The Incredibles: Meet Boston Common's Women of Style 2019

Our annual Women of Style accolades are bestowed on these four Boston fashionistas.

THE NEOCLASSICIST

Courtney Forrester

Forrester wears a too-hot-to-handle one-shoulder belted polka dot dress by Max Mara in her Greater Boston home.

If you ever run into Courtney Forrester, trust us, you’ll want to own something she’s wearing. It’s no coincidence, as she grew up, in Minnesota, with superstylish parents. “Conservative and classic, they both taught me about thoughtful dressing,” she says. Now a wife, mother of two, entrepreneur (she sold her 10-year-old cupcake chain, Sweet, last year) and nonprofit advocate (“I began working at the Pine Street Inn homeless shelter last fall,” she says), Forrester is known for her minimalist style laced with a modern sensibility. “I have an aversion to clutter, so I tend to dress in a streamlined and monochromatic way, balancing ruffles or patterns with solid shoes and bags,” she explains. An avid traveler (St. Barts, Greece and Paris are particular favorites), Forrester snaps up pieces that are “not instinctive to home.” Locally, she’s a big fan of jewelry designer April Soderstrom. “Her pieces feature meaningful gemstones in pretty packaging with personal notes about their symbolism and powers,” she says. Positive messages are important to Forrester, whose words to live by are humility, gratitude and compassion.

THE PERFECTIONIST

Adelle Chang

Sporting a Maria Lucia Hohan golden gown, Chang states the obvious: “Why I like the dress: metallic gold with a hint of ’80s? So much fun!”

“I love the boldness of simplicity,” Adelle Chang says, “because when I look deeper, it’s often the result of striving for perfection. Someone cared enough to distill something down to its essence, where there’s nowhere to hide behind.” Th ere’s a good chance she learned this scouring fashion magazines during her childhood in Rockford, Ill. “We didn’t have much fashion available, but we did have bookstores!” she says. “If my mom let me buy an issue of Vogue, it became my treasure for months. I would daydream about which pieces I would own.” Th e wife, mother and real estate investor is thrilled to have fashion at her fi ngertips, particularly at her favorite Boston shops, including All Too Human, Saks Fifth Avenue and Viola Lovely. Her favorite pieces involve her white chiff on Chanel dress (“I bought it for myself on my 30th birthday”), Van Cleef & Arpels hoop earrings—a gift from her husband—and a Henri Bendel black sweater. “I loved it so much I wore a hole in the elbow,” Chang says. “I still have it to remind me that the next time I fi nd a perfect sweater, I need to pull a Steve Jobs and buy several of them!”

EURO STAR

Giuliana Berchicci Takacs

Berchicci Takacs scored this Saint Laurent jacket in Rome: “The leather is fantastic and the encrusted lips with fangs just felt fun and so me,” she says.

Giuliana! Th ank you for making your home in Boston! We need more folks whose fashion sense refl ects a personality like yours. “My style is daring, global and unapologetic,” she says. “Open to experimentation. And just like me, it is approachable and connects with people across all ages and conditions.” Berchicci Takacs grew up in Larino, Italy (“We were never defeated by the Romans. I think that’s where my resiliency comes from”), and worked in banking in London and Milan before moving to Boston to attend Harvard Business School. She now works as the owner and managing partner of High Tech Ventures, a boutique search fi rm and tech incubator started by her beloved late husband. She wears what she wants. “I don’t have an icon per se, but I fi nd some people inspiring. Kate Moss is probably at the top of my list. She is free-spirited, creative and smart.” Berchicci Takacs’ closet is fi lled with favorite designers including Saint Laurent (“Especially when Slimane rejuvenated the brand”), Givenchy (“Tisci era”), Chloé and Gucci. “But at the very top of my list is a Moschino corset I bought when Franco Moschino was still alive. I wore it when I crashed the party where I met my husband and we fell in love.”

AUTHENTIC STYLEMAKER

Lauren Smith, MD, MPH

Wearing a fi re engine red Proenza Schouler shirtdress, Smith takes in the scene at Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton Street.

Lauren Smith’s life mantra is, “Service is the rent we pay for living.” A pediatrician and former public health official, she is currently the co-CEO of FSG, a social impact consulting firm. It’s a big job, and hilarious to imagine that she once went through an Annie Hall phase. “Definitely! Vests, lace-up ankle boots... an oversize tweed overcoat... you get the picture.” These days, she’s inspired by Scandal powerhouse Olivia Pope, (played by Kerry Washington)—“What can I say? I want her white coat with a portrait collar,” Smith says—and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. star Elizabeth Debicki. “She wears a black-and-white colorblock dress that I would 100% wear.” Elegance is Smith’s vibe, although the looks can be mood-dependent. “Sometimes I want something that has an unexpected swirl and lightness,” she says. Like her brown and teal cowboy boots, for instance (“I got them in Austin when I finished up an eight-month project there”) and pointy-toe cheetah booties (“I can wear them with pretty much anything”). Her most cherished piece is her wedding ring. “We are about to have our 30th anniversary, so it is a symbol of love, loyalty and getting through a lot together.”