Monday, March 24, 2008

Carpe Diem: The Fashionista's Perspective on an Age-Old Maxim

Fendi, Spring 2008

As my clothing tastes have become more demanding over the years, I find that "day" clothing is usually too tame / boring / mundane for me, and "evening" clothing satisfies my fashion aesthetic but appears too dressy for everyday. The dilemma, of course, lies in this simple idea: does the everyday deserve special treatment?

My mother and grandmother come from a time in which everything precious was to be saved, cherished, and hidden away for some magical, unforeseen moment of use. However, I rarely saw any of these precious items used; no regular day was ever "fancy enough." But I have gone to the other extreme, in which over usage of the elaborate has become the new norm.

I justify this belief in the following learned lessons: a) life is short; b) life is uncertain; and c) life is precious. Therefore, if a, b, and c are true, then d is certainly true: d) every day is precious and glamorous. Indulging in fashion should not be a source of guilt and repression but one of excitement and meaning. And while clothes are just a small part of that sense of meaning, it does reaffirm some of the most important values in life: self-worth, confidence, beauty, faith, and hope. For it takes faith to hope that each day has the magical power of beauty, and that one has the self-worth and confidence to indulge in that belief.

1 comment:

WendyB said...

I am much more in favor of making every day special than squirreling things away for special days that never come. I worked with someone who was terminally ill and she always said that life is short so live it up. Look beautiful and create glamour in your life -- that was what she lived by.