When I entered high
school, a friend of the family made me a dress. It was brown with a cute little jacket to go
with it. That one item was the top pick of my simple wardrobe. Today, high end fashion
trends seem to dictate to us, subliminally, more and more, what to wear, which
colours to choose and which brands to buy.
The names Haggar, Non-Fiction, Mark’s
Work Wear House are personal fashion favourites along with another whose label
is simply a screen printed butterfly inside the neckline. I decided to check out a discount store, a newspaper flyer and a man’s retail outlet last
year that had begun carrying women’s clothing when these clothing ‘discoveries’
made their appearance. These well-stitched,
comfortable, breathable, made mostly of cotton, clothing are wonderfully
affordable. I recall the fashions of the
past and the, sometimes, meagre rationing of the fabrics used to make the cropped
tops, mini-skirts, and tops whose necklines beckoned for more fabric, in some
cases.
The labels- Haggar-Non-Fiction and retail outlet, Mark’s
Work WearHouse are every woman’s label. Looking
great and feeling comfortable in what you wear at an affordable price is what
everyday fashion is all about..(When luxurious fabrics, designer labels and intricate
details are used, we expect to pay more). ...
We have seasonal fashion lines, introduced every few months to continually be reminded of what is trendy,
what is acceptable in colours, styles and instructed as to how these articles of clothing can be worn. Men’s fashion lines, however, seem timeless. There is a greater respect for what men want
or need. They would never tolerate the seeming dating of what they wear. Many,
also, simply do not care. (A little
change is good for breathing life into a wardrobe).
Looking back on 100 years of fashion shows
that men’s clothing has remained static, pretty much what it was in the early
1900’s in colours and style with only slight design changes, width modifications and
colour swings, introduced overtime. (The
human body has not changed in millions of years in terms of the location of
head, arms and legs.) When we hold on
to pieces of clothing we love, it is called ‘used’ and out of date, yet, when
we go shopping for someone else’s used clothing, some of it high end, it is
now labelled ‘vintage’. (The use of a
different adjective to describe preowned articles of clothing can decide the
worth of that purchase.)
I am surrounded by women of all ages, professions and tastes
who amaze and humble me with their fashion sense. ... Their fashion skill could
rival that of any celebrity, debutant or model on the catwalk. And no one told them what to do or how to do
it. Change is nice, occasionally, but discarding pieces because some ‘expert apparition’ has deigned our choices out of date is to make a mockery of free will.
Women’s fashion lines seem to change
radically, from time to time. Up go the hemlines, down go the hemlines, then they return somewhere in between making us crazy along the way. Colours that
were forbidden to be paired together one year are then permissible the next
year or next season. I remember one year -late sixties- when the military style
shoe was in vogue. And then they vanished, seemingly, overnight.
Fashion lives in our heart and mind. It is a subjective
call, an expression of who we are, what we like. Wander into new stores. You never know what
lies ahead. Fashion lies hidden in places where we haven’t looked. Haggar, Non-Fiction and Marks’ Work Wear House
are brands that have made the wearing of well made clothing an economical
delight- even after they have been washed!
Trust your instincts and remember other members of your family might need those important fashion dollars more.
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