14 - Sunday, April 19, 1992 - North Shore News

Carol
Crenna

FASHION STATEMENTS

FASHION MEANS. very
little if you do not have the
sense of style to put
clothing together in a way
that pleases you. Therefore
this column hopes to aid in
a better understanding of
personal style and how to
acquiré it.

What are the elements of per- vA

sonal style and what makes style
stylish?

Style is a kind of personal
signature which others clues to the
“real’’ you. It is based on much

“mere than being fashion conscious
and includes attention to the most
varied details of life.

Style is a kind of personal
signature which gives others clues
to the ‘‘real’’ you. It is based on
much more: than being fashion
conscious and includes attention
to the most varied details of life. _
messages in a visual language that
is understood by all who see it.

And it could be described as the -

most refined, yet extreme way of
demonstrating oneself, because no
Matter how subtly it is shown,
style always makes visual impact.

Style is not a limited resource
that can be drawn on only when
-you have an audience. It is used
every day and at every opportuni-
ty. Like a standard tool, it’s
available when a parking ticket
has to be deflected, a late pay-
mient explained, an engagement
-cancelled, or when there is only
time to throw something on and
go.

Everyone can have a great sense
of style. Sure, if you are French
you have history on your side.
And if you are wealthy, there are
certain advantages. But style treats
everyone equally, and there are
just as many poorly dressed well-
to-do women as there are well-
dressed poor women.

Perhaps no one understands the
fine art of dressing better than the
socialites of the past. These
women often appeared on the Best
‘Dressed list and were often
featured in the social columns of
major newspapers.

For example, Mrs. Reginald
Fellowes, who was married to the
second Lord de Ramsey in the
1930s, was an
thinker. She knew that dressing
could de a satisfying means of self

independent -

Making sense of style

WHETHER YOUR clothing style Is casual or dressy, you can use It to your best advantage.

expression. She liked to dress her
boyish figure in clothes that would
make other women look foolish.
When she knew everyone would
be dressed to the nines for a social
function, Mrs. Fellowes would
choose the most understated,
sophisticated frock, making the
other people feel terribly over-
dressed. She would be the only

bareheaded spectator at the horse .

races, knowing that this’ would
make the ladies in elaborate
brimmed and piled hats look ridi-
culous,

The late Diana. Vreeland,
former editor in chief of Vogue,
knew that well placed physical

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assets had nothing to do with
well-developed style. She was not,
by any stretch of the imagination,
an attractive woman, but by clev-
erly emphasizing ai! of her worst
features, she looked divine.

She paid special attention to her
hairline and kands to compensate
and was convinced that they actu:
ally held the secret of a woman’s
elegance. Vreeland was noticed
wherever she went, armed with an
eccentric wit and a powerful sense
of presence. —

In Second World War Paris,
Gloria Guinness learned young
that fashion was a question of
taste, not bank account. Even

when she was poor, she would
upstage the fashionably rich ladies
by using her creativity.

She introduced the pairing of a

simple black cardigan with a
sophisticated black skirt, which
won admiring glances from
others. And she made dresses by
taking an exquisite piece of fabric
and simplying cutting a hole in the
middle for her head,*securing the

fabric around the middle with.a

unique sash. Other women would
always ask where she bought it.
When she became successful
years later, she maintained her in-
dividuality. She once wore a black
designer gown which had a row of

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large feathers cascading down one
side, to a party.

Upon entering the event, she
noticed that a guest across the
room was wearing the same gown.
She quickly borrowed a pair of
scissors and clipped off all the
feathers. She used them splayed as
a fan in her hand.

Gabrielle Chanel, who created’
the “Total Look’’ in the 1920s,
felt that clothes themselves. were
less important than how they were

“worn and what was put with:

them. Her “poverty deluxe’’ look,
a phrase which was coined by a
rival designer at that time, piled a
simple garment with strings of
pearls and other costume jewlery.
This created a quality and richness __.
without altering the outfit’s clean .
lines.

Chanel disliked the confi ned
way in which women were dress-
ing in the ’20s, so she opted for
her own look which was borrowed ~.
from her male companions. She.
designed cardigan ~jackets. and
boxy iittle suits which gave women. -
more ease of movement. She also
preferred little black dresses to the |
restrictive gowns worn at the time.

The. Critical Eye va
A WOMAN with. style «does not ©
have to be a walking biliboard.

She can enjoy the: subtleties of
her own identity without feeling —
that she has to put it on parade.
And, in fact, most stylish women -
would far rather be consistent in’.
the way they dress than be in-
novative.

One criterion of style is com-
fort. Your clothes have to feel like
they were made with you in mind.
Even when they are. new, the best
clothes should feel like old friends

din your. wardrobe — comforting,

dependable ‘and able’ to bring cut. -
the best in you. 9

It is not difficult: to tell wken
people feel out of place in their:
clothes. They. carry. themselves
differently, witha. slight.
awkwardness, and they seem less
self-assured than they may . -be
normally.

Perhaps you have ‘seen a Woman

‘who prefers.to dress casually, ‘and.

does so, except when-she has .to
wear a dress fora formal furic-
tion. Or you have seen a. womait
who spends much 0

_money buying clothes. for. business.

and therefore. does not ‘took | well
put-together or as: complete i in her
weekend clothes. ©

Remember that what you
should allow you to express: thi
same energy and. confidence: bo!

you love to wear. tha ‘yi
feel relaxed, confident’ and friend.
ly. This is probably: atso the .on

you feel i in that garment. :
See. Trust page 46.

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