Wise consuming

(In order not to offend the sensibilities of anyone, I've decided never to post ugly pictures in this blog. So for this post I'm putting an old Kate Spade ad because it's nice, not because it makes me go "huh?") Ad campaign image from here.

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Ever looked at a new clothing ad campaign and thought, "Huh?"

I have. And more often than I can count!

I'm referring to local clothing brands that have ads that seem to be undermining their purpose--which is to sell. Here's irony for you: on an ad campaign of a brand that's supposed to be selling t-shirts, a male model wearing the t-shirt is trying to pull the shirt off. What, are they saying their shirts are itchy?

And there's a brand for jeans (and underwear?) with a billboard that has the model in a weird pose, wearing some tasseled arm bands/leg warmers, jeans with the fly open... and a bra under... nothing. While I get that they want to sell the underwear, it isn't like people normally walk around with nothing over them (and with arm and leg tassels, lol)! And the jeans? It makes you wonder if the model wore them that way because the button has popped out and the zipper caught.

I have a friend who once wrote a letter to this same clothing brand company to tell them that their underwear ads are not very tasteful. You know what they told her? There's no other way to sell underwear but to do that! I'll say they're just too lazy to think of a better way.

While I would love to support Philippine brands by buying from local stores, it's difficult to stay loyal when you know that some of your money goes to the production of such mind boggling ads. I bought two pairs of jeans from a local store because I like how they fit and how they're not over my budget, but since then, I've spotted some barely-dressed ads with that same clothing brand emblazoned on them, and I can't help thinking my jeans-budget went on to proclaim that barely dressed and voluptuous is the beauty standard of today.

Call me over-acting, but must we consumers let clothing companies dictate what sort of "creativity" goes out there? To thrive, they're the ones depending on us after all.

Questions and compliments

Photos from here.

You want to help more of your friends appreciate appropriate dressing but don't know where to start? Go out with them! It doesn't have to be a trip to the shops... you can go out for pho or halo-halo or watch a movie. The point is that you see your friends. And when ladies get together, they usually put a little more effort into looking nice (do you agree with the theory that women actually dress for other women?)--I just notice it.

What could be the reason behind that? My guess is women like getting compliments. (This may seem like a 'duh' answer but let me elaborate.) It's not as much about getting green-eyed stares from other women that we want--it's more of appreciating the same things, or having things in common to bond over with and share with one's friends.

When a friend says she likes your blouse, don't you feel happy that somebody approves the choice you made? And then, won't you be planning on wearing that elegant blouse more often? The grand implication of it is: You can actually encourage your friends to don more dignifying pieces simply by telling them you like what you see.



Hence, having simple get-togethers with your BFFs (outside uniform territory, of course!) can become fertile ground for making headway in your mission to raise the standards of fashion. What may seem like a superficial practice of telling your friends what you (sincerely) like about their outfit, hairstyle or make-up can actually be a way of encouraging them to stick to positive style.

Now, armed with this idea, you might want to help me answer two questions I've been pondering on for almost two weeks now:

• If you're out shopping with a friend and she asks for your opinion on an outfit that does nothing to help others appreciate the person she is, what would you tell her?
  
• How would you make her understand if you know she doesn't yet appreciate your ideas on dressing with dignity?

Slippery when wet

Photo from here.

It's downpour season again and it's really amusing that I'm seeing more rubber slippers in the streets. Is it because people want to catch leptospirosis so they peel off their protective shoes at the mere forecast of Cloudy With a Chance of Rain? Or have shoes become so important that many prefer to get their feet wet instead of getting their shoes wet?

The slipper phenomenon may perhaps be traced to our associating slippers with walking in comfort. Which is logical, since slippers are what we use to get around the house and stroll on the beach. Unfortunately, the street (not to mention the workplace, Church, commercial spots...) is neither of these two places. In the street, slippered feet are exposed to dust, grime, cuts, murky waters, spitting habits of inconsiderate fellow pedestrians and the occasional chewed up pink gum. If you know all this and still choose your slippers over shoes, it might be time to re-evaluate whether you have come to regard your shoes with so much value that protecting them has become more important than protecting your own feet.

Besides, what's so comfortable about commuting in slippers (particularly rubber flip flops) anyway? The people behind you keep accidentally stepping on them, and you have to keep a keen grip on the thongs with your toes so the slippers don't just flip-flop out from under you. I used to walk around in slippers myself, and it left me with blisters where the thongs would rub my feet. Painful and unsightly. Finally, slippers are a surefire way to teach your toes to splay out like a fan, which is good training if only people were amphibian.

Have I convinced you yet to invest in a good pair of walking shoes for commuting? They don't have to be bulky hiking boots or galoshes. They just have to be comfortable, protective, and made of materials that can stand all the elements I have listed above. And for your peace of mind, function doesn't always cramp form: choose a pair that suits your individual style. After all, it is you who is doing the shopping and the walking!

Fashion camp invitation!

Hello Ladies,

If you believe in person-centered fashion and wish to promote it, how about joining other ladies in the GUTSY Fashion Camp on July 31-August 1?

GUTSY aims to empower young women to be catalysts of change in the world of fashion and to be the trendsetters in upholding their dignity through positive dressing, designing and retailing. Learn to take an active role in inspiring more women to dress with dignity through:

• Team building activities,
  
• Film viewings,
  
• Fashion talks, and
  
• Writing seminars

Contact Kathy Gacer (0926-674-0273) or Pia Lorenzo (0919-249-1192) for more details. It's going to be fun and classy! See you there! ;-)

The lady's bag syndrome

Painting from here.

Since the day I read this post from a friend's blog, I have been spotting more and more chivalrous knights slinging their noble lady's, um, satchel over their shoulders.

• The first strike was in the elevator at Shangri-la Mall--the bag in question was a hulky LV. (So it must've been heavy.)
• The second strike was in Greenbelt; and the bag was a medium-sized Coach. (Maybe it had a lot of coins inside. Coins can take up little space but add a lot of weight.)
• The last and final strike was also in Greenbelt; the bag was a glittery gold number that probably didn't weigh more than a pound. (I give up thinking of excuses.)

At the last sighting, while trying very hard not to say, "Dude, I love your bag," I decided--it's about time I wrote about it, too.

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What is the lady's bag syndrome (LBS)?
The lady's bag syndrome (LBS) is a mild illness that perhaps comes from a rare strain of the virus Courtesy--or maybe Chivalry. Its symptoms include the spontaneous sprouting of a lady's bag (sometimes of high-class designer origin) on the man's shoulder, arm or hand. Severity of case varies depending on the girliness of said bag.

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Seriously though, I'd like to think the man infected with LBS does it because he cares for the lady in question and wishes only for her comfort. The fact that the floral handbag is slung over a manly shoulder, then, can only be traced to one thing: the lady's consent! (Okay, ignorance on the part of both parties too, but that's beside the point.)

Girls--please, if you're thinking of saying yes, consider first how your young man will look carrying that bag. And unless you're carrying two bowling balls in there, I suspect saying no won't be that bad on your back.

Besides, if it's encouraging the chivalrous behavior that you're concerned with, there are a lot more great acts a young man can do without having to compromise his dignity with a female handbag. There's opening the door for the lady, offering a seat at the bus or train, stepping out of his car to greet the girl's family whenever he picks her up for their date (and then taking her home on time), introducing her properly to all those important people in his life, honoring her choice to prioritize purity...

All these he will do for his lady if she really believes that they matter (and if he's really as awesome as he wants her to think).

You see how so much depends on us girls?

Freedom and fashion

Photo from here.

Talking about proper dressing, I once got asked: "Why can't people just wear whatever they want? It is their body. And don't rules like that just take away a woman's freedom to wear what she likes?"

Good question, no?

Let me ask a better one. Isn't freedom such a nice word? You can throw it around and use it for all the "open minded" arguments and it fits right in--how very versatile! But that's just considering freedom superficially. It's quite easy to forget that, like everything else, freedom needs standards too.

Think about this: What happens if all the drivers on the road are given the freedom to do what they like? If you put rules on the road, are you taking away a driver's freedom, or are you making it easier for the driver to reach the destination? (I think you can find the answers to those questions on your own.)

The same idea goes into appropriate dressing. There has to be rules in dressing to help the wearer come across as someone worthwhile to get to know, not just something to look at (besides, only a someone can get somewhere). In dressing, it is not simply wearing anything you like, but spotting what looks good (highlighting the face, bringing out the personality, not drawing attention to one part of the body) and then choosing to wear those pieces over things which are less flattering. That's real freedom.

Why so meticulous about the meaning of freedom? Because if you waver at the meaning of freedom, everything you can connect to it wavers, too.

• Justice: If freedom means doing whatever you like, then a person who kills another person is justified because he simply exercised his freedom.
• Duty: If freedom means doing anything you like, then duty is meaningless because you can forget the work and say you just exercised your freedom.
• Love: If freedom means doing whatever you want, then cheating is perfectly fine--you just exercised...

Anyway, that's the point: real freedom needs standards because a lot depends on it. And if you believe in truly exercising your freedom, you must live it.... Let freedom (and all the rules that come with it) ooze out of you through everything that you do--from the big things like your words, actions and works... down to the small and "trivial" things... like your hemlines.

What Is GUTSY?

"The G.U.T.S.Y. Fashion Team is a fashion advocacy group composed of students of fashion, fashionistas, young designers and retailers who understand the true sense of style of young women which is based on individuality and self-worth."

This blog shall discuss fashion that highlights the positive in the wearer and lets her individuality shine. You can call it person-centered fashion, if you like. :-)

That said...

Welcome readers, I hope the insights in this blog can help more people take the standards of fashion a step (or two) higher!