Friday, 17 June 2016
Thursday, 7 January 2016
Why I've fallen out of fashion
It's hard to pinpoint the exact moment when I fell in love
with fashion, but there is always one moment which sticks in my mind. I was
about ten years old and my mum told me that leggings or footless tights were in
fashion. Looking back I realise how ahead of the curve she was as it was not
until a good year or so later that leggings and footless tights actually became
popular. She was really on to something there, now it’s virtually impossible to
find a clothes shop on the high street that doesn't sell leggings. Anyway back
then- roughly ten years ago- they were virtually non-existent. I looked
everywhere, desperate to find a pair and stay ahead of the trends. I finally
found a pair that somewhat resembled what I was looking for in Topshop. I say
somewhat resembled because they didn't sell leggings on a hanger back then,
instead they were packaged like a pair of tights. Nonetheless I bought them,
and with Topshop being an adult clothes shop and me being only ten years old, they
were way too big for me. However, I made do with yanking up the waist band
every five seconds all in an effort to look 'fashionable' and 'trendy'.
Since then I have loved fashion but there have always been
trends that I have disliked and decided not to follow. Ponchos and UGG boots
spring to mind! Ponchos really were a thing about eight years ago and I'm so
glad I never got into those, they really are hideous. UGG boots on the other
hand, I severely disliked for a long time, but it was through peer pressure that
I eventually bought a pair (not a real pair mind). I'm glad I only bought a
pair of cheap high street knock-offs as I only wore them for a few weeks and
now all traces of that trend have vanished, never to be seen again- hopefully!
However, these days I find that there are more trends I dislike
compared to trends I like- which explains the title of this post. It really
makes me wonder what is going on in the fashion industry. Will it get itself
back on track and start coming up with trends I like again- or have I fallen off
the fashion radar for good? When I go shopping today there are a great number
of things I see that I don't like. Firstly, crop tops. I ask the question, how
many people in this country can genuinely get away with wearing one of these?
With the obesity epidemic on the rise my guess would be not many. So why then
is the high street full of shops selling them? I'm not overweight but I know I
can't wear a crop top- I just want a top that is of 'normal' length. At this
rate, midriff-bearing will become the new 'normal' length. Another trend I hate
at the moment is this whole 70's revival thing the shops have got going on. It
really frustrates me when I'm in a shop and I catch a glimpse of what looks
like a nice top, only to find when I walk over to it that it's got a lace up neckline!
What is that about? And it's not just necklines, I've seen tops with lace up
sides and sleeves, it just ruins a perfectly good top. I also dislike flared
jeans, suede skirts and those fur gilets, they're all just horrific 70's
throwbacks.
I've decided these days that my personal style does not
always fit in with the latest trends. Yet there is one trend that I welcome
with open arms- and that is athleisure wear. I'm not sure if that's the official
name for it but that's what I'm going to call it. For those who don't know, athleisure
wear can be described as clothing that Instragrammers would call #Fitspo (which
I believe is short for 'fitness inspiration', if it's not then I'm going to
feel pretty stupid when someone corrects me on it!) Basically clothing that one
might wear to the gym or to go for a run or for a yoga class. The high street
is going crazy for this trend with all the well-known retailers bringing out
their own line of athleisure wear. I love this trend from the cute strappy
sports bras to printed running shorts and colourful waistbands on sports
leggings. I really wish I did more fitness activities so I could justify buying
more of it. I think that fitness gear just has something which regular clothes
are lacking, that 'je ne sais quoi' as the French would say. So at a time when
I feel deep despair for the fashion industry, athleisure wear will fill that
fashion shaped hole in my heart (and wardrobe) until it gets back in shape.
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