1. Why is fashion important?
Welcome to 52 Weeks of Fashion. I’m starting this project to cure me of fashion fomo, a little something I’ve developed since migrating to the Bay Area. For the next 52 weeks, I’ll publish a lesson (or rant) to help me better solidify my own views and understanding of fashion.
Here’s me posing as a housewife holding a cute window cleaner.
✋ Pause for a second, and take another look.
What was your reaction when it turned out to be my phone case? Most commonly, I’m asked, “Does it fit in your pocket?” My canned response is “I don’t wear pants, so I don’t even have pockets ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.” This is predictably followed by, “but… isn’t it impractical?” I proceed to roll my eyes 🙄, and go on a tangent about Moschino’s Spring 2016 collection. I’m then greeted with a blank stare 😳, so instead I reference the following scene from the Devil Wears Prada…
I love this phone case. Yes, it is a bit overwhelming, but it’s a great conversation starter, and adds a sense of humor to my #ootd’s. Why does it matter to you that my phone case is ridiculous? It’s not like you have to put my phone in your pocket.
My love for fashion started in middle school when I would read the pages of Vogue from cover to cover. Growing up in Iowa, the outrageous editorials transported me to a world out of my reach. The world of fashion was my version of Hogwarts. I decorated the walls of my room with my favorite pages, and dreamt of the day I would rock a pair of 6-inch red-soled Louboutins 👠.
Fashion is my daily creative outlet. Artists do a sketch a day and musicians practice an hour a day. Fashion is the only form of art you see everyday. It’s constantly changing under your eyes, and most people don’t even notice it. In the Silicon Valley in particular, partially due to the lack of climate change, I’ve noticed that style is stagnant. Without wardrobe overhauls, the Valley almost ceases to age, and time passes faster.
Fashion is where culture, history, and expression mix. You don’t have to understand fashion, and just like art, fashion doesn’t have to be practical. It’s about making a statement. If fashion were simply clothing, these powerful runway moments would cease to exist…
Throughout this series, I’ll try my best to explain why fashion is much more than just sky high heels, J.Crew button-ups, and overpriced monogram handbags. And in Coco Chanel’s words:
“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”
That’s all 💁.
