Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Fashion View Point: Chaste or Modest Styles

Fashion is for all times. In the highbrow world, one tends to overlook the view points that exist in life. I was fortunate enough to meet with a conservatively dressed gentleman that defined a style in time. He said that although he did never fit into the conservative schema of things, he preferred to dress conservatively.

People who dress radically from what is considered the norm are told they are not an 'A Lister' at times, or they state that you are not in the trend at present. Still, there are also radical dress artists that do not care whether they fit in at all. They fight the main stream images all the way as non - conformists.

I examine all dress styles and forms over time. Although I am not quite a historian of costume over time, I find that forms of dress reveal a great deal about people, their lives, times and their world.

People who choose modest dress forms do so for reasons. People may call them dowdy or austere, or old fashioned, but one really needs to know more than that about that life and times of that set of people.

Here's a revealing site. It is not the only one out there, but it expresses why people choose what they do. This site has a female perspective.

http://aponderingheart.com/blog/?p=1013

I have attended church before, and I find that all styles are employed in that domain, and at times, if you are over dressed or even under dressed, you tend to wear what the rest of the population wears. For example, a church where one wears suits or tailored outfits may feel uncomfortable to someone who usually attends one where they wear tees and shorts. I have seen such differences, and there are never any quarrels over styles, per se, but there are those who notice things that are out of place.

I find that conservative dressers are in all faiths, belief sets, and they carry a way or style over time. They may adjust a hem or the collar here and there, or evolve in preferences on a different track from others, but I wonder if there are offerings for these people in contemporary settings.

Can you wear conservative styles and still be considered in fashion? Why or why not? Are there designers for people who need to attend events where they need to appear conservative without being blamed for over - spending or catering to certain markets? For example, can Sarah Palin ever escape the media's gauntlet should the need arise for conservative styles? One needs to advertise the tag and price for all things. It should really not matter, especially if they are a leader or soon - to - be leader in time. She is only one example, but this question needs to be addressed.

I have found conservative styles in house catalogs, but then you run the risk of not being well - suited in time. Another example is of a woman I once met. She was starting out as a lawyer, and she could not go to work without her first brand name purse, because the arena was a corporate court. She spent more on her purse than on her own suit in that time, by the way.

These people are not afraid to spend, but media and others do not leave them alone when they have preferences or need to dress a certain way for work or other places where status and image matter in time. I am sure if they could wear tees, they would probably forego that choice. Fashion does matter to a whole variety of people in time, and they do not always care if they are in the crowd.

Fashion is for all times and for all people. If we can remember this fact in time, no one would ever be overlooked.

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