Friday, October 10, 2008

Fashion police, party of one

I'm not sure what it is about fashion that makes us always think that what's trendy now is so much better than the hideous things that were in style 10 years earlier. We laugh at clothes from the 60s, 70s, and 80s--and yet some of the stuff we wear now is just ridiculous.

I experienced a brief respite from this feeling maybe five years ago. I don't exactly have my finger on the pulse of the fashion world, but it seemed like structure was in--fitted jackets, neatly tailored skirts, etc. At the time, I remember thinking that fashion was, for once, REASONABLE--and then wondering if I would look back five years later and scorn myself for ever thinking that those clothes were timeless.

But actually, now it's five years later and I DON'T feel like those clothes were ridiculous. But I do think that a lot of what's in fashion now is the kind of thing that we're going to be cringing at in a decade or so. I was just reading Glamour and looking at the fashion spreads and reading the advice about how to pull off the latest looks--and I seriously could not keep myself from wincing as I looked.

Part of the problem, I think, is that we're swinging back in the direction of more is more. A recent issue of Glamour informed me that no longer is it about playing up one feature on your face with makeup and going subtle everywhere else. Why NOT pair fuschia lips with metallic green eye shadow and bright gold blush? it demanded. I looked at the accompanying photo of the model painted like a clown and thought, That's why not.

And it's not just the makeup. Flowy tops are one thing when paired with a nicely cut pair of jeans. But with a poufy skirt, a textured jacket, a giant belt, slouchy knee-high boots, a jeweled headband, a statement necklace, and patterned tights? Well, as far as I'm concerned, that spells overkill.

Maybe I'm just hopelessly unfashionable, but I cannot get on board with gladiator sandals, five-inch patent leather platform heels, cascading ruffles, or blinding combinations of colors and patterns. And the worst part is that there's no moderation--to listen to the fashion magazines, we should be wearing all of this stuff AT THE SAME TIME. There's no more statement piece--it's a statement OUTFIT. And it's blinding.

I just get the feeling recently that when our kids look at photos of us arranged in the latest fashions, they will laugh until they cry. It's like the eighties all over again.

So tell me, what's YOUR least favorite fashion trend of the moment? Or do you think that I'm totally wrong and the current styles are just the best thing ever?

56 comments:

  1. This is why I shop at J.Crew! I don't think I will be cringing about my style now. Which is good since it is so well documented. Personally, I'm hating the lace trend.

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  2. I think the flowy tops make everyone look pregnant, whether skinny or not so skinny to begin with. I am, of course, guilty of wearing them, and am not sure they even look good on me. But they let me pretend that I am pregnant.

    Wow. That was kind of sad.

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  3. This is why I shop at J.Crew! I don't think I will be cringing about my style now. Which is good since it is so well documented. Personally, I'm hating the lace trend.

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  4. excellent post. :)

    i really do not understand why zipper-leg jeans and leggings are back. i wore those when i was 12.

    the flowy tops worked to my advantage last year, though, since i was pregnant and didn't have to rely on only maternity tops. :)

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  5. I have yet to see a photo of someone in gladiator sandals and think they are attractive. Bleh.

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  6. CANNOT get on board with the gladiator sandals. I agree that the fashion spreads are getting RIDICULOUS!

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  7. I don't follow fashion very well, so I don't know if these are even still popular, but I HATE skinny jeans. For one thing, most people cannot wear them (myself included) and for another thing they look rediculous.

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  8. What I think is silly is when things are called "timeless" as if they'll be timeless. Like, the magazines will endorse the purchase of a multi-hundred dollar item "because it will never go out of style." But it definitely WILL, just like everything else. Subtle things we don't notice now, will be glaring later. Very few items from the 1970s are wearable now.

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  9. I definitely agree.... I think that one of the worst is girls trying to jump on the ripped tights thing. Heroin chic only works in photoshoots for people being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to pull it off, and even they don't go outside looking like that!

    I love street style blogs like Painfully Hipbecause there are great examples of people taking the trends you talk about - as well as just their inherent awkwardness and puling them off not just well, but making them beautiful. That's the kind of fashion I follow.

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  10. I see women wearing super-high heels and just want to die. What drives me NUTS is that I'm looking for some cute 1.5-inch heels for work, and all the cute styles are 3 inches or higher! Glah.

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  11. I don't follow the trends. I'm a jeans and t-shirts girl. I do however agree that skinny jeans are probably the worst thing ever and I can not believe people actually wear them! I'll stick to my flaired out bottomed pants that cover my shoes...thanks!

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  12. I hate the bootie/shootie things! Hate! It makes everyone look stumpy.

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  13. I'll admit my wardrobe is pretty low key and has alot of "basic" pieces... very J Crew inspired (since wow- it's expensive). I dont think I get into trends simply because I know they are trends... right now I HATE most of the shoes the media is saying look fabulous. Um.. no. Think- any sort of Victoria Beckham shoe. Yikes. Anyways.. I completely agree that we will look back on current trends like we do 80's trends and that there should be some moderation with all of it.

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  14. The worst, to me, right now- is those bell skirts. They go to the knee and they sort of puff out everywhere. I think they are going OUT of style now- but I saw one at a wedding last weekend and the girl looked ridiculous. She was small and slim, but the dress made her look bottom heavy and like a bell.

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  15. AMEN SISTER! Do you know I spent an hour in Macy's trying to find a nice, simple v-neck sweater last weekend and COULD NOT FIND ONE? I even asked the saleswoman, who also COULD NOT FIND ME ONE. Sweater. V-neck. Who knew it would be so difficult?

    The 80s didn't look good on anyone the first time around. That is all.

    Kristin

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  16. I try to stick with classic because the current trends often are so off the mark. I don't want to wear 80s clothing. I already did that IN THE 80s! And it looked bad then! The current trend to wear those shirts that make chubby girls look pregnant? I do not like those. I am not pregnant. I am chubby. And micro minis. No thanks. I've been having a hard time finding just a plain v-neck t-shirt.

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  17. My problem with a lot of what's "in" now is that it's so similar to what was "in" during the late 80s. I've already been there once; don't need to visit again. I was going to say it makes me feel old to say that, but I see Sizzle just said the same thing. (She and I must be about the same age.) :-)

    I'm totally on board with the classics.

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  18. Uh, Jess? I don't even know what you are talking about. That's how clueless I am.

    Metallic eyeshadow? Cascading ruffles? Really?

    Oh boy.

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  19. All the tops that look like maternity clothing. Coordinate those with the skinny jeans and then I look like two pigs fighting under a blanket.

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  20. There are many, many trends that I do not love--sunglasses that are so huge they look like scuba goggles, things that are patterned like great grandma's curtains, swoopy sleeves, oh I could go on :)

    1989-1992 didn't look good on us then! Can we please hurry up and bring back 1994-1996?

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  21. Though it appears to be (hopefully) a mostly last-year trend, the whole "capri length wide leg pants in menswear fabrics with knee high boots" look drove me BONKERS. Like this. Our children will laugh and laugh and laugh...

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  22. I'm pretty clueless about fashion trends. 90% of my clothes are Tommy Hillfiger, because his designs are basic. The one fashion trend I don't get are the teeny cardigans that only cover half of your torso - they look uncomfortable and weird.

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  23. I completely agree with you. Some of the clothes and shoes that are out there are so fug right now. It seriously looks like some people raided their grandmother's closets and stole there dresses and shoes. Barf!

    I try to stick to normal looking clothes. And I really HATE those ankle boot/shoe things. They are hideous!!!

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  24. Maybe I don't hang out in all the right places, but I've NEVER seen anyone... ANYONE wear those fashions in public. Never.

    Oh, wait, maybe I did see one once. Ah, that might explain why she was so pissed when I dropped a quarter into her latte. She wasn't panhandling, she was in fashion.

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  25. I really dislike what's going on with fashion right now, the flowy tops and all that business. It just doesn't appeal to me at all. But I agree with you, I love structured classic clothing, and probably always will. And I have maintained my daily wardrobe of jeans, tshirts, and flip flops through many fashion trends and will continue to through many more! I get most of the few dressy clothes I wear from Anthropologie or J Crew and I think they are less subject to weird fashion crazes.
    Although my quest for a nice trenchcoat and a cute all purpose non button gapping cardigan continues on.

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  26. I agree!! I hate those new shoes that are like ankle boots/heels or something. Perhaps they are all the rage, but I think they're just ugly.

    http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/45469188/c/8871.html

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  27. I'm always a less is more girl... but I'm totally digging the hippie stylings that are currently in. Like that "all natural" nearly Native American look? Diggin'

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  28. There are so many current styles I dislike. I think skinny jeans are my least favorite.

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  29. Skinny jeans. I hate them. On guys, on girls, on models, whatever. They don't flatter anyone.

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  30. Ann Taylor Loft (on crazy discount) is how I keep from getting too trendy.

    Interestingly, though - I LOVE skinny jeans. Sorry girls.

    I'm quite petite, so they're actually pretty flattering. Um, I think...Haha.

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  31. preach it sista!
    I just can't go there...sorry! I lived through the 80's once as a teen and I refuse to go there again.

    My least fav fashion item...leggings as pants...or a shirt as a dress. Noone wants to start at your "ho ha" or I don't anyway!

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  32. I feel the same way about the flowy tops. The thing that drives me crazy is everyone is trying to dress like the girls from "the hills". But, we all aren't a size 2 and have money oozing from every pore. Some of the stuff they wear, I kinda laugh at...

    I say stay with the basics...

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  33. I actually kind of like the slim pants-flowy shirt thing. (Note, slim pants, NOT skinny pants--those make most people look bad because they almost always sag in the crotch, emphasize hips, and create a muffin top.) Flattering-ish. And fun at least. I also love ruffles. But I don't take fashion too seriously (nor am I too fashionable). I figure, I can wear my hair or clothes or makeup in a weird way and I just act like I MEAN it, who will know?

    But I really dislike, as I said, skinny jeans in the super-unflattering skinny style, and the sort of faux-punk/80s street kind of style that's going on among high school-ish age people right now. It looks so contrived.

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  34. Where are all of these comments about the '80s coming from? I haven't seen anything recently that reminds me of the '80s, unless people are just talking about nonconservative clothing.

    I was actually just having a conversation a few weeks ago about how exciting it was to finally have fashion doing interesting things again. From the early '90s until the last year or two, everything was so conservative and drab and lame, and basically just a mishmash of all the most boring clothes from previous decades. I think it's fun that there is a definitive "now" look again, and I'm a fan of the one that is developing. But then, I've always been into bolder looks.

    Also, I'm pretty into skinny jeans.

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  35. Additionally, if your pants are creating a "muffin top," you can't blame the style of the jeans. You're just wearing pants that are too small for you.

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  36. I was just with a friend at a sample sale talking about how we wanted to raid the Mad Men wardrobe closet, so I'm obviously not opposed to bringing styles back for a second run. I'd wear various silhouettes and styles from the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and yes, even the 80s.

    That being said, ugh! booties. Yeuch.

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  37. Oh yes, the fashion questions. I often wonder if what I'm wearing today will be cringe-worthy in a few years, but then I think, if I look good today, that's all that matters... and then I don't worry about it anymore. I don't really follow all the outrageous trends anyway, so I think I'm pretty safe.

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  38. The plaid! Oh god, the plaid! Keep the plaid! YUCK!

    Great post :)

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  39. When it comes to fashion - I sort of think the eighties are justification enough that one shouldn't always follow the trends.

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  40. Agreed. Sometimes when I'm out on the town looking at what the girls are wearing, I feel like I'm about 15 years in the future being like, "WHAT were they thinking?" And I've always been a pretty trendy girl I think the problem is that a lot of what is in style now is NOT forgiving - tights, super short "dresses" that actually should be worn as SHIRTS, skinny jeans.. only a few can get away with them and look good.

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  41. I should add that that being said though, I do wear skinny jeans and love, love them! I think I'm skinny enough that they work for me.. then again I could be delusional. Talk to me again in 15 years. :)

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  42. I always just choose close that I like and that fit well on me- no attention payed to trends. So black/brown/etc dress slacks with little embellishment, v-neck sweaters, basic tank tops, cardigan sweaters. They don't go in or out of style for years.

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  43. We're all better off sticking with basics - and incorporating a trend here-or-there. An entire body covered in trends? Puke.

    In addition to the hate for all things 80's, Kanye sunglasses, and skinny jeans, I have to add - Fringe.

    WHY AM I SEEING FRINGE ON PURSES?!

    I am not a cow-girl, nor am I a member of Twisted Sister. Keep that gawd-awfulness away!

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  44. i'm not liking the whole boyfriend pegged jeans trend that all the starlets are rockin' no thanks!

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  45. I wholeheartedly agree on the gladiator sandals. What ARE those.

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  46. I have not been on board with fashion for at least 10 years. I've reverted to "classic" because the trends seem so out of hand to me. Yucko.

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  47. Bubble skirts and skinny jeans. Those two trend need to go far far away. The only people skinny jeans look good on are young girls and models for the most part.

    I think many fashion magazines are overdesigned to showcase items so that people will see them and buy them. Why show only 200 clothing items when you can layer and layer and layer and layer to show 900 items? I think it's all about the dollar.

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  48. I try to not follow specific *movements* as much as keep it classic - with the exception of some purchases to keep my wardrobe current and, dare I say, a tad trendy. I dislike the whole peep toe boot thing - I think it's ugly beyond compare and I would never wear them....

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  49. OMG I HATE the gladiator shoes. I simply don't get them. They are almost as ugly as crocs!!!

    I have never understood Uggs with short skirts either. If it is nice enough to wear a short skirt, then why are you wearing boots that have a fake fur lining in them? Once you take the boots off they are going to stink because you were sweating in them all day!!!!

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  50. Yeah, I feel the same way. I tend to stick to basics: V-neck shirts and sweaters, cardigans, pants that aren't too low but aren't too high. I think people are really going to look back on the high-waisted pants and go, "Why did we do that AGAIN? Didn't we learn from the 80's?"

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  51. I actually kind of like the skinny jeans. Now, i'm not delusional to think that I can wear them myself, but i like them on other people. Skinny people. They just weren't made for people with my ass. I'm fine with that.
    I also like the flowy tops with the empire waist. I don't think they make me look pregnant (hopefully i'm not wrong!) and they're damn comfortable. That and some other pieces i own (the chunky bead necklaces that are in now are kind of interesting) make me almost feel fashionable for the first time in YEARS. But i'll still have this stuff next year when it's all out again. Ah, well.

    I saw a pair of gladiator JELLY shoes during the summer and i busted out laughing in the store. I mean, COME ON, people.

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  52. gladiator sandals are horrible. HORRIBLE. and always make me giggle to myself if whoever is wearing them spends any time in the sun.... imagine the tan lines. BWAHAHA.

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  53. The flowy tops with empire waists are everywhere and definitely NOT something I can wear without looking like I'm pregnant. Also, I saw a girl in a mini dress with leggings on yesterday. Ugh. If I don't have a meeting or something really dressy to go to, I'm usually in a pair of khakis and a v-neck t-shirt. I'm all about comfort these days.

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  54. Oh my goodness! I could NOT agree with you more, Jess! It's so irritating trying to find a decent outfit these days. All those frills and flounces and ickyness. Seriously, if I was a size 1, MAYBE (and that's a big maybe) some of those outfits might not look AS bad, but yeesh, you get above a size 2 and those sorts of outfits just look like they belong at clown conventions!

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  55. I am anti leggings and anti flats...I know, someone will shoot me for saying this, but ballerina flats offer next-to-no support for your arch. I wore them when I was a little girl with frilly socks...I can't wear them as an adult.

    Ditto on loudly patterned tights. I just don't buy it.

    Love this post.
    xox

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