Jen Brill is your favorite cool girl’s cool girl. A lover of vintage Yohji Yamamoto and vintage Hanes, the creative director of HommeGirls likes to mix her Chanel slingback heels with a Vaquera bomber jacket or pair a navy Russell sweatshirt with a retro kick-flare pant. Her approach to style forgoes one-hit wonders for looks that can actually withstand the test of time, looking fresh this season and next.
“At its core, HommeGirls is about classics and essentials, and that’s very much my frame of mind when it comes to shopping and dressing,” says Brill. “I don’t want anything unless I’ll actually wear it to bunny dust.”
She has carried that ethos into the newly released OTW by Vans × HommeGirls collection, which features six reworked wardrobe staples, including a pair of checkerboard boxer shorts, ruffle-hem crew socks, and a luxe upgrade of the Sk8-Mid 83 shoe—decked out with premium suede uppers and an elongated tongue that folds over for a cheeky twist.
Right now, Brill is finding inspiration from her girlfriends, an equally stylish group of creative multi-hyphenates–naturally: “Harper’s Bazaar editor Lynette Nylander has the best energy and style. Isabella Burley, who started a fantastic bookstore called Climax. Vans team skaters Beatrice Domond and Efron Danzig, who are hot but also shred. Ava Nirui from Marc Jacobs, who is the ultimate barometer of cool. Artist Shaniqwa Jarvis, who makes beautiful photographs and films. And writer Durga Chew-Bose, who just directed her first film starring my ultimate crush, Chloë Sevigny.”
When it comes to dressing for a Los Angeles fall, Brill keeps it simple, pairing vintage Levi’s with a ballet flat and vintage kidsize Hanes tees or a slim-fit Leset pointelle T-shirt. But when the chill does occasionally kick in, it’s a toss between slipping on a vintage Comme des Garçons double-breasted jacket (50/50 leather and knit, naturally) or a cropped, shearling-collared Vaquera bomber.
Below, Brill shares 13 things she’s been loving, from a pair of checkerboard flares and go-to heels that double as a walking art to what just might be the “perfect” white tank top.
1.
Sweatshirts have taken over my life and drawers. My current obsessions are my HommeGirls black sweatshirt with a cute embroidered red “HG,” a splurge from the Row, and a vintage navy Russell. I wear them with jeans, over a dress…. Sweatshirts go with everything!
2.
My go-to dress is a vintage ’90s Yohji [Yamamoto] silk dress from eBay. It’s super easy to wear with flats or with a little heel. Also a Simone Rocha leather pleated skirt, which is technically half of a dress.
3.
High Sport kick pants for a pair I can dress up or down. They’re perfect for a flight with sneakers or for a party with heels! I have several colors.
4.
I wear sunglasses 365 days a year, even when it’s gray out. I’m a cat-eye girlie. In current rotation are Celine, Balenciaga, and Natasha Lyonne for Warby Parker.
5.
When I want to feel sexy, I’ve been wearing a pair of Marc Jacobs Vuitton-era heels with polka dots and bows, or black patent Alaïa Sculpture mules.
6.
But when it’s time to unwind, Chanel ballet flats! No human can ever have too many. The addiction is real.
7.
I’ve been loving Pacific Tote Company bags. I have them in kelly green and safety orange. They are huge and can hold a Mac PowerBook and everything else under the sun.
8.
The Proenza Schouler Silo bag is what I’m wearing out to dinner. The navy blue kid suede is incredibly chic.
9.
Kiiks Hamanasu Rose balm smells like heaven and can be used on your lips, hands, anywhere really.
10.
I have Fara Homidi essential lip compacts in every shade for cheeks, lips and eyes. The packaging is divine.
11.
I’ve been loving the jet black mascara from Neen. It’s the right amount of clumpy. I apply it after I’ve curled my lashes
12.
For the home, I’ve just ordered to-die-for Isabela Bower Ceramics from Galerie Sardine that come in every color under the sun and beautiful bedside tables from Ruemmler. Very excited for their arrivals.
13.
A white ribbed tank is a crucial wardrobe staple! The one from the OTW by Vans × HommeGirls collection is perfection and has the cutest tiny skateboard embroidered on the front.
