VANCOUVER – My sartorial identity, like my personal one, is changing, morphing, trying to find itself. While I’m not 100% sure who I am yet (sartorially and existentially), I think I know more who I am NOT.
I bought a skirt the other day, a very trendy, flippy miniskirt we’re seeing around a lot. I got home and tried it on with various outfits before realizing that it was not me AT ALL.
We all get caught up in trends; they are a quick obsession, a flirtation of which you can’t get enough. But like a good one night stand, you ultimately end up looking back with a “What was I thinking?!” You guys, just because something is trendy doesn’t mean you have to wear it. I know you already know this, but we all need reminding (myself included) sometimes.
I once read a quote by the inimitable Diane Von Furstenberg that stuck with me, and, I think, couldn’t be truer: “If you can figure out your suitcase, you can pretty much figure out your life.” You know that panicked feeling while packing when you have no idea what to take, how to wear it together, where you’ll end up wearing it? I think once you’ve developed your own personal identity, your sartorial one follows. By then, you know yourself well enough to know you need this T-shirt, that blazer, or that dress and you are confident enough to make it work with different options.
When it comes to fashion, sometimes you need to learn how to make trends work for you. Maybe that flippy miniskirt is not “me,” but I do know I love a good miniskirt and perhaps a faux leather number will help me along in my sartorial, and subsequent personal identity search. I only hope one day I can pack a great suitcase in under an hour.
Jill Lansky – The August Diaries
