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Sunday, September 23, 2001
Strictly Santa Fe
Bright velvets, frills, plenty of Double D clothes fill pharmacist's closet

Paul Iverson/Caller-Times

Grace Dudley, 45, travels the Southwest in search of Santa Fe-style jewelry and Double D outfits.
Closet snoop
   Grace Dudley, 45, is an Eckerd Drugs pharmacist who keeps active by running, lifting weights, roller-skating and traveling. Her favorite destination is London. Dudley, who is married and has a 17-year-old son and a 13-year-old daughter, enjoys spending time with family.

   Q: What's the craziest fashion item you've owned?
   A: Purple crushed velvet hot pants, suede purple boots and a matching suede purse with fringe. I was only 14. We still laugh when we see the old pictures of me wearing that outrageous outfit. I got compliments, so it wasn't that bad.

   Q: What would you never be caught dead in?
   A: Those baggy jeans many young people find trendy. I don't let my kids wear them. No discolored or dirty-looking jeans. I didn't own a pair of jeans until I was in college.

   Q: Define your personal style.
   A: The Southwest style, including Santa Fe-style jewelry, but I don't wear cowboy hats. We travel to Santa Fe, N.M., quite a bit. When I travel to California, Santa Fe and Montana, I'll buy Double D clothes. I also dress up in lace and silk, fitted and frilly, in usually bright colors such as purples, blues and red. I avoid too much beige or brown.


Paul Iverson/Caller-Times

Dudley enjoys dressing up, but she likes to wear comfortable running clothes around the house.

   Q: What should every woman own?
   A: A pair of heels that make your legs look sexy, sunglasses that make you feel glamorous, and at least one piece of strikingly beautiful jewelry. Big bulky shoes make my legs look too skinny, and they're not very feminine. I have my daughter's black Roxy sunglasses with rhinestones on the corners.

   Q: What's the most you've paid for an accessory?
   A: A year's salary for a 51/2-carat diamond ring my husband and I purchased in New York. It was for our five-year anniversary (a carat for each year). It was appraised at $60,000. I love it though and have no regrets!

   Q: What do you wear around the house?
   A: Running clothes (shorts and a T-shirt). They're so comfortable. I'm usually on the way to go exercise or clean the home, but when I'm in public I try to look my best and that means put on makeup and comb your hair.

   Q: Biggest fashion influence?
   A: My mother. She designed and made most of my clothes up until I went to college. I took great pride in the fact that I had enough clothes to wear something different for six months before repeating outfits. She even made all my formals and a matching tie for my date. It was hard for me to buy ready-made clothes. My mother always looks stylish, even now at 75.

   Q: Most recent dressed-to-the-nines outfit?
   A: I went to the presidential inauguration in January of this year. I bought my blue sequin and satin formal at Elizabeth Ann. They're careful to ask where you are going so you won't have the same dress as someone else. I also wore garnet-and-diamond earrings and a matching necklace. My white shawl had hanging white jewels. I tried to keep a red, white and blue theme.

   Q: Most embarrassing fashion mishap?
   A: A couple of years ago, I wore a new peasant blouse, skirt, and lace petticoat out to dinner. When I came back to our table from the ladies room, several people were staring. I was sure they were admiring my new outfit. When I got up to leave, my husband noticed my skirt and petticoat were tucked into my underwear. I always check my skirt at least twice now when I visit the ladies room.



- Staff writer Cassandra Hinojosa

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