Trending Lightly

Observations in Fashion

In The Beginning There Was Qiana

by //

Everything and everyone has a beginning. My beginning was at the age of 15 when I made my first dress. I can remember picking out the fabric, Qiana. It was a shiny border print in burgundy, purple and pink. Qiana had its heyday in the 70s when disco was all the rage.

Father Daughter Dance Circa 1974
Father Daughter Dance Circa 1974

It was made from a silky nylon fiber and made its debut 1968 but did not become popular until the 1970s. Quiana was mostly sported by men who wore their shirts and pants tight, their collars big and their heels high. But back to my dress…I wanted something special for the Father~Daughter Dance at my high school. I needed desperately (everything at 15 is desperate) to have a spectacular dress that no one else would be wearing. With that in mind, I knew I had no choice but to make my own. Off I went to our local fabric store. That is where I spotted the Qiana from a few aisles away. Its shininess spoke to me. I remember painstakingly pinning the pattern to the fabric as I focused on matching each detail of the print so that the side seams would become invisible. The Butterick pattern was perfection  with its full angel sleeves, fitted bodice, copious shirring and short skirt. This was my moment–my entree into the world of design. My dress was finished off with a pair of cinnamon pantyhose and chunky 70s shoes. Everything has its beginning. This was mine.

Eat well, laugh a lot and be chic!

It’s In Style…Say’s Who?

by //

Every time you open a fashion or celebrity gossip magazine you inevitably find
yourself face to face with the pages that reports what is in style for the moment.
Do you ever wonder who it is that has been appointed our dictator of fashion and why?
There was a time, before blogs, when it was the editors of magazines who would deem something fashion relevant or not. Today it is the celebrity who has become our barometer of cool. Celebrities like Chloe Sevigny, the Olsen Twins and Nicole Richie navigate the styles and trends that editors write about. We read about these celebrities and what they are wearing over and over until we are convinced that if we don’t run out and get a Marc Jacobs bag no one will talk to us.  It is herd mentality that persuaded us to buy that leather jumpsuit Chloe wore to a party.
It is bloggers too, who throw down the fashion gauntlet. Bloggers like, thirteen year-old  Tavi Gevinson who has become so important in the fashion world she is given a front row seat to most fashion shows.
Each season there is the ‘it’ bag and the ‘it’ diet to get into the ‘it’ jeans.
The next time you walk into a boutique and the sales person pulls out a pair of jeggings and exclaims,
“Everyone is wearing them!”  just reply, “Says who?”

 

 

A Perfect Fashion World

by //

Fashion can be daunting. We want to be stylish while giving the impression that it was all so effortless. But the fact of the matter is putting an outfit together for work, travel or an evening out can make our heads spin. Questions pop up like, “Is this outfit appropriate for the occasion?” and “Does this all go together?” But the other question that can cross our minds is, “Is this in style or fashion relevant?” The reason for this quandary is simple. Everyday we are inundated with fleeting fashion information modeled by famously underfed females. When it comes to making decisions about everything else in our lives, we do it with stealth focus. But making a decision about what to wear for meetings and a night on the town can throw us into a panic. In a perfect fashion world we would have dressing for such occasions down to a science. We would have our own collection of separates that would all go together. These pieces would not wrinkle and could be accessorized differently for different occasions. They would be easy to wear but most importantly they would make us feel and look chic. What we need are Five Easy Pieces. [Read more…]