The TEll// By Thrift & Tell
Welcome to THE TELL//BY THRIFT & TELL: a celebration of fashionable women who dress as smart as they shop.
This week’s guest on THE TELL// is Emily Hertz of Born On Fifth: party planner, mother, and former Director of Marketing for Spanx. As you will see below, Emily’s unique and beautiful aesthetic is consistent through and through. She has mastered her style so strongly that even her new puppy is Born on Fifth fabulous!
While Emily admits she splurges more than she saves (we’ll work on that!), she is smart about making money through reselling. She frequently uses The RealReal after a closet edit. As a loyal consignor, she also gets a higher commission, proving that The RealReal can be a great option for busy women with higher end items.
If you’re on a tighter budget, use Emily’s style as inspiration. She mixes pinks, pastels, florals, velvets, leopard, tulle etc. with ease, and you can easily channel the Born on Fifth vibe while shopping at Zara, H&M, ASOS, or Target.
Fun fact: Emily helped me come up with the name for this interview series. Ok, actually I did nothing- it was all her! Enjoy and stay tuned for more to come!
//Your style in 3 words: Sophisticated, Feminine, Ethereal
//Staple Outfit: Depends on the season! High-waisted Amo jeans, a tucked-in top and Fendi boots (lately) or a floral dress and Loeffler Randall mules when it’s warm. I have an affinity for the color blush, but don’t often wear it.
//Style Icon(s): Lauren Santo Domingo, Erika Bearman, Aerin Lauder
//Your First Big Purchase: Fendi Baguette, purchased senior year of high school.
//Do You Still Have It? Yes! I’ll never get rid of it.
//Best Fashion Advice You Ever Received: If the shoe fits, buy it in every color. My grandmother made me a needlepoint with this phrase. On a higher level, I take it to mean that once you find your style, stick with it.
//Types of clothing you invest in: Do accessories count? I’m a shoe girl through and through. Bags are a close second.
//Types of clothing you save on: Seasonal trends, for the most part, though I’m trying to be better at editing before I buy. I am definitely a passionate shopper, so this is tough for me!
//Your greatest extravagance: Expensive bathing suits. They make all the difference.
//Brands That Will Stand the Test of Time: The obvious Chanel, Hermes, Oscar De la Renta and Dior. Newer brands that give me the same vibe are Brock Collection and Johanna Ortiz. I love what Wes Gordon is doing with Carolina Herrera, too.
//Favorite High Street Brands: I think & Other Stories does a nice job...it doesn’t feel so “fast” but the pricing is affordable. Reformation is a great eco-conscious choice and again, great price points.
//Favorite Designer Brands: Beyond Brock and Johanna, Luisa Beccaria, Markarian, Cecilie Bahnsen, Giambattista Valli and Rossie Assoulin are all aspirational brands I love. I wear a lot of LoveShackFancy, Zimmermann, Ulla Johnson and Doen Collective and just bought my second Emilia Wickstead dress. Ann Mashburn also has great key wardrobe staples each season.
//Favorite High-Low Brands to Mix: I feel like everything I do is a mix, but most often it’s Zara mixed with a statement coat or killer shoes.
//Favorite Places to Shop Consignment: Scott Antique Market; but I need to get down to Palm Beach to scour the shops there.
//Favorite Places to Consign Your Own Closet: I’m contemplating starting a page on Instagram to sell some pieces. I have an account (@bornonfifthbaby) where I sell my daughter’s gently used clothes and people love it! Beyond that, The Real Real and Labels, which is local to Atlanta.
//Currently Collecting Dust in the Back of your Closet: My sky-high heels. I still pull them out on occasion, but I don’t wear them daily like I used to.
//Your Closet Tried and Trues: High-waisted jeans, tucked-in tanks and mules.
//Best investment you ever made in your style: Hiring a stylist to spend a few hours consulting with me and editing my wardrobe. She also shared her tailor with me. Camilo...he’s the best.
//Style Choice From Your Past That Haunts You: Let’s just say, I’m glad you can make Facebook photo albums private. Some of my college wardrobe choices were fashion misses.
//“It seemed like a good idea at the time” a.k.a Purchase you most regret: A too-big Moncler sweater, impulsively purchased in Aspen. I ended up selling it on The Real Real.
//Closet From Which You Would Like to Borrow: @TheFashionBugBlog’s Laura Wills and my friend Nicola Bathie McLaughlin’s.
//Last Time You Splurged? I finally got the Mini Lady Dior bag that I’d been eyeing for a while.
//Currently Saving Your Pennies For: We just bought a new house, so I’m trying hard to withhold on fashion purchases in favor of furniture. On my forever list: a trench coat to replace my favorite Burberry coat ruined by the dry cleaners. Tear.
//A Deal for the History Books/Your T&T Personal Best: I snagged new Isabel Marant Nowles boots for half price one year. I think they were on the Barneys site. I still get excited about that score because it’s a core style for them and they’re still sold for full price each season. I wear them daily when it’s cold.
//Advice to someone looking to define their own style: Hire a personal stylist (whose style you admire, of course) for a few sessions. I love clothes and have a pretty good sense of my style, but it was so helpful for me to sit with my friend, stylist Julia Schnabel and have her give me her professional take. She really helped me define my “adult” aesthetic.
//Trend you wish would go way? Sock booties or dad sneakers. They just don’t work for me!
//You feel great. What are you wearing? High-waisted jeans, heels and a tucked-in top. Or an ethereal floral dress.
//Occasions when you splurge: Too many.
//Occasions when you save: Not enough.
//Most prized possession: My wedding outfits...I wore an Oscar de la Renta skirt and top to my rehearsal dinner, custom Manolos on the day-of and of course, my wedding dress.
//Home Decor Style: Similar to my personal style. Feminine and sophisticated. We’re about to move, so I’m excited to see how my home style will evolve.
//Favorite place to hunt for home decor: Scott Antique Market has great finds. I’ve found some great pieces on One Kings Lane and am always scouring Everything But the House.
//Go-to for unique items, whether it be clothing, accessories, home or art: I hate to say it, but Instagram. You just have to know what to look for and who to follow.
//Your fashion motto: What you wear can change your life. Found this saying on a card on a trip to London and had it framed! I truly believe it.
//Your life motto: The beauty of life is in the imperfection. Laurie Ann Goldman (who I met when she was the CEO of Spanx) said this to me once, and I’ve never forgotten it.
Fill in the blank:
//A woman should invest in- designer shoes. Not only will they make your outfit look good, they’re more comfortable too. //You’re never too old to—define your style. //A woman can never have too much— much moisturizer. //Bury me in- the ground ;) // True or False: More is More- True //Fashion is- fun, if you’re willing to take risks.//Style: something unique to you.
Currently Loving:
//Music:The Mary Poppins Soundtrack, thanks to my daughter’s love of the movie.
//Print: Wall Street Journal Off Duty
//Food: Perfect Bars
//Drink: Essentia Water
//Film: Dumplin’ on Netflix; It’s set to Dolly Parton music and it’s a sweet story. What’s not to love?!
//TV: Gossip Girl- Somehow I never watched it in its heyday, so finally doing so and almost done!
//Podcast: “How I Built This” with Guy Raz
//Instagram Handle: @itsjennarennert
//Designer: LoveShackFancy
ABOUT EMILY
Emily Hertz is an Atlanta-based, NYC-born lifestyle blogger with a passion for party styling and an affinity for all things beautiful.
Upon having her daughter Elle (on February Fifth, no less), the former Director of Marketing at Spanx stepped out on her own to launch Born on Fifth, an aesthetically-driven site and accompanying social channel which highlights Emily’s favorite fashion, entertaining ideas and tot-friendly finds. Offline, Emily does party and photo styling for select brands and private clients in the fashion and stationery space. Her work has been featured on the cover of Mingle Magazine, on Lauren Conrad, Glitter Guide and 100 Layer Cakelet.
FIND EMILY
//WEBSITE
THE TELL//BY THRIFT & TELL
