Things Fashion told me

I was recently hired at the Nordstrom Rack (recent meaning February, bear with me). As my new boss takes me on a tour of the store and mentions the great deals for employees at the moment I couldn't help but have a small spark light up inside. I wanted to shop, I love to shop especially when presented with a good deal. Well, more like incentive. Then I stop myself. It was just the holidays and I received several new clothes and pairs of shoes. The last thing I needed was to surrender my wallet to the retail gods.

I did not need to shop and the spark extinguished.

At first, I was sad; disappointed really. Not only in myself but in fashion. Am I still a fashionable person? Do I still care about the world of fashion? I realized no, I am not a shlub and I still care about the world of wonder that has been a major part of my life.

I realized that fashion itself is not shopping. Shopping is only a means of acquiring fashionable items. Fashion is the way in which we present ourselves to the world in order to say something. It is the first thing someone sees when they first meet you or even just pass you by and in that moment it tells a story.

I began to think about items in my wardrobe I've had for years and why I've kept them. For example, my black pea-coat I've kept for at least 5 years. My dad looked at it the other day and noticed the ripped lining inside and made a face of disbelief. I love that jacket, it fits nicely and has a great shape that compliments my waist. The rips are just signs of good hard lovin'. It is truly a timeless piece. That is fashion my friends. An article of clothing that makes you look and feel good, can transform you into something more. It becomes a friend.

Recently I've had to part with some friends. I loved them so much they ripped in places that were beyond repair. I held onto them for longer than I should, but I knew it was their turn to go. Holding on to pieces of clothing because they were great pieces is what fashion is about. Timeless pieces you can wear through several seasons and still look fresh is what we should strive for, not the next new hot item.

It is sad but fast fashion has taken a hold of the industry because it is so lucrative. In reality it's good for the short term. Fast fashion retailers have to constantly turn out new product to feed the monster consumer they created. Now consumers get bored with clothes more quickly and have been programmed to believe they need something new every weekend! I am not immune to these hunger pains for the newest blouse on the shelves, but I have become more aware of my urges.

I've started to check myself when I think about shopping or am online looking at clothes. Do I really truly need that? Probably not and most likely I already have something similar. I'm not advocating we all stop shopping because shopping truly does bring joy. However, let us enjoy our wardrobes and develop them before we go out again and purchase yet another cardigan that we just had to have. I guarantee the cardigan will be just like the last you bought that was just as great.

Trouble with a capital T

Boy am I in blogger trouble. I should be considered a drop-out since my last post was earlier this year and it now being September. Well I have a few things to post, first being a reflection on style and shopping/consumerism. Secondly I would finally like to post what I gathered from MAGIC last year while in Vegas, and finally a post about trends to look out for this fall.
I'm so glad fall is finally here, sweating through ones clothes all summer is not a hot look nor is it fair to those around them and by that I mean body odor. Soon it will be time to pile on the layers and don new fashionable looks that were found strolling down the runway. I don't know what it is about covering myself up in multiple layers that makes me feel stylish, sexy and confident. What I do know is fall gives you the opportunity to wear more clothes at one time and that is always more fun!
Alright enough blah, it's time for a long awaited post about fashion!

A look back at the year 2010 in fashion

The year 2010 may be remembered for many things, like another year with a poor economy or the year of the iPad, but it’s always more fun to look back at the style of each year and reflect on how crazy some fashion choices were.

To start, let’s look at Her Majesty of pop music: Lady Gaga.

This woman has redefined style over and over again, never missing a beat and setting the standard for many in the music and fashion industry. For God’s sake, she showed up in a meat dress at the MTV Music Video Awards, not only making a statement politically but fashion-wise as well. That takes some serious thinking and guts –– no pun intended.

There are more chic choices she has made –– lest we forget the beautiful Alexander McQueen gowns she wore after his passing away. Lady Gaga was a huge fan of the designer and was given the privilege to wear his last collection. You may or may not like her music, but you have to give her credit for pushing the envelope in the fashion community.

Speaking of the late great Alexander McQueen, this beloved wild child of the fashion world unfortunately took his life this year right before London Fashion Week back in February.

McQueen was known for beautiful tailoring of women’s clothing and, of course, the tartan plaid that made him most famous. McQueen’s achievements include earning four British Designer of the Year awards and the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s International Designer of the Year award in 2003. He was a true artist and will truly be missed.

On a lighter note, New York Fashion Week moved its classic white tents from Bryant Park to the Lincoln Center. The move was due to space issues in the past years at Bryant Park.

The Lincoln Center provides more space and is also a hub for artists, so the venue seemed to be the perfect fit. The tents in the park will surely be missed, but the opportunity to shove more fashion into one place seems hard to pass up.

Finally, jeggings. One night skinny jeans and leggings decided to create a love child so the masses could enjoy the timelessness of jeans and the comfort of leggings.

The jegging may sound more ridiculous than it really is. If you can find a pair that don’t completely look like mom jeans and actually have pockets and what looks to be a zipper, you can fool pretty much anyone.

And don’t for one second think you can’t pull off the skinny jean or jegging for that matter, they give in places where you need it most and fit closely in the others, like around the calf and ankle.

Here’s to the jegging, making women comfortable in their jeans finally.

Fashion changes from season to season and is a true marker for cultural changes in our lives. Looking back at the years in our own style always brings back memories of our fashion faux pas or maybe the awesome night we had in one of our favorite outfits. Let fashion play a major part of your life because, looking back, it will always bring a smile or maybe an embarrassing laugh. Either way it’s all in good fun.

The Psycology of Dress

Remember when you were young and the night before the first day of school you laid out your outfit?

This was no ordinary outfit; this was the first-day-of-school outfit. The one that would set the pace for who you were and what you wore for the rest of the school year –– or at least that’s what you had in mind.

When we go to our closet each morning and decide what to wear for the day we’re all saying something whether we want to or not. The way we dress says much more than we realize, and it is usually the first thing a stranger looks at to size you up. Everyone dresses for a reason, even if it is as minute as something to throw on before you rush out of the house.

For example, if you’re the type of person who wants to say “I don’t care about how I look, I’m above that,” (and we all know someone like this), you might actually just be saying half of that statement: you don’t care.

If you don’t care, then why should the rest of us? We’re not interested. The extreme opposite is prone to this thinking as well. Those of you who try so hard to latch on to every trend and, perhaps, overdress, send the message you’re trying too hard. And again, we’re not interested.

Sometimes we dress to fit into a certain crowd of people we identify with. This usually is an effective approach. We buy the types of clothes this group wears and we soon adopt the same attitudes further pushing us into a particular social group. Be on guard for posers though. You can spot them a mile away. These people also tend to fall into the over-dresser category; again, they’re trying too hard.

The goal is to find something that makes you happy and feel confident when you wear it.

When you wear something you love it shows, and other people can see it. The point is not to be fashion forward every day; we all have our off days, but to put some effort and pride into your daily wardrobe.

It may not seem fair that what we have on the outside seems more important at first glance than what’s inside us, but it is human nature to do so. So lay out your outfit the night before and hopefully it says something along the lines: “I am confident, strong, and most importantly, awesome.”