Its Not Summer, But...

Heres a summer outfit collage.

Time to Kill

Well, I've been having an interesting few months.  For a few weeks of that time, I was living at my grandparents - I enjoyed my time there, even without having internet, and I ended up with a lot of time on my hands.  That resulted in me catching up on shows, spending quality time with my grandma, getting full nights of sleep like I hadn't had in months, healing physically and mentally, helping my mother with what I could since I was closer to where she was living, and, well, making lots more outfit collages. With all the hubbub of moving into my new apartment, I forgot to upload them once I had access to the interwebs again. So I finally remembered tonight.  They vary in styles drastically, which was fun for me. I was also able to go back on some old unfinished ones lurking in the depths of folders long forgotten in my computer, and make them complete (and updated).  Its interesting how back then, making those outfits, I thought they were great! Looking at them now, not so much, and the ones I make now, I think are GREAT! Heh. I wonder if a few years down the road I'll think the ones I post here are trash. Maybe I just see them through rose-colored glasses? Or maybe thats just how fashion is. Who knows what psychologically makes trends seem amazing and stylish and sexy at the time, but later down the road, look horrible.  There are a few things that stay the same, the classics, the wardrobe staples. Its even more interesting how fashions will turn from tacky, to fashionable again, in just a few generations.  I'd love to really waste all kinds of time debating and considering the psychology of fashion and culture. But I doubt anyone would want to do it with me :) I think its a fascinating subject, but its also subjective, and fluid, and will probably always be a mystery.  I love seeing fashion as an art form - but do other forms of art follow the same pattern? I guess maybe music comes the closest - but there are so many Art forms that stand the test of time, and really don't come as trends, but as landmarks throughout a social subconscious, always valued, always admired.  Maybe the reason for Fashion being seen as a temporary thing, with trends that eventually turn into jokes, has something to do with how fashion is so easily used to define people - and people are far more complex than definitions suggest, ultimately making Fashion seem a tool for a mediocre way of thinking, when really thats simply what people have done TO it, or WITH it, what have you, but its not what it IS. It's ultimately a form of self expression as much as any other Art form, except since it is worn on the body, carried with the person through lives and actions and personalities and a constant visual reference for a people and a culture, its turned into something else. If we took our sketchbooks and wore the pages stitched to ourselves to be worn daily through the fantastic and mundane of human life, the first thing anyone see's of you, then those sketches would become something other than a peice of yourself expressed on paper. It would become someone ELSE's definition of you. Other people's minds would twist the definition, unconciously, every time they saw you, because you wouldn't be presenting it as art, it would simply be the image that goes along with every word you speak and action you take and place you go - all these other parts of you that that one, single expression of yourself had nothing to do with.  So ultimately, Fashion as an art form succeeds better in photography, than in action of everday wear.  It feels right at the time, but the mindset of a society and culture will ultimately change what that expression means, leeching the YOU out of it until there is nothing left, and it becomes a joke.  Its unfortunate, but how the world works. So whatever, we enjoy it anyway, and thats why its a constantly changing growing re-inventing world, Fashion is. Stylists constantly striving to come up with something NEW and different. Letting your own mind make up what you think of something, rather than a culture's collective opinion of something taint your thoughts, will determine how much you will enjoy fashion. You either find parts of yourself or who you want to be in each piece of cloth, each shade of color, each length and trim and texture, or you will see what the world has shaped it to be. I guess I enjoy clothes and Fashion so much because borders and definitions and lines and labels have always blurred for me. They never really meant much - I saw them as manufactured right from the get go.  They can surely be convincing, and they can make things easier to handle, to understand, to generalize and make simpler in the mind - but they're not really needed, if you can look past them.  I don't look at every piece of shiny black leather and think dominatrix. I don't look at every piece of lace and think of a grandmother. I'm not afraid to put them together, or to wear one on a monday, and the other on a tuesday.  People shouldn't worry so much about "your not original- you look like everyone else!" or "your just trying to copy so and so" or "thats not in style anymore" or even /"you follow trends too closely!"  It really doesn't matter. Its amazing how much people care about what other people wear. You should wear what makes you feel more like yourself. It should inspire you to walk out the door and become MORE of yourself. To be confident, comfortable, even sexy if thats what you want. I know I enjoy something that makes me feel sexy, or feminine, or what have you. I also enjoy outfits that are gender neutral, or modest, professional, tomboyish, whatever. I love things that make me think of things I love - like how tweed makes me think of England, because of MY mind and thoughts and life and the things about England I love, not because of some general rule of something supposed to mean something else. Tweed makes other poeple think of stuffy uptight people. So then they don't wear it.  I'm not saying that clothing is merely for your own likes and interest, it is of course also for aiding you out in the world - meaning not only being warmth and cover and practicality, but also sending the message you chose to send to the people around you - whether its work, family, friends, strangers.  You either want to send the message - I'm professional and trustworthy,  or - I'm tough, and don't give a crap, or - I'm ready for a damn good time lets have some freaking fun - or even, well, come hither! Theres also some good "leave me alone" outfits out there.  Or "I'm sick, and feel like crap" and those outfits are mostly pajamas. ;)  Its certainly half and half, fashion is. You have to balance the message to yourself, and your message to the world, in each outfit.  Each situation or day or whatnot bearing more relevance in one of those messages over another.  Say, the days you dress for work, versus a night out on your birthday where you just wanna wear whatever makes you happy.  Totally different scenarios.  Its honestly fun dressing for both.  Not always of course - like wearing the longsleeve turtlenecks to cover the tattoos you know such-and-such will have a fit about, or wearing the heels you hate to impress a man who isn't worth it anyway.  Not always fun.  But anyway......This turned into something else, didn't it? I should probably post those damn collages!!