Capital Style

Digitally savvy trendsetters find cool D.C.-area spots to showcase their latest fashion finds.

- Jennifer Barger

NEAR THE U.S. CAPITOL, a well-dressed woman in a bright pencil skirt and tuxedo jacket smiles as a single photographer snaps images, using the iconic dome as a stage set of sorts. Some lesser-known congresswoman trying to polish her media presence? More likely she’s a local fashion blogger or Instagrammer, utilizing the city’s dazzling architecture, urban sidewalks or funky murals as her (or his) outdoor studio. They’re members of an increasingly chic local tribe that doesn’t always get the fashion cred it deserves.

ALISON GARY

“The concept of the K Street woman in a frumpy navy suit and white sneakers is so dated,” says Alison Gary of Wardrobe Oxygen (wardrobeoxygen.com), who has been doling out what you might call edgy everywoman style and life advice

since 2005. “Many people here do have conservative jobs with dress codes, but I see so many of them have fun with color, pattern and mixing high and low.” On her blog and Instagram feed (@wardrobe_oxygen, 10.9k followers), Gary shows off looks that exemplify how chic the capital can be. There she is rocking a bright floral sundress in the gleaming marble surrounds of Union Station or trotting out her signature black leather jacket for concerts at Shaw’s 9:30 Club. Popular with the hip mom crowd, Gary has done promotional partnerships with national brands like Cabi and Gwynnie Bee, but she also loves hitting local fashion sources like Lynn Louisa and Betsy Fisher.

DIEGO GONZALEZ-ZUNIGA