Taking Notes from Anne Slowey and Beth Ditto

Few things give me severe anxiety, and of the few, one of them is the endless pile-up of fashion magazines that I can never seem to get around to in a timely fashion. While most people are reading the magazine of the moment (which in this case is June and maybe even July) I’m just beginning May, which means it arrived in April and has traveled from my mailbox, to my desk, to my purse, and finally here onto the airplane which is the only down time I have this past month to really read the mags, not just look at pictures.

It was in this month’s issue of Elle that I came across a comment from Anne Slowey that just really stood out. In her piece titled “Self Service” commenting on Fall 09 trends, Slowey writes, “Too often women spend time thinking about fashion as a tool to improve their status or mask their insecurities rather than something to enjoy and fall in love with for their own pleasure.” This comment wasn’t meant to be the focus of the article, and it wasn’t, but she nails it; many women see fashion less as the awesome and fantastic art that it is and more as a distraction or a chore.

I think it’s important to dress for yourself, and no one else, because here is what happens. When we dress for others, we don’t always feel comfortable because we are trying to put out an image that’s not necessarily what we would wear if we weren’t trying to impress. And being comfortable and confident in what you wear is the number one factor in hotness. I don’t care if you're wearing a poncho with a utility belt and red stilettos. If you don’t care what anyone else thinks, then major props!

Someone that comes to mind right away is Beth Ditto from the band Gossip. At first, she seems a bit much; too in your face with her choice of fashion and her bold choice of tight fitting sequins. But recently I read a great article in Blackbook and I eased up my judgment and found her attitude refreshing. She wasn't angry or bitter about ideas of what women should look like, she just wants to have fun with fashion and cares less about her size and what others think. Awesome.

I firmly believe in use what you’ve got. Play around with your closet to come up with something your own. I once had a stylist come to my house and help me reinvent my closet because I realized that I needed to start playing with my wardrobe, not buying a new one. I highly recommend this by the way, having and “expert” come look at your closet. It only took a half day and it was so worth the money, which really wasn’t that much.

That's really all I wanted to say in this post. I feel strongly about this and isn't that what a blog is all about? A tool for expressing whats near and dear to us, and for this blog and this gal, its all about fashion.