We all have a moment when we spy That Mom. She's the one who looks like she knows something we don't. It's the way she belts her sweater, or the way her ballet-flat-and-skinny-jean combo radically upgrades the drop-off uniform. Lucky for us, these fashion mavens aren't stingy with their secrets.
Who: Mei Tao, freelance photographer, mother of a 6-year-old daughter
Why: She is a shopping sniper. Because of her job, she's always out and about, looking for the next great find. Nothing is below her. She looks at everything from NYC street vendors to what to buy at the Barney's Warehouse sale. She's the one who knows if Marc Jacobs is having an 80 percent off sale and what the thing to buy at Gap is right now. She's the one who sends us to Payless for the American Ballet Theater designed $17 ballet shoes, and not the higher-priced Capezios.
We feel like we could write a whole book called "What We've cribbed from Mei." She's not afraid to wear silk all day long, she washes hers (washing machine) in a mesh bag in cold water and then hang dry. "Then it gives the silk a slight distress look that I love!"
J.Crew is her one-stop shop for the whole family. They have great men's shirt that she gets for herself in size S. "Their Crewcuts line is sooo cute!" she says, "Delicious colors!" Plus, she says, they ALWAYS have a sale on the website, check in every Thursday mornings for new items added on to SALE.
Here's what she's loving right now:
For mom: J. Crew's silk beach-stripe tunic
For her little girl: Crewcuts' striped cotton babydoll dress
Who: Robin Renzi, mother of a 15-month-old daughter, designer/CEO Me & Ro Jewelry.
Why: According to her friends, "Because she's got that boho chic thing going on, but not in an ordinary way. Because she always has a great bag, and of course because of her jewelry. Plus, she ALWAYS finds the cutest clothes for kids."
When it comes to handbags, she doesn't have a lot of them, but the ones she has all must function and must last. She bought her perfectly worn, perfectly chic Balenciaga 10 years ago, which is impossible to find now. (Her friend: "That's exactly what makes her such a 'that mom.' It seems like she knew even back then what lasting power it had.") Renzi's latest favorite is the Jenah Pouch Mulberry shoulder tote, which converts to a short evening bag. She hopes to hold on to it for just as long. As for jewelry, of course it's from Me & Ro. Her favorite? In the new silver/10K collection it's her Gold Guardian Angel. "I love the idea of angels watching over us—I know I have an angel."
Who: Patty Rockmore, mother of one daughter
Why: Because she is my entertaining guru. She took cooking classes in Italy from Giuliano Bugialli and convinced me that Marcella Hazan's cookbooks were the only ones worth having. Before I knew Patty, my idea of entertaining was to have everything out on the counter (including wine glasses and sippy cups) before the doorbell rang. But Patty, mother of one, at the time a resident of a Park Avenue one-bedroom, was the one who showed me that including the guests in the process of cooking was what made them feel comfortable and also (more importantly) it was just the way a confident cook does it. My most vivid image of her is standing in front of her floor-to-ceiling mirror (which was leaning against the wall, not hanging from it), barefoot, all her guests sitting around a large dining table as she whisked heavy cream in a small steel mixing bowl to be later plopped on whatever decadent chocolate dessert we were eating. It was both casual and dramatic - and anti-fussy before anti-fussy was even a trend. I've since replicated the moment at least two dozen times. And I bought the mirror, too.
