Lent is upon us once again, my friends. This season is popularly seen as the season of abstinence — a surprising misconception. Maybe giving up things like candy and meat was intended to be temporary. For vices, however, the real idea is to give them up forever. So here are some fashion-related things to add to your fasting list and give up forever. These aren’t things to cling to; au contraire, they are rules to drop and myths to debunk in order to be a style guru.
Buck equals bang
For some people, it’s about the name. For others, it’s about the look. Whether or not you care about name brands, you should never compromise on quality. Sadly, price isn’t always necessarily an indicator of quality. Stores don’t charge you what clothes are worth; they charge you what they think you are willing to pay for them. As college students, funds might be a major concern. However, it pays in the long run to own clothes that last through rain, snow and sunshine. If you want items that look, feel and actually are quality, you need to have a good eye and a good knowledge of clothing construction. This take some practice and experience. It’s a good thing I’m here to guide you through this in my future posts.
Expensive shoes over expensive bags
Who doesn’t love Carrie Bradshaw from "Sex and the City?" At some point, you probably wanted to be her (sans the occasional financial irresponsibility). While it is not a crime to love expensive high-quality shoes, the mistake that women make is to put the expensive shoe over the expensive bag. How is this a mistake? Shoes are like cars. From the moment you try them on, they start to wear and tear. Wearing a killer pair of shoes and carrying a killer purse make you feel equally powerful. But with shoes, you run a higher risk of them getting ruined. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy the shoes you love. Just don’t neglect the bags.
Body type restrictions
“I can’t wear this and that because that’s only for tall, slender people.” Put that mentality away. The same goes for the people who think some items are only for curvy people. It’s all about the fit. If the item doesn’t look good on you, it might have more to do with the fit than with your body type. If you really like it, consider tailoring it to yourself. Clothes sold in retail are standardized; hence, they might not hug and hang for you the way they should. Take a look at the two outfits below — same outfit, different body types. Focus on the fit.
Don’t go chasing waterfalls (or trends)
Personally, I don’t chase trends. Not because someone told me not to, but because I like to wear whatever, whenever. But it is a myth that you have to invest in timeless pieces as opposed to trends. The truth is invest in what you actually wear. Yes, it is nice to have those timeless staples in your wardrobe, but do you wear them often? If you like to be a trendy girl/guy, go for it. You want clothes you can actually wear. That’s what you should spend your money on.
The popular saying goes, “Less is more.” Yes, this can be true if less is packed with a punch. But this notion has made everyone toss out the concept of more. For fear of not doing too much, people tend to keep it simple and then jazz it up with one fancy item like a necklace or a pair of shoes. Granted it takes some skill, but you can put an outfit together with several statement pieces. Style icons like Yasmin Sewell and Solange Knowles do it all the time.
