieve this look. You can get some nice separates at Soma (not silk, but if you don’t mind that, it’s basically the same effect) or for a bit more money you can get some really nice silky pieces at Narasilk. Either take one article of clothing (top or bottom) and pair it with normal street clothes or wear the two together and dress it up with jewelry, accessories and makeup of your choice.
What’s your take on this trend? Chic? Sloppy? Spam the comments section to your heart’s desire with your innermost thoughts!
Images via vogue.com, harpersbazaar.com and manrepeller.com.
by Odelia of You’re A Tulle
