The "long goddess dress" from
Michelle Jonas is perfect for
both work and play
when on the road.
Photo: Michelle Jonas

by Tiffany Gifford

As Condé Nast Traveler's Associate Style and Accessories Editor, I accompany our esteemed leader, Style Director Mark Connolly, on fashion shoots all around the world. Needless to say, I have packing couture gowns and fragile jewels down to a science. When it comes to my own bag, though, I never know what to fill it with--nor how much. Our team is generally hopping to and from different destinations on these photo shoots, so I need to be comfortable. But I must also be chic: Often, after all that running around dressing models, comes dinner at the newest hot spot.

My packing problem has met its Ms. Fix-It in Michelle Jonas. She was kind enough to let me try out several of her dresses and caftans during our most recent shoot in the Dominican Republic. Let's just say they will be coming with me to every future shoot. Jonas's clothes are mainly jersey and cotton gauze, which are light, comfortable materials that don't require dry-cleaning or machine washing. You can just hand wash them and hang them in your shower and they are fresh and ready to go the following day--not a wrinkle in sight. For this shoot, I just alternated the six dresses that I brought as my uniform. Easy as that.

I even got several compliments from Mark on how great the dresses were, the equivalent of getting knighted in the U.K.--such a feat! To test whether or not the Jonas dresses can double as office wear, I've been sporting them to work the past couple weeks. Answer? Yes. All I hear is "Love your dress!" and "I must have that!" from my colleagues. Since I shared my dress secrets with the women of Condé Nast Traveler, I feel it's only right to share it with our readers, too. Get ready to love packing and all the compliments you'll receive.

Further reading:
* Mark Connolly's dispatches from Paris fashion week: Stella, Salma, and 3,000 Appointments
* Mark styled Queen Rania for the September cover of Condé Nast Traveler