Maya Rudolph as Mama Muse

Last week, a friend and I (and Archer and her baby of course) went to see "Away We Go" directed by Sam Mendes (of American Beauty fame) for our weekly Movies for Mommies date (see my earlier post on Movies for Mommies if you don't know about this).

First, may I say, this is a sweet movie. Try and see it if you can. Funny, sad, touching and if you're anything like me right now, because it's about a young(ish) couple having their first baby, you'll probably be crying a *lot so bring lots of kleenex.

But this blog isn't about the movie - really. It's about Maya Rudolph who I decided should be a downtown mama muse. First, she's hilarious, second she's married to P.T. Anderson which is pretty cool, third, she has fierce (channeling Jay Manuel here) style both in "Away We Go" (which I assume has nothing to do with her but whatever) and outside the movie.

Her style in the movie is quirky but ultimately pretty and I think will inspire me into the fall... yes, technically Maya's character in the movie is pregnant but let's face it, a lot of the same fashion fundamentals apply to new moms - we're still looking for cuts that emphasize the smallest part of our torso - usually an empire cut (for a little while).

To get Maya's mama look, look for a lot of vintagy floral numbers- great for the end of summer but dresses, for example, will also look good with high riding boots in the fall. I haven't really seen a lot in the stores that suit my downtown mama budget yet but things will go on sale. Take a look at this Gap number (and as all good downtown mama knows, eventually everything goes on sale at the Gap so this should be no exception). I'm also seeing some good options coming for Fall 2009 at Club Monaco (also subject to the rule about sales). - see the Kayleen Dress on their website at http://www.clubmonaco.com/. I'm quite sure you could also find beautiful floral dresses at vintage stores... I'll let you know if I find anything - b/c for sure, I'll be looking!

I also liked the way her character used vintage blouses as toppers. I found a great blouse that came in black and cream colour at Joe Fresh for $24. I'm not sure this picture does it justice (I am taking applications for a downtown mama model! oh, did I mention I will pay you nothing? I'll tell you that you look better than Tyra Banks all the time though :)) but they're really pretty and will look great over dresses (as Maya used them in the movie) and with tanks and jeans. I've paired mine here with my very unchild friendly (they are serving as a new toy for Archer) but stylin' string of long faux pearls from Jacob.