If I had a sugar daddy...

Brighton sweater dress by Ella Moss
$304 at urbanchiconline.com

Transition-tees 2.0

"I know you already wrote a post on what you call 'transition tees,' but a lot of those are now either out of stock or dead links. Can we get an updated selection, please? I need something cute up top for the weekends and I feel like I've outgrown my Urban Outfitters supply. Since I usually wear black or neutral colored shorts, I'd love something with a bright print and/or color."

A transition-tee redux post - what a tremendous idea!

Just yesterday, as I noted the threadbare patches on my beloved first-ever transition tee - a ruched neck, cap-sleeved, tissue-thin Ella Moss in fire-engine red - I was thinking how timely publishing a sequel to my initial post on this very essential wardrobe component would be.

For those who punch-in at an office where the dress-code is more college campus than law firm, these 14 shirts below might well qualify as your any-day-of-the-week above-the-waist option. For the rest of us, however, the sheer material, punchy-colored stripes, bold graphic prints and flutter details are best left post-work or at the very least, hidden-'til-happy-hour underneath a cute swing jacket like this.

If you would like a more thorough run-down of the casual-style-enhancing power of the transition-tee, click here to read the original post.

Oh, and because my reader failed to mention a desired price-point, I punished her by slipping in a few neutrals toward the end. Remember, sometimes an of-interest neckline or sleeve can be just as exciting and attention-grabbing as a bright color or loud print.

Also remember, if you write me with a question, you need to include as much information as you can so that I might serve you to the best of my ability.

Mmmmm...serve you.

Happy shopping!

Slub stripe top ($10.80 at forever21.com

Flutter top ($15.80 at forever21.com)
Cabbage rose tee by Mossimo ($14.99 at target.com)
Confetti tee ($30 at fredflare.com)
¾ sleeved shirred scoop by L.A. Made ($36 at tobi.com)
Scoop neck tee by L.A.M.B. ($65 at nordstrom.com)

U-neck top by Paige Denim ($98 at nordstrom.com)

Sylvester top by Ella Moss ($94 at saks.com)

Striped navy crew by Ya-Ya ($65.40 at fashionchateau.com)

Cap-sleeve tee by t2 ($31 at activeendeavors.com)

Cropped cut-out T by American Apparel ($14 at americanapparel.net)

Gianna ruffle-neck by Elizabeth Gillett ($114 at couturecandy.com)*Jersey scoop neck tee by Vince ($72 at shopbop.com)

Puff sleeve tee by Alice + Olivia ($88 at shopbop.com)*

*your editrix's top picks

If I had a sugar daddy...

Sylvester scoopneck tee by Ella Moss

$94 at saks.com

The transition tee

It wasn't until I got my first job (i.e. my first substantial paycheck) that I discovered the irreplaceable wardrobe staple that is the transition tee.

What is a transition tee, you ask?

A transition tee is a stylish, high-quality t-shirt that can seamlessly transition from serving as your bikini cover-up in Phuket to looking cute under a bolero for Sunday brunch to topping off a pair of premium jeans on a casual Friday at work.

In the fashion industry, the term "high-quality" is almost always tantamount to really expensive. In this case, yes, the 15 transition tees I've provided for you do cost more - four to five times more - than a GAP or Urban Outfitters t-shirt, but believe me, they're worth it.

I haven't had the pleasure of owning all the tees I'm recommending in this post, but I have tried most of the brands, and in addition to maintaining their shape far better than their less expensive counterparts, they also resist fading in a major way -- a non-negotiable requirement of a transition tee.

My favorite transition tees are ones with unique sleeves, simple round or square necklines and a tissue-soft texture. If I only had the money to purchase one, I would definitely invest in a red Ella Moss scoop-neck cap-sleeve. Mine is more than two years old, and I still wear her once or twice a week with jeans, dressy shorts, even black work trousers.

And after at least fifty washes, my baby Ella is still as red as the day she begged me to take her home.

Ladies, your transition tees:

Top to bottom:

1. Helium scoopneck by Velvet ($68 at anthropologie.com)
2. Icebox tee ($34.95 at anthropologie.com)
3. Radiant scoopneck by Michael Stars ($44 at anthropologie.com)
4. Seaboard scoopneck by Rebecca Beeson ($48 at anthropologie.com)
5. Tia peasant tee by Rebecca Beeson ($58 at anthropologie.com)
6. Mesh and Jersey cap-sleeve by James Perse ($76 at shopbop.com)
7. Seagull print crew by Primp ($66 at shopbop.com)
8. Cheryl top by Ella Moss ($97 at urbanchiconline.com)
9. Banded top by Ella Moss ($90 at urbanchiconline.com)
10. Hannah tee by Velvet ($65 at activeendeavors.com)
11. Ebony ¾-sleeve by Zooey ($65 at activeendeavors.com)
12. Cap-sleeve top by Karen Zambos ($147 at couturecandy.com)
13. Shine top by Michael Stars ($42.75 at couturecandy.com)
14. Puff sleeve dot top by Theory ($75 at southmoonunder.com)
15. Pixie flutter v-neck by Ella Moss ($79 at daszign.com)

A three-way where no one wins.

Indeed, such a circumstance is possible.

I stumbled across one such misfortune this evening on ConnAve between L and M Streets.

The three participants: a trendy knit newsboy hat, a pair of trendy metallic flats, and the trusty trendy belt-and-tunic.

The kind of buy-the-entire-outfit-off-the-mannequin-at-Urban-Outfitters style this young woman was sporting is hardly ever spotted in my neck of the DC woods. By the looks of her male companion (he himself bedecked in the skull scarf you never see Mary Kate Olsen leave home without), I'm fairly certain this duo wandered a bit too far off the character-free reservation that is their temporary, over-priced home: Georgetown University.

Individually, all three pieces work. Even in permutations of two, I have no problem. But forcing them all to play nicely in one outfit is as awkward as that picture of Britney, Lindsay, and Paris together the day after Lindsay told reporters Paris assaulted her with a drink.

I'm not opposed to wearing multiple unique items in a single outfit. The well-dressed woman I saw at Borders earlier today had the shoes, the necklace, the belt, and the handbag, all of which were fashionable but subtly fashionable. It wasn't just that she had the right trouser cut for her frame or a perfectly tailored, pucker-free Oxford shirt, it was that every component of her outfit looked as if she wore it because she - and not Teen Vogue - approved it.

Every season, there are a handful of trends that are so touted by the fashion magazines and so ubiquitous among Hollywood starlets that even my Mother in mid-Michigan knows about them. The minidress, the ballet flat, the head scarf, and leggings are all examples of those that made this list in 2006. When picking from this grab-bag, it's best - no, it's imperative - you limit yourself to no more than two trends at a time. You go for three or more and you risk looking like Carmen Electra. Granted, she never looks bad, but when I look at her here, all I see is a stylist who was paid $1000 to tick off the black-and-white trend box, the opaque tights trend box, the nature-inspired jewelry trend box, and the minidress trend box. There's no Carmen in this picture; all that's present are the trappings of a woman who aspires to be stylish.

There are three vicinities to which people's eyes are drawn -- the face, the chest, and the legs. My rule is to have at least one of these three trend-spare. Following this, if I could alter the ensemble Rachel-Bilson-lite was wearing today, I would have either kept the hat (she had the face for it), kept the shoes, and replaced her tunic with a soft Ella Moss tee and cabled cardigan, OR I would have kept the shoes, kept the tunic, ponytailed her, done a little Gwen-poof with her bangs and topped it off with a modern take on the always classic mid-size gold hoops.

As I've advocated here so many times, the most important style rule is to know your audience and dress accordingly. If these two individuals were, as I suspected, two Hoyas who lost their way coming back from a crab cake lunch at Nathan's, then I really have no right to criticize them.

After all, they were just wearing the school uniform.