By Doreen Faith
Once upon a time there were clothes, shoes, handbags and jewellery, some of the accessories which we adorn on our bodies every day and are connected to fashion, a universal language that we express through our clothing. Fashion is more than just clothing, I perceive it as a subculture because most of us adapt to it. Fashion transcends class, culture, race, religion, sex and ethnicity. We live in the world where people are constantly trying to define themselves and one of the most direct ways that people do so is through their clothing and appearance. And with these fashion expressions came the practice of style, an element that most individuals believe they possess, sadly not quite rightfully so.
Popular culture is no longer regional; the advent of social media systems has revolutionised the way we communicate that fashion statement will be on the streets in a matter of days. Instagram uniquely continues its march to being the most popular mobile social network and photo-sharing community in the world. It serves as a platform for fashion enthusiasts to easily exhibit photos of their style to friends, fans and followers alike.
So this makes me to say: Fashion is the froth of life, it’s like a contagion shared among individuals.
However, I get filled with a certain level of antipathy towards individuals who share their photos on Instagram or other social media sources and feel the urge to portray themselves fashionistas when they actually have no fashion sense, and you can’t even classify their style. Style should be able to speak for itself or else be describable in the eyes of the onlooker. Style bloggers such as; (Hiaddie, Style is My Thing, The Shoe Gawker, Style Pantry, All Things Slim, BeLoudBeYou and Kiidiosa) are some of the dominant black fashionistas on the blogosphere. These women don’t take style lightly; they take it to the extreme and have become style icons in their own right. Being stylish doesn’t merely mean following fashion trends, you could still dress like you belong in the 80s or like an old-school Hollywood movie star when your outfits are pleasing to the eye.
Take for example Dita Von Teese, the burlesque ace whose style rivets around the 1940s epoch yet its modern and outstandingly noticeable. Also my former college friend and fellow fashion designer Kesshia Kumari whose style is very 1980s and has been dressing in that fashion era since the day I met her in college in 2003. One style moment that I won’t forget about her was when she came to college wearing footless tights, during those days footless tights weren’t in vogue. And as fall /winter 2004 approached, footless tights started to flood all major fashion shops and people started wearing them, including me.
Most of the times girls wore them beneath shorts or Paul’s Boutique washed out denim miniskirts and teamed with buggy tops to achieve that “authentic 80s look”. At that time footless tights also pioneered a way for cotton jersey leggings which are now fashion fads even among women who are unconsciously fashionable. Kesshia always used to say; “I don’t follow fashion, fashion follows me”. She was the ‘trendsetter’ type and had style most girls would kill for, although she wasn’t what I like to call: an ‘immaculate’ fashionista like Victoria Beckham or Kim Kardashian but she was the Rihanna-esque, always put herself together in an effortlessly insouciant manner.
Retrospectively, Kesshia is a perfect example of ‘from the sidewalks to the catwalks’! It’s the cool people like her who spend hours in the mirror experimenting with style and putting outfits together to look idiosyncratic who actually set trends and the rest follow including the fashion industry who are always the first to recognise trends.
For those who aren’t aware, fashion starts from streets because it’s the first place where most fashion designers look for inspiration for their next collection before it marches its way to the catwalks, then to the shops and customers. It’s a ‘fashion bubble up process’!
Subsequently, this article isn’t solely about fashion and style, it’s also about teaching people how to be individuals and try not to fit in. Certain fashion trends are not for everyone. I know women are generally more concerned with image, the older one gets the more pressure they feel to look younger. But it seems as though some women can’t distinguish ‘dressing young and dressing younger’. For instance; dressing young is when a woman wears clothes that make her look like teenage girls and most of the time they appear inappropriate and uncomplimentary. Dressing younger refers to a woman who may be 50 year of age and wants some fresh or funkier clothes in her wardrobe that will make her cut off a few years without having to look like her granddaughter or young girls.
There’s something out there for everyone so look for what suits you and flatters your figure. Explore the inner you, maybe perhaps you could try drawing yourself to a style era or someone you admire, they could be famous or an everyday person with a similar body type to yours and see how they dress, and then inject your attitude into it to form your own style. Following fashion doesn’t naturally qualify you for the fashionista status, and trying to dress like someone else you’re just gonna end up looking like models on the catwalk walking shoulder to shoulder. On a contrary, as I’ve gotten slightly older, I’ve developed a discerning attitude and gradually departing away from obvious trends as I only want to invest my money on pieces that I can wear season after season.
So, whether you are a fashion partisan or simply a wannabe, whatever fashion means to you just dare to be you. Fashion designer, Coco Chanel once said; “fashion fades; only style remains the same”. Dictate fashion with your style, don’t let fashion dictate you.
Remember, fashion signifies different things to everyone, as for me; it’s a about experimenting with my outfits, sharing my unique pieces with others, it’s a passion and a dream job that I am slowly turning into a career.