TODAY’S WOMAN A SPECIAL SECTION OF THE SCARSDALE INQUIRER
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MARCH 24, 2017
SPRING FASHION
TRADITION REINTERPRETED
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By TRACI DUTTON LUDWIG
he bulbs are greening. Temperatures are rising. Café tables have been positioned in the fresh air. It’s finally time to trade boots for wedges and swap wool scarves for trenches. Spring fashion has arrived! A bit of ’80s retro, a bit of bright-color bold, this season emphasizes a reinterpretation of fashion classics through statement details, exaggerated shapes, cunning asymmetry and creative mixes. Embrace the unexpected. Dare to be your own individual. Pick and choose from our style guide and own the season’s signature styles.
Armed and dangerous Which feature commands sex appeal this season? Think outside the box, and you’ll be a goddess of the trend. Spring 2017 is all about the sensuality and glamour of shoulders and arms. Designers are showcasing simple dresses and tops that play up the energy of interesting sleeves. Creative options include arm candy in the following silhouettes: bell and trumpet shaped, billowy and ruffled, laser cut, banded and slit down the side. Look for strapless constructions with straight top-lines, square necklines and broad shoulder straps. These structures keep the garment’s overall architecture subdued so sleeves can shine. Complementing the current interest in sleeves is the love affair with shoulders. Similar to last spring’s obsession with the cold shoulder look, current taste prefers the baring of one single shoulder. Look for patterns structured around one sleeve, a single strap or a unique cutout shoulder. Alternatively, manipulate your own version of the trend by allowing an oversized sweater to languidly slip off one arm to reveal a shoulder. Of course, you’ve got to channel the attitude of character Alex Owens’s iconic look in the 1983 film “Flashdance.” What a feeling…
Sheer madness Light and lovely, this season’s abundance of sheer, diaphanous textiles are meant to be worn in layers. This approach distinguishes the trend from previous peekaboo fashion moments in which the goal was to expose flashes of bare skin. The current look conjures a carefree, breezy mood. Rather than being risqué, today’s sheers are actually demure. These looks are intended for daywear and should not be mistaken for approximations of the “naked dress,” an abun-
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dant trend on recent celebrity red carpets. Sheer blouses pair sweetly with similarly toned bralettes or lacy tanks. Gauzy skirts float over leggings, slips, opaque boy shorts or even pants. This trend invites textile play. It explores volume without weight, texture without heaviness, and the dynamic dualism of opacity and transparency. Sheer panels set into solid skirts, thus achieving ring-like illusions, is another manifestation of this trend.
Ruffled up Pump up the volume with ruffles. This spring, fashion’s favorite, super-sweet trend goes from girly to grownup with bold structures, unexpected fabrics and over-the-top interpretations. Ruffles are a versatile detail; so play them up wherever you can. This includes ruffles placed on sleeves, hemlines, cuffs, collars and bodices. Or take ruffles out of the accent mode and go all out. Imagine the fun of a skirt made from countless undulating layers or jackets piled so high and proud that you will wear your ruffles like a energetic skin. Ruffles still connote femininity for sure, but this season’s applications are more assertive than frilly. An untucked ruffled blouse paired with jeans and a thick corset belt is edgy. Pinstriped ruffled pants are playful and irreverent. Paperbag-waist trousers are another favorite interpretation of this trend. They use voluminous fabric and a cinched dropped waist to create ruffles at the beltline of loose-fitting, highwaist pants. Be sure to pair this style with a fitted top to look chic. Now is the moment to nod to traditions but reinvent them in new ways.
Khaki… Crackerjacky Believe it or not, what was once considered a bit dull and appropriate for office workers has suddenly jettisoned to 5th Avenue fashion houses. Khaki has gotten a makeover and emerged very chic. The consummate neutral, khaki separates will most certainly find ideal pairings with existing items in your closet. But don’t stop there. This trend is not necessarily about practicality, functionality and common sensibility — it’s about rewriting rules and breaking expectations. Designers have assumed the challenge and created a wealth of thinkagain, fashion-forward neutral dresses, skirts, pants and coats that “just happen to be khaki.” The neutrality and mutability of the ubiquiContinued on page 2A
Veronica Beard gingham pant suit at Angela’s in Rye
shows this season’s focus on stripes and patterns.
TODAY’S WOMAN – LAURA PUHALA
Puhala again answers strong calling to the law she loves
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By MAJA TARATETA
he law called to Laura Siegel Puhala, but it’s taken her a while to answer. At first, she was certain of her passion for the legal profession. She graduated with a degree in political science from Johns Hopkins University and then earned a J.D. from George Washington University Law School. It was the late 1980s and she and her husband moved to New York, where she took a job in personal injury law on the plaintiff side. Finding she wanted to be more involved in public service, Puhala then worked in insurance defense. It still wasn’t quite what she wanted to do. Hoping to do more to help others in her law work, Puhala became a court attorney for the Hon. Louis B. York in the Civil Court of the City of New York. For two years, she advised and assisted the judge with all matters relating to trials and special proceedings, including formulating jury charges and verdict sheets, researching and composing primary draft decision on written and oral motions, and managing court dockets, calendars and a judicial internship program. Then, she and her husband decided to start their family. Like many women, Puhala felt conflicted over whether to keep working or stay home full time with her new baby. “I was fortunate that I had that option,” she said. But she also wasn’t completely happy doing what she was doing. “I was a litigator,” Puhala said. “But I wanted to do more affirmative work. Affirmative means enforcing policies — see issues and take an action to stop targets from doing bad things.” As the family moved to Edgemont, Puhala decided to take a break from the law profession and stay home. A few years later,
JIM MACLEAN PHOTO
Laura Puhala is ready to get back to business in the field of law.
she had another child. To stay involved and active, she volunteered in the Edgemont School District, serving on the PTSA/PTA as chair for 12 years, among other leadership roles within the school community. In 2008, as Puhala’s oldest daughter graduated, she thought about going back to work. But with a recession looming and firms slowing down the hiring of new lawyers, she decided the timing was not right. In the beginning of 2014, she knew she had waited long enough — maybe even too long. “I couldn’t find the right position,” she said. It’s a common story. According to an article in The New York Times, a study of high-achieving women by the Center for Work-Life Policy, now known as the Center for Talent Innovation, found that 31 percent voluntarily left the work force between 2004 and 2009, primarily for child care reasons. After career breaks averaging two and a half years, 89 percent said they wanted to return, the study found. But only 40 percent managed to find what they regarded as a good full-time job in the sector of their choice. Puhala had been out of the working world for almost 20 years. To help get her back involved in the legal profession, Puhala enrolled in the New Directions for Attorneys program at Pace University School of Law, earning her certificate in June 2014. The idea of the program, which has now ended, was to help people return to careers in law. Other programs, like The Relaunching Attorney Platform, continue to offer assistance to those who have paused their legal careers. Since graduating from the program, Puhala has filled her days with volunteer work in the legal field, currently working three days each week as a volunteer assistant attor-
ney general in the health care bureau of the Office of the Attorney General of the State of New York. There she assists HelpLine callers by investigating their claims and reaching out to insurance companies and providers on their behalf regarding coverage for mental health services, including applied behavior analysis for autistic children, surprise billing for emergency services, prescription requirements for mammograms and more. It is an ideal position for her, Puhala said, but for the lack of a paycheck and the long commute into New York City. The job she hopes for? “To have a lawrelated position where I’m helping people — being of service to the public — but not 80 hours per week,” Puhala said. “Something that is fulfilling and working with people whom I feel energized by.” Puhala said it’s been a challenge to overcome the combination of her age with her minimal experience in today’s world. Potential employers, she said, see an older candidate with not a huge amount of experience when they are looking for entry level or someone with many more years of experience who can devote countless hours to the job. For now, Puhala keeps persevering, putting in the days at the health care bureau and looking for paid work. “I don’t regret staying home with my kids,” she said. “I did make a choice, and I sacrificed my career. But I didn’t love what I was doing… If you are doing something you really enjoy, I would not leave it. Make arrangements to keep a foot in the door, and try to be there for your kids. It’s incredibly difficult to get back.” She added, “It’s been an adventure.” The law, it seems, is still calling Puhala. And now, she is answering, “Yes.”