There are those who shop—and then there are those who hunt. Jenny Walton has long belonged to the latter camp, the kind of vintage collector who remembers not just what she bought, but where she found it, what she was wearing when she stumbled upon it, and—crucially—why it mattered. In her debut book, Jenny Sais Quoi (out April 29), Walton invites readers into that deeply personal process: part scrapbook, part sketchbook, part sartorial manifesto—though, as she writes, “this book is in no way a guide.”
Walton didn’t simply write the book—she illustrated it, photographed it, and pieced it together like a visual diary of her own life. Loose, gestural ink drawings sit alongside still lifes of treasured objects, flea market finds are arranged like miniature stage sets, and candid snapshots of her Milan existence are collaged with painterly abandon. Even the cover—rendered in a playful, trompe-l’oeil style with hand-drawn lettering—feels delightfully Beaton-esque, as though it might have been dashed off in the margins of a particularly chic sketchbook. The effect is intimate rather than polished, tactile rather than glossy—a fashion book that feels, refreshingly, like something made by hand.
Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon
Instead of offering rules, Walton offers permission. “A wardrobe that is a true reflection of its owner cannot be bought overnight,” she writes, framing style not as something to acquire, but something to uncover—slowly, instinctively, and often irrationally. It is, in her words, a journey into “the messy, magical world of self-expression.”
To celebrate Vogue’s Vintage Week (with our Vogue Vintage Market sale just around the corner), Walton is doing what she does best: looking back. Here, she spotlights a selection of pieces that have defined her wardrobe—and, in many ways, her worldview. A long-sought-after Marc Jacobs Spring 2008 collection dress discovered in the depths of a late-night resale scroll; a hay-strewn circle skirt given extra drama with a crinoline; a silk Hermès scarf endlessly reimagined. These are not just clothes, but companions—objects imbued with memory, patience, and a touch of serendipity.
Photo: Courtesy of Phaidon
This might be my favorite dress of all time, simply because of how long I waited for it. I first saw it on Style.com when it walked down the Marc Jacobs runway in September 2007. I was a freshman studying fashion design at Parsons, and Marc Jacobs was my obsession. I never dreamt I could own this dress (Look 41 to be exact), let alone anything from this collection. However, two years ago (15 years after it walked the runway), while scrolling a resale site late at night, I stumbled upon someone selling it out of Rouen, France. I paid 100 Euros for it (I already had the matching backwards heels). Spring 2008 Marc Jacobs remains one of my most coveted search terms.