No More Damsels in Fashion
(Source: The New York Times)
Fashion. Ooooo! aaaahhhh! The word is powerful and even though some of us don’t follow the latest trends (myself included) it still circulates all around and affects us in various ways.
Lately though, trends have been changing. An article in The New York Times states that the fashion and allure for women nowadays aren’t the “baby-doll dresses” or the”lace” but the leather jackets and rugged pairs of jeans. Style is changing, with women looking more androgynous than feminine, a strong statement most of us aren’t really aware of but heck are we wearing it! We aren’t looking for the cute and sweet girl, its more like: adventurous, street-smart, an aggressive bad a-erh-buttedness chick of the modern age.
The article states many reasons for the shift in fashion, one of which is its down-to-earth vibe. No longer having to wear something that looks like you sold your first born to pay for, but more like a stained shirt you paid with lunch money and a shirt that can be used time and time again as opposed to one luxurious occasion. Another reason – and a rather ironic one- is that this new style of dress has been seen for ages in other forms as a statement for anti-fashion, which have now been picked up as the new style (see? I told you it was ironic. Non-conformity at its best). Nowadays people are looking more at models and editors for fashion tips, not the glossy covers of American magazines that still portray a sugary view of girls.
The trend expresses a change in gender roles, with us younger peeps not accepting the older norms. We are blurring the established beliefs of assigned social roles and sexual appeal! Can this madness be true?!
What do you think ladies (and some gents)? Are the trends really changing based on new beliefs, or is it just a new season in fashion? What are some of the reasons you think this change is occurring? Do you follow the styles or are you making your own new statements?
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Alyssa
December 28, 2009“bad a-erh-buttedness chick” hilarious
I’ll be the first to admit that I am by no means fashionable, I where what keeps me comfortable, but I go to a school that is extremely popular for it’s fashion program, so it’s like a fashion show everyday at school, right down to the 5 inch heels!
I think alot of people are just following the trends, and wear whatever the trends the trend books are forecasting. I see alot of leather jackets and “tough” styles, but I don’t think they are concerned about the psychology of why they are wearing what they are wearing or looking street smart, did I mention to 5 inch heels.
But at the same time there are guys that go to my school that wear 5 inch heels, and have the latest purses, and I assume wear some women’s clothing, (and not in a cross dressing/ Rupaul way, not that there’s anything wrong with that). These guys look hotter than me
So at my school it’s more guys changing the gender roles than girls, and they look amazing doing it. Overall I think it’s mostly just a new trend, but for some people it’s a fashion, something they have specific reasons for doing.