The Un-Fashionable Truth

Vain.  Shallow.  Materialistic.  All words used to describe those who care about what they wear and how they look.  But are they always fully deserved?  Or have these folks figured out something that no one likes to admit to instead? The un-fashionable truth that what you wear speaks volumes about who you are as a person and what you think of yourself.

Back in high school I came to the honest realization that I would never been known for the looks I was born with.  But what I lacked from nature could be compensated for by what I wore.  Because style knows no age limit and can last you throughout your entire life.  Simply put, looks may fade, but style is forever.  And as I developed my style over the years I began to notice and study the style of others too.  And I learned that what they wore could tell me a great deal about them and what they thought of themselves.

I learned from studying the style of others what socio-economic groups they either belonged in or wanted to belong in.  I learned from women how comfortable or uncomfortable they were with their femininity and sexuality.  I learned from those who wore the latest fads and styles who had low self-esteem and needed the latest thing to validate themselves.  I could spot a newlywed by the changes in her wardrobe and overall look.  And I could look at a group of people and tell you who fit in and who didn't, either by conscious or unconscious choice, simply by what they were wearing.

Clothes speak volumes about who we are as people and sometimes even who we want to be.  And it's nothing to be ashamed of in life.  Human beings are tribal by nature.  No amount of technology can change that.  And  clothes are one way of aligning ourselves with a certain tribe.  Clothes are also our way of communicating who we and how we feel to the outside world.  Unlike the animals, we don't have fur or chameleon skin or other physical attributes to express ourselves with.  So we rely on our clothes instead.

The danger in all of this, as in everything in life, comes when we cross the line and either starve ourselves or become gluttonous.  Neither is good.  Not allowing ourselves the basics in life can indicate that we don't think we're worthy of them and tell the world that we don't think much of ourselves.  And too much in the closet can indicate a need to fill a void in other areas of our lives.  (For those who know me well, yes, I realize the last statement was full on "pot, kettle, black".)

So the next time you get dressed in the morning and look in the mirror ask yourself this simple question-  What do my clothes say about me?  Do I like what they say?  Or is it time it give myself a new style voice?