Superstars of the Day: These People

Today I am making candied grapefruit peels for my grandfather. I tried the recipe on a whim a few years ago, and the sweet, tart, summer-colored little peels became an instant family favorite, with my grandfather in particular putting them away by the dozen and begging me to make more.

The recipe is not labor-intensive, but is time intensive. Boil; boil; boil again; that's pretty much how the recipe goes. In between boilings, I am -- what else? -- looking to the Sartorialist for fashion inspiration.

Quiz time! What do the following women have in common?

If you guessed boots, you would be correct! Looking at ideas for how to rock boots in non-boring ways, I was struck by how many fashionistas pair boots with black pants (and black tights and leggings, of course). I love all these looks, though for different reasons.

The girl in the first picture is special because the bagginess of the dress is balanced by her slouchy boots. The eye is drawn to her bare shoulder and then her legs, which look wonderfully slim since they're bookended by a roomy dress and slouchy boots. A tighter dress might have made her look hoochy, but the baggy dress gives her a perfectly laid-back look.

The woman in the second picture obviously has a great body, and she's maximizing the length of her legs by pairing high-heeled boots with black skinny jeans. She's created an uninterrupted line from her hips to the tips of her toes. Also, that leather jacket is amazing.

Sometimes the boots-over-jeans look is pooh-poohed because it cuts off the length of your legs. Despite this totally valid criticism, I still think it's cute. But wearing black jeans with black boots gets around this problem, and allows you to show off every inch of your boots while protecting the cuffs of your pants from the weather. The girl in the third picture (who must be a model) is a perfect example - her legs look a mile long, though I don't have the slightest idea how she's able to ride her bike in what appears to be an extremely high-end, high-heeled boot.