Yes, we’re influenced by fashion insiders, celebrities, and even friends whose taste we admire, but your goal should be to develop signature looks that are flattering, comfortable, and, most importantly, expressive of who you are and how you live. With the exception of my self-confessed caftan addiction, I curate my wardrobe. I believe in editing what you have. I don’t buy trendy clothes and I wear what I have forever. I’d rather add one really good piece to my collection every year than have an excess of lesser “options.” If you think of your wardrobe as falling into two broad categories—casual and dressy—and buy and organize accordingly, your choices will be straightforward.
My casual clothes are variations on a uniform. I’m tall, five foot nine, and long-legged, so most days you’ll find me wearing trim black pants and a fitted black tee topped with a short or a long cardigan. Alternately, I pair my pants with a crisp white shirt. You will never see me in ripped jeans. I don’t know who invented them, but they make a woman look as if she has been dragged through a thorny hedge backward. My outfit may be subdued, but my earrings, usually by David Webb, are large, bright, and colorful statement pieces, and I tend to wear the same ones every day. On the rare occasion when I need to look dressier during the day, I wear a sleeveless dress with a matching coat and low heels.
For cocktail parties and other evenings out, the one piece every woman should have in her fashion arsenal is the little black dress. If you want to do some research, read The Little Black Dress by my dear friend André Leon Talley, the most charming, brilliant, and discerning man ever. The book shows you different styles and silhouettes, and you can use that information when selecting your own LBD, at whatever price point is appropriate for you.
In the book, André talks about two of my black dresses. The first time we met, I was wearing an Yves Saint Laurent Le Smoking tuxedo coatdress, one of my favorite choices for evening. André loved it, too, but he was even more impressed by what he spied in my purse. “When I met Mrs. Patricia Altschul for the first time at a black-tie dinner in Paris, she wore this dress, and when she opened her elegant black envelope evening bag, I noticed she had a small pistol inside. How did she get a gun through customs? It was before today’s strict laws.”[1] I guess it was a memorable accessory.
On another occasion, André and I planned on going together to the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute Gala (otherwise known as the “Met Ball”). It was in 2005, the year the museum celebrated the house of Chanel, and I wanted to wear a very special dress. André found one for me at LILY et Cie, the famous vintage boutique in Los Angeles. The store had a fabulous Chanel couture gown designed by Karl Lagerfeld for his second collection in 1984, and I bought it by telephone. Thankfully, the confection of black organza and lace fit. The night of the gala, André picked me up in a Maybach towncar and I could barely get the dress through the door. The skirt was so voluminous that it filled the back seat and blocked the rear window!
And let’s not forget about the little white dress, especially in the spring or summer, although now you can wear winter white in cashmere or in wool. I’m a big fan of shifts, probably a throwback to my Jackie Kennedy days, when that simple, beautifully cut swath of fabric seemed impossibly glamorous. Shifts flatter every figure and are very versatile, whether in summer white or winter black. Young girls don’t have to worry about showing their arms (actually, young girls don’t have to worry about much), but for those of us who want/need to cover them, I like to have a little wrap, maybe edged with fringe for a feminine touch.
For those moments when more is more, I like to pair a dress with a stunning coat. I fussed over what I should wear to the Bravos this year when I had the unusual distinction of being nominated for the Susan Lucci Award. Two of my conominees, Dorinda Medley and Vicki Gunvalson, are “Housewives,” and the other, Kristen Doute, is on Vanderpump Rules. As Bravo fans know, these women are not afraid to be flashy. This was to be my first visit to Andy Cohen’s clubhouse and I wanted to look better than just right.
In the days leading up to the awards, I was torn between wearing white or black (should I be a good witch or a bad witch?). After much deliberation, I decided that white is more regal. The dress by Lanvin was lovely, but the coat was made of white silk and designed by The Row, and was a real showstopper, or should I say a “reality-showstopper.” My outfit received rave reviews on social media and one admiring Southern Charm fan posted on Instagram that my “coat game is on another level.”
I hadn’t thought of coat wearing as an athletic event, but I will say that a beautiful evening coat is one of the smartest wardrobe investments you can make. A “duster” comes to the ground and has an even hem, while an “opera coat” is voluminous and has a train. You can pair an evening coat with anything from a slip to a gown, and if you’re young, a minidress. If you dare, and your coat has a belt or buttons, you can be like Elizabeth Taylor in the film Butterfield 8 and wear nothing at all under it. You can dress it up or down with accessories, and you’ll find it will be the one garment you turn to season after season, year after year, when you want to look elegant.
There’s controversy about whether or not to wear stockings—young girls can get by without wearing them, if the cold weather doesn’t bother them. But I think that older women should wear them because they work miracles—they even out the skin tone, hold in what nature wants to spill out, and make legs and the lower torso look lean and shapely. If you ask me, SPANX stockings are the greatest invention of the twenty-first century.
The right—or the wrong—bra can change everything. A personal stylist once told me that the worst mistake a woman can make is to wear a bra that doesn’t fit properly. If you’re in a store trying on clothes, ask if someone from the lingerie department can bring you a selection of bras to try on at the same time. Different garments require different foundations, and the only way to determine which bra fits best is through trial and error. Women appear years younger with proper uplift, so get frequent fittings and replace that old, loose bra that feels like a sling and makes you look saggy and baggy.
I don’t know how it happened, but I have become famous for my caftans. I’m the caftan queen. I have more caftans than Lawrence of Arabia. They are very chic and extremely comfortable—so comfortable that I see the caftan as an acceptable way to wear a nightgown in public.
People seem to think that I’m unique for swanning around in them, but I remember being inspired by photographs of great beauties wearing caftans in Vogue magazine in the 1960s. Fashion icons, including Talitha Getty, Marella Agnelli, and Elizabeth Taylor, posed in exotic locations, looking sun-kissed, romantic, and daring, their caftans blowing in the breeze. More recently, Kate Moss could be seen modeling a caftan in fashion layouts.
I first started wearing them in the 1970s, when they were still considered bohemian, and that was about as bohemian as I ever got. At the time, they were likely to be tie-dyed. Caftans were great for the beach and parties at home, and perfect if you were pregnant and trying to conceal a baby. Now, I have an entire wardrobe of caftans. They’re so versatile that I wear them for many different kinds of occasions, and especially when I’m entertaining at home.
The trick is to select one that fits properly and to pair it with the right accessories. If you are tall, you can wear one that is voluminous because it will drape properly. If you are curvy or full-figured, a caftan offers great camouflage. And if you are petite, you want to make sure you get one that doesn’t have an excessive amount of fabric. I like the ones that are stitched down the sides because they look loose and structured at the same time.
I’ve found my best caftans in a variety of places, from designer showrooms to a marketplace in India. At the moment, my favorite is a whimsical one designed by Libertine and called “Monkeys in Space,” because the print is—guess what—monkeys in space. I love a caftan with a sense of humor.
Big, bold jewelry makes a caftan come to life. It is an exotic look and you should have fun with it. I do! Add cuffs, bracelets, heavy necklaces, dangly earrings, a multitude of rings, and you’re good to go. Whether your jewelry is real or costume—and a mixture can be nice—a caftan is a great canvas for your most flamboyant, attention-getting pieces, and lots of them. Sometimes more is not enough.
You can add flat shoes or sandals for a casual effect. But when it is time to dress up, put on your highest heels and don’t be shy. The wildest shoes I own are by Giuseppe Zanotti. They are black suede cages covered with turquoise, gemstones, and spikes, and they have five-inch stiletto heels. I paired them with a white cashmere caftan and an Indian turquoise necklace. I couldn’t walk in them—nobody can—but these amazing shoes turned a demure caftan into a sensation.
My passion for caftans has inspired me to start my own line with my friend and favorite entrepreneur, Georgette Mosbacher. It all started when we took a trip to India together and met Sherina Dalamal, a very successful young wedding dress designer. While we were there, we talked about how much we loved caftans and how it would be fun to have one with the image of a favorite pet on it. Georgette is obsessed with Guinevere, her Cavalier King Charles spaniel, and everyone knows how I feel about the members of my extended dog family. Sherina made a customized caftan for Georgette, and when everyone wanted it, we knew we were on to something.
Georgette and I have busy lives. When we travel together, we’re girls who just want to have fun.
The last thing either of us needed was a business opportunity. But we couldn’t resist the idea of offering pet lovers a beautiful and lightweight caftan that can feature a silk-screened image of their dog or cat, or any animal (how about your pet iguana?). They’re whimsical, comfortable, and extremely flattering. And I love the idea of draping myself in a fabric printed with Chauncey’s sweet little face.
I’ve asked my friend Cathy Horyn, the fashion critic and journalist (who is working on a history of the fashion coverage in the New York Times, from the 1850s to the present), to share her thoughts on the enduring appeal of the caftan.
Ask the Expert: Cathy Horyn
When did fashionable women start wearing caftans? What decade? Do you recall the first time you saw one in a fashion magazine, or on a celebrity?
I could imagine that the European heroines of Lesley Blanch’s book The Wilder Shores of Love wore caftans or some variation while living in the Middle East, especially Jane Digby el Mezrab. We’re talking about the mid-Victorian period. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Paris couturier Paul Poiret created loose-fitting tunics and robes that were probably inspired by Arabic dress, including caftans. I remember seeing very vivid caftans in American Vogue, but primarily in issues from the 1960s and ’70s—the Vreeland era. Oscar de la Renta always made them for his clients.
Is there any place you can’t (or shouldn’t) wear a caftan?
It’s probably not a good idea to wear a caftan in church. Otherwise, depending on the color, fabric and embellishment, and how you accessorize your caftan, I think you can wear them anywhere. Caftans can also be short and belted. So, good for a more professional setting (though, again, depends on the type of work environment).
Caftans never seem to go out of style. What makes them timeless?
Caftans resist aging because, like Shaker furniture and the Chanel cardigan jacket, they have simple lines. They’re sort of unanswerably chic, perhaps because of all those visual associations with wild Victorians, bohemians, and jet-setters of the past. Also, they’re tasteful and practical, yet because they’re loose in cut, they imply that the wearer is someone who doesn’t like to be controlled.
What’s the single most dramatic accessory a woman can pair with a caftan?
Because caftans are so simple, and a bit exotic, dramatic jewelry is the obvious accessory—something like the bronze-and-stone pieces that Lisa Eisner makes in Los Angeles.
Do you ever wear them?
My favorite caftan was one in lightweight gray wool from Yves Saint Laurent. Last year I had a pair of caftans—one black, one white, both short—made for me by the young designers of Monse, Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia. They’re now the creative directors at Oscar de la Renta.
I’m surprised more people don’t know this: a good tailor can make a garment look as if it were made for you. Simple alterations—a slight pad to offset uneven shoulders, a hem adjustment, a seam taken in or let out—can make all the difference in the world. Bulges and pooches are never a good look, so buy the correct size and then let a tailor customize your clothing to minimize your flaws. I once read that Jennifer Aniston even has her T-shirts altered to fit perfectly.
Shoes are my passion. Flats have their place in life, but can we talk about the magical powers of heels? They elongate the leg, sculpt pounds off the body, and give a woman stature, especially when she is beautifully dressed. Let the heels give you lift—stand up straight, shoulders back. Even if you are tall like me, don’t be afraid to add height. But teetering is not a good look. Practice walking in your new heels so you don’t look as if you are performing in Cirque du Soleil. If your stilettos are a little too high, take them to a good shoemaker. He can shorten them by almost an inch. You’ll be more comfortable and no one will be the wiser.
Just as important as how you stand in heels is how you sit. Southern women are very good at sitting correctly, probably because our mothers were terrified we might expose the wrong thing at the wrong time. When I went to cotillion in Richmond, the ladies taught us to sit with our ankles crossed, but I think that position causes the legs to spread in an ungainly way. Here’s a much more attractive way to sit: if you cross your legs at the knee, and keep your legs pressed together, foot pointing down, you will achieve an elegant, straight line. And try to sit up straight, shoulders open, without looking stiff. Slumping is diminishing. You want to present yourself properly, but you also want to look comfortable, and it can require a little practice to do both.
There’s even a proper way to sit down when wearing a fur coat. I call it the “fur flip.” Lift the hem of your coat and flip it up before you sit: you will literally break the fur if you put your weight on it.
On to my next favorite accessory: the purse. Have you noticed that purses have become much more important than their function? The philosophy seems to be: you are what you carry. I’m the first one to appreciate a gorgeous Hermès bag, or a classic Chanel, which are great investments, by the way, because they appreciate in value. I bought a bubble-gum-pink, one-of-a-kind, alligator Birkin bag strictly as an investment, because Birkin bags are bought and traded as commodities. I have never worn, nor carried it, anywhere. It sits pristine in its original box, waiting to be sold for a nice profit.
I think the big mistake most women make when selecting the right bag is to overlook the importance of scale. During the day, it is fine to carry the enormous satchel that holds everything you ever owned but can never find. However, if you haul that oversized bag to a cocktail party, you look as if you are coming to spend the night, which may not be the precise message you want to send. Evening bags should always be small—a little clutch, for example—holding lipstick, money, keys, and if you can squeeze it in, a cell phone. Just the essentials. My stylish friend Georgette Mosbacher puts her keys and her money in her shoe when she wants to be unencumbered. That’s true freedom.
Never wait until the last minute to decide what you’re going to wear, because that’s the moment you will discover that something doesn’t fit, doesn’t look right with the ensemble, or needs to be repaired. Here’s what I do, and it’s failsafe. I assemble what I call my clothing vignettes.[2] I decide what I’m going to wear—in this case an LBD—and lay everything out. My J. Mendel dress is fancy and has chiffon sleeves, so I pair it with sparkly Manolo Blahniks and a sequined Chanel purse. I’ll decide what earrings I want to wear later on. But I usually take a picture, and I make a notation of where I’m going and what I’m wearing. It’s a good way to keep a record and will prevent you from getting all flummoxed right before you go to a party because you’ve prepared in advance. You’re much more relaxed, especially if you have that dressing drink.
This question comes up more than you would think. When is it appropriate to wear a tiara? In my day, only married royals could wear a tiara. Judith Martin, otherwise known as “Miss Manners,” suggests that tiaras are acceptable at the opera and when visiting with royalty, but never at brunch. Now, anything goes, especially with Game of Thrones being such a hit. You could wear one to the Piggly Wiggly and not feel out of place. Personally, I think it is inappropriate to wear a tiara unless you’re going to a white-tie function. But if you insist on donning one for more quotidian[3] events, you must wear it properly. Most people make the mistake of setting it too low on the forehead or too far back on the head. It should sit in the middle. I have a tiara that has a martini glass on it.
When I was growing up, one never wore diamonds in the daytime. That was considered déclassé and showy. My mother would have found some of the jewelry I wear enormously vulgar. But I enjoy shiny, pretty things and I don’t hold back! Of course, if you have on jeans and a T-shirt, diamonds look silly (and don’t get me started about that oxymoron[4] the tennis bracelet. What diamonds and tennis have to do with each other I’ll never know.) The diamond you can wear any time of day is an engagement ring, the bigger the better.
If you are more conservative, pearls are always lovely and always appropriate. I think they add that polished Grace Kelly touch when you want to look demure. Wear them day or night, a choker at the neck or layered strands to the waist. I treasure my pink, opalescent South Sea pearls. But the best thing about pearls is that most people can’t tell the difference between real and fake, so you don’t have to be rich to enjoy them. My friend, the fabulous jewelry designer Kenneth Jay Lane, makes the most incredible faux pearls. No one could ever tell that they were fake, and every First Lady had a wardrobe of them.
Pearls go hand in hand with gloves. I think gloves have fallen out of fashion because women don’t know how to wear them anymore, which is a shame because gloves are elegant and sexy at the same time. I remember wearing evening gloves to an event and men couldn’t stop kissing my hand. They were enthralled by the mystery of my covered flesh.
The rule of thumb for wearing gloves to a formal event is as follows:
The great thing about wearing gloves is that you don’t need to use Purell after shaking hands with a lot of people!
Like most Southerners, I’m a sucker for a monogram or a family crest. It goes back to the whole thing about genealogy and family, because as I said, all Southerners are really left with is their history. Monograms can be used just about anywhere—on stationery, on clothing and accessories, on linens, on china and silverware, and even on pet bowls. I saw a Rolls-Royce with both a monogram and a family crest and I kind of liked it.
Traditional monograms have the initial of the last name in the center, with the initials of the first and middle names on the left and right, respectively. In my day, married women used their initials on their sheets, towels, and table linens. But today, monograms are the Wild West: there are templates for couples, singles, people with hyphenated last names, and every other combination. I prefer the old-fashioned way, but if you want to be unconventional, there are internet resources to help you figure it out.
If you don’t know your family crest, you can research it. Many names have European roots that go all the way back to medieval times, when families used coats of arms and crests. Trace your family history at Ancestry.com or hire a genealogist to do it for you. You can also start the tradition for yourself and future generations by using an online tool (there’s actually a site called FamilyCrest.com) to assemble the various symbols that make up a crest. If all else fails, there are artists who will do it for you.
You can put a family crest anywhere. I have it on towels, linens, stationery—and Whitney has our family crest tattooed on his arm. I’d love it if it weren’t so big.
We live in a casual world, is the polite way of putting it, where the bar is set very low. When I was growing up in the fifties, women knew how to dress up. In fact, they wore dresses and high heels, their hair was done, and their makeup was in place on a Tuesday morning, when they had no plans. They were party-ready all the time. There are times when you have to take off your exercise clothes, put on the dog, and be as glamorous as you can, especially for parties. That said, you don’t want to make a mistake because you misunderstood the dress code.
Oscar Wilde once said that you can never be overdressed or overeducated, but I disagree about the overdressed part. You don’t want to be the one who sticks out like a sore thumb at a party, and invitations can be very confusing, especially when a host uses the dress code to elevate the event. How else do you explain a “black-tie pig roast at the beach,” and how do you figure out what to wear to it? I always analyze the occasion and the location—pig roast and beach tell you everything you need to know. You should not be dressing formally for this party. In fact, you probably shouldn’t go!
“Black tie” is a pretty straightforward directive for men: it means wear a tuxedo. But for women, “black tie” is a broad category that breaks down in the following ways:
In my experience, parties with dress codes tend to be long, so think about comfort.
One of the most confusing dress codes on an invitation is “black tie optional.” I don’t like anything that’s optional because it opens the door to some guests dressing in their finest while others show up in cowboy boots and sombreros. If you’re the host, be specific, or your event will be a mashup of the prom and the office Christmas party. If you really don’t care what people wear, tell them up front. Just say “party attire,” or “festive attire,” and let them go wild.
These days, very few events are “white tie.” The Met Ball comes to mind. If it comes up, women should wear long, formal evening gowns (and you can dust off that tiara). Men have an elaborate list of wardrobe requirements, including a white bow tie, a waistcoat, and patent leather shoes.
British Vogue offers a useful way to determine what an invitation is really saying when it comes to dress code. “The thicker the card (and the more fanciful the calligraphy); the smarter the event. If it came via Facebook, you can relax a little,” the magazine suggests.
The New York Times says that well-kept clothes signify adulthood.[5] What is the point of collecting beautiful garments if you don’t take care of them? I mentioned that it is a good idea to inspect your outfits and accessories well before you need to wear them so that repairs can be made. An even better idea is to examine your clothes immediately after your wear them, before you put them away. Marie Kondo, author of the best-selling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, would agree. Check for stains, loose buttons, and droopy hems—problems don’t fix themselves while the clothes are hanging in the closet, as nice as that would be. In fact, they usually get worse.
My English friends have a unique and highly effective way of maintaining their wardrobes. They don’t believe in sending clothes to the dry cleaner unless it is absolutely necessary. Instead, they hang their clothes in special airing rooms, spot-clean them, and use the appropriate brushes to remove surface dust and dirt. Obviously, if you spill red wine on your white coat you need a professional. But most of the time an airing and a vigorous brushing will do the trick. Chemicals are not good for fine garments, but you can use an organic dry cleaner, if you can find one.
I hand wash my cashmere sweaters and lay them out on a mesh platform to dry, instead of draping them on the balcony so it looks like Naples. Here’s a tip I’m happy to pass on: use products by The Laundress for your fine washables. A friend and I were remarking that their delicate soaps, fabric sprays, and tools (all beautifully packaged) actually make doing laundry fun. And the scent is really clean. I’m all for bringing back clotheslines, so everything can be dried in the sun.
My big indulgence is that I like to have everything freshly ironed, even my nightgowns. When I was growing up, my mother taught me the best way to iron anything. For example, a blouse:
My laundry room has a mangle, an old-fashioned device used to press sheets, towels, and napkins. Lucky me, having someone to do all that. But I have a young friend, a newlywed, in fact, who shares my mania for pressed surfaces and neat creases and she does it all herself. She even irons the sheets before she puts them on the bed.
I live in an historic home, so I do not have a Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City–style oversized closet. What I’ve done to compensate is create two separate closets, one for my casual clothes and shoes and one for my cocktail dresses, suits, and heels. I’ve given most of my ballgowns away because I no longer live in New York, so my lifestyle has changed, but I keep the remaining ones in a cedar closet.
An old-fashioned cedar closet, a popular and effective way of preventing moths since the seventeenth century, is a great addition to any home. It’s not that difficult (or expensive) to convert a regular closet into one that protects your out-of-season clothes from pests and mildew. If you are at all handy, you can purchase cedar planks from Home Depot or a lumber store, and fit them to the walls, ceiling, and floor of an existing closet with adhesive and nails. Or, you can hire a carpenter or a handyman to do it. Your clothes will last longer and smell fresh and natural, like a forest.
The caftans—well, that’s another story. They’re multiplying on a rack and taking over entire rooms when I’m not looking. However you organize your closet, never hang knits—they lose their shape. And if you use a dry cleaner, always remove the clothing from the plastic and air it out before putting away. A garment bag should be made out of a material that breathes, such as cotton.
I love to travel and I do it often. Whether I’m going to New York, Los Angeles, or Europe, my travel routine is always the same, and it has served me well. When I’m planning what to pack, I try to restrict myself to a black-and-white wardrobe because it’s easier to create multiple looks from a highly curated selection of clothing and use the same accessories—usually black flats and heels. I rely on an assortment of scarves to add color.
Never, ever, use fancy luggage—it invites trouble. You might as well tell thieves to shop here. You want your bags to be plain and utilitarian, not an advertisement for the fabulous things you’ve packed, so to keep thieves at bay, restrict logos to items inside the bag. I’ve just purchased gold Raden luggage, which in addition to being strong and utilitarian, has a built-in phone charger and an app that enables you to track your bag. Once you have the perfect suitcase, attach a bright, colorful luggage tag so you can identify it when all the other nondescript bags come pouring onto the carousel.
The only time I break my rule about luggage is when I pack my cosmetics. I have an old-fashioned Louis Vuitton train case that is so old and beat-up that I hesitate to use the word vintage to describe it. The strap is broken and the leather is worn, but it is the perfect size and shape to accommodate all the bottles and tubes I need on a trip. I fill it with makeup, creams, nail products, eye drops, brushes, anything that might come up—and I check it with my luggage.
The same people who spend hours on wardrobe choices at home never give a thought to how they look when they travel. Dress comfortably, but with style. I wear monochromatic cashmere pants and a sweater, an elegant, understated combination that is comfortable and can hold up on long flights. If cashmere is not a part of your wardrobe, wear something soft—leggings and a top—and keep the color palette neutral. Some of the new, well-cut athleta-wear (not baggy sweats!) can serve the same purpose. For footwear, I recommend flat shoes. A ballerina flat is perfect—easy to walk in and easy to remove at security.
What you carry onto the plane can be as important as what you wear. I always have a roomy tote large enough to accommodate my medicine, an eye mask, a pashmina that can double as a blanket (airplanes are always cold), a baby pillow, magazines, my iPad, and antibacterial wipes. I also carry my jewelry, which I keep in a Louis Vuitton case (never make the mistake of packing valuables in your suitcase). I try not to take super-expensive jewels on a trip—better to pack less flashy, or costume, pieces. I like cuffs, bangles, and necklaces by Ashley Pittman. The jewelry, which is stunning, is made by artisans in Kenya, who are employed and given business development training by the company.
As soon as I’m in my seat I use a wipe to clean the armrest, tray, and seatbelt, so I look like I’m part of the cleaning crew. And by the way, never put anything in the seat pocket—who knows what’s been living in there since the previous flight. Someone once told me that it has more germs than any other part of the airplane.
[1] André Leon Talley, Little Black Dress (New York: Rizzoli, 2013), 168.
[2] Vignette: a brief, but powerful, scene.
[3] Quotidian: ordinary or everyday.
[4] Oxymoron: a combination of words that have opposite or very different meanings.
[5] Vanessa Friedman, “How to Dress Like an Adult,” New York Times, October 26, 2016.