Your Unemployed Daughter

Derek Ivie, the legend behind TGMTU, shows YUD Fashion Director Lindsey Hunter Lopez the upside of dressing down (in a down market) at a midtown lunch near his former place of employment. While the suits strut the street in hot, wooly cocoons, Derek breezes around NYC looking casual cool.

LHL: Derek, what is the key to your unemployment wardrobe?

DI: Comfortable underwear. I spend most of my day rolling around in bed thinking about what I am going to do with my life. I don’t want anything too tight, otherwise things will get hurt in the rolling process. Cotton boxer briefs from the GAP really seem to fit the bill for me.

LHL: What’s your typical unemployment outfit?

DI: I like V-neck T-shirts in basic colors. The V is better than a crew neck for someone of my stature and round faced-ness—it gives the illusion of an elongated face. (I learned that from What Not to Wear.) Pair the tee with shorts, and I am good to go. A new adventure I have embarked on are Vans with no socks. Gold Bond powder in the shoe stops it from getting too swampy in there.

LHL: Anything you miss wearing from your working wardrobe?

DI: I have a lovely collection of ties from over the years, and now I don’t use any of them. They just hang in my closet wondering when I will finally have a job again.

LHL: If you got hired today, what would you buy?

DI: Probably some sort of man bag. A new bag makes one feel fancy and in control. Or, depending on the job, some new dress pants. I have one or two pairs that mainly show themselves at family events or when I’m interviewing Tim Gunn.

LHL: If and when you get hired, what will you carry over from your unemployment wardrobe?

DI: My new Adidas watch. Black and sporty with a mirrored face, it can keep a fancy outfit casual or help a casual outfit look spiffy!

LHL: What item of “work wear” are you happy not to have to wear?

DI: Pants during the summer. Wearing jeans while walking the mean streets of New York was never fun. You go to lunch and you are sweaty, and then you go into the office and it’s cold and you feel like leftover porridge. And you know who doesn’t like crappy porridge? Goldilocks. But that’s neither here nor there.

LHL: What’s your favorite thing about what you’re wearing today?

DI: Definitely my backpack, which I bought in Puerto Rico, a post-layoff jaunt. It was only 25 bucks, and it is adorable. It’s a bright blue Element bag with an electric green logo. It really adds pop to the whole ensemble.

LHL: Where do you shop when you’re trying to be thrifty?

DI: There isn’t one specific place to shop while unemployed; it is the time of season and part of the store. Yes, that shirt in the window looks wonderful, but it might run you $50! STAY AWAY! Right now all of the stores are switching from summer to fall and are having incredible sales. I went to J. Crew and bought about $400 worth of merchandise for $150.

LHL: What is your latest splurge?

DI: I bought the new iPhone 3GS just yesterday! But I was due for a new phone, plus I was eligible for an upgrade, which meant it was marked down.

LHL: What’s your pet peeve about casual wear?

DI: If not done correctly, it can look sloppy. Ill-fitting clothes are never good. Not too tight and not too loose, people, make sure it fits well in the right places.

LHL: What’s in your backpack?

DI: The new issues of Details and GQ. My Life in France by Julia Child. Seeing glasses, sunglasses, and a pack of tissues.

Get Derek’s Unemployment Look:
Sunglasses: Ray-Ban aviators from Sunglass Hut
Shirt: Artist RED collection from the GAP
Shorts: Khaki cargos from the GAP
Flip-flops: J. Crew, marked down from $30 to $5
Backpack: Element, surf shop in Puerto Rico

—Lindsey Hunter Lopez