Because fashion is about your decisions as a consumer and about the search for identity, the following are behaviors people could find themselves guilty of when submerged in the world of fashion.
PURSE ENVY
Celebrities and consummate fashion bloggers have access to expensive, limited edition, ultra-top, uber-super clothes and accessories that most people don’t. Most of these things are available to us mortals in different shapes and even better. You don’t need a Chanel purse to be a fashionista; you need creativity, to be yourself and find which style fits you best. I don’t think I would ever spend $18,000 on a Birkin and I judge the analytic capabilities of those who would.
Just remember: most celebrities didn’t go to school and might have issues with simple arithmetic operations. Do not envy what others have but be more awesome than them with what you have.
Take that, Louis, Goyard, Fendi, Yves and Coco!
SHOE GLUTTONY
The question of “how many shoes do I need?” is part of the eternal women’s closet affliction. While some would not have a finite answer to that question, I see the issue as an opportunity cost problem: your “not so good” shoes that you don’t wear are often stealing closet space, potentially keeping you from wearing other items or finding things easily. We all have that pair we never wear, but we like it too much… they don’t fit and they are painful to walk in. If they are in good condition, try to sell them, if they are cheap garbage, just toss them and liberate yourself from things you don’t need!
For closet perfection, the less is more doctrine works every time. Getting better but fewer clothes and shoes will help you see your style more clearly and look better with less effort.
SHOPPING GREED
Resilience to spend on high quality, specially if your closet is full of polyester, is a very dangerous fashion sin: you get used to the cheap brands and fast fashion consumption that you are not willing to pay more for quality. Erase those cheap prices from your head and remember that they are an illusion: there are people in other parts of the world paying a high price in the form of poor working conditions and environmental damage so that you can have 100 dresses.
Rising your standards while supporting ethical brands is a great way to improve your wardrobe while making an statement with your buying decisions.
WARDROBE LUST
There is a very thin line between sexy and trashy. I wouldn’t recommend attempting either of the two. Ever. Being sexy and looking good for your boyfriend, or just to feel pretty is a very subtle thing. Making premeditated efforts to look hot end up in looking pathetic and ridiculous. Being yourself and embracing your personality is sexier than any slutty Nasty Gal outfit.
BRAND PRIDE
Refusing to wear certain brands just because they are not good enough for you is BS. Unless your decision is based on ethical considerations (not shopping Gap or F21, because of their terrible corporate principles, for example), caring for brand names is silly; thinking that you are the most tasteful person in the room just because you have an designer handbag is adolescent behavior, to say the least. Embrace your local, used or indie unknown brands and free yourself from the incredibly well crafted marketing techniques from high-end retailers.
STYLE SLOTH
Going to a stupid fashion magazine to see what to wear is the most ridiculous think I’ve ever heard of, and I’d be surprised if any mildly conscious woman has ever done that. You don’t need magazines or bloggers to tell you what to wear, experiment with what you have at home and craft your own sense of style.
WRATH
What I feel when I read things like this. But more than getting annoyed for how insecure and stupid women are in the minds of fashion marketers, I ask: have us women simply assimilated the way the media talks to us as a standard? If that was the case, we would be all lost and I would stop writing right now. But I believe there are smart women out there that understand the insulting editorial line of fashion media as a digression of gender fights; all we have to do is be more outspoken about it, start demanding real content and say no to the shameless affiliate marketing most magazines and blogs live of.
Credits
Art from Salmon Seven Deadly Sins: 5040 drawings on salmon colored index cards, inspired by anagrams and deadly sins, with music by Leftover Salmon.
by Steven Vander.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoTw4dE2FaU?rel=0&w=560&h=315]