I stumbled across this pretty, pretty, pretty Tracey Reese dress from her Plenty line — which, incidentally, is all pretty things. This one is my favorite, though. It makes me think of springtime and tulips, which is probably just because I really want it to be springtime with tulips and plum blossoms everywhere (which, of course, it won’t be for aaaaages).

I’d like to wear it with flat leather sandals and go to a market. Preferably a market that sells peaches, because I love peaches and we didn’t really have any good ones last year.

A friend and I were talking the other day about hair. I told her that I have had the urge recently to chop off my long hair and go back to the short bob that I used to don several years ago. But there’s something holding me back. ‘Well, because short hair was so rebellious. We used to be more edgy. Now, at least for me, all I want is to feel pretty,’ my friend said, gesturing toward her lovely, wavy shoulder-length hair.

Similarly, I’ve begun to lean toward the pretty factor in my clothing as well. Living in London a few years ago made me take risks with my clothes; I wore things like leg warmers and had my hair in a pseudo-mullet. But now, back in the states and in a new era of fashion, I yearn for clothing from a designer who understands what it means to want to be strong and functional, yet still pretty and feminine.

Tracey Reese’s clothes never fail to achieve all of these purposes, and perhaps this comes from the fact that she learned about fashion from her grandmother, and about how to sew from her mother. The influence of three generations of women seeps into every collection that Reese creates, emerging in classic, yet bold, designs to die for.

At the shows in New York for fall 2007, it was clear that shiny metallic colors would dominate the fashion landscape, and Reese’s collection was no exception. I absolutely love the juicy red-orange fabrics that she exhibited at the end of her show, but it was this bubble hemmed chocolate shift that I fell for. Check out Tracy Reese’s entire fall 2007 collection here, and keep your eyes peeled for the beautiful silhouettes of her coats, as well.