THE FASHION PARADOX
Superfluous Or Substantial?
By Jyoti Peswani
Photo Charles Nolan Collection

Fashion has existed even before the human race coined the term “fashion.”  On one hand, it involves the science of understanding, anticipating and knowing the popular zeitgeist much before it comes to being; on the other, it brings out the iconoclast in the individual. This fascinating pas de deux is ingeniously camouflaged behind the industry’s artsy façade.

So what does it make you? Conformist or nonconformist? To me, it means walking the fine line between both. It’s like listening to a wise elder who once told me, “Listen to everyone, but follow your own heart.” But when I look around, I feel we live in a world held hostage by the mannequin clan: everything should look Stepford like perfect.

These are spurious, contemporary times – of botox, crash diets and there is almost an epidemic of no-matter-what-happens-I-will look fabulous syndrome - thus perpetuating the myth of the fountain of youth, often misconstrued with being “fashionable.”

I am not sure if this is what Charles Worth thought when he opened the first couture house in Paris in 1858 or Paul Poiret in 1906 when he introduced the ever popular harem pants. I would also be curious to know what Coco Chanel would think if she would live in our times. I am sure she didn’t design her signature tailored suit or the timeless quilted bag for the size two varieties. She did it for establishing a sheer sense of style, style that encouraged women to break the mold, to think different.

Thankfully, the trend is shifting, we saw this paradigm on shaky grounds at the New York Fashion Week between the last year to now, even Vogue is seriously talking about it and fashion pundits are encouraging this shift and bringing it slowly but surely from the runway to reality. The spirit of any season, any mood is change. This transience is welcome as another pattern is broken, making way for a uniqueness that our times so hungrily crave.

Equating fashion with individuality, I cannot help but wonder about a quandary. All superfluous things aside, if an iconoclast steps forward beaming with style, the more original they are, the more imitated they tend to be. Coco Chanel is a good case in point, not to take away from other designer greats – but the more “different” she became, the more she was imitated. Interestingly, sometimes following a trend could mean discovering your own personal style. Isn’t that what accentuates the substance factor?

This dance between the forces of fashion brings about a dualism that forces one to think about their individual sense of chic. I love this sizzling irony that fashion brings forward - of laying down the rules, dictating trends and yet making one go on a personal odyssey of style. It’s predictable, almost to the degree of being instinctive. However, fashion doesn’t just recycle itself over the years; it in fact improvises on a mood that was once successful, adapting it to suit current trends.

Speaking of trends, this Fall jackets in all shapes are the highlight of the season. Boots are a must-have and goddess hair-dos are back in business. Like every Fall, don’t let the beiges, browns and neutrals fool you.  This time around jeweled tones, orange and most of all purple marks the change of season. Take a good look in the mirror, choose wisely and flaunt it happily and merrily.    
Think about it, trends or size do not matter. Style does.

Jyoti Peswani a.k.a. Jo is a writer, editor and a part-time teacher and is a contributor to local lifestyle publications in Miami. Currently, she has her nose on the proverbial grindstone to acquire the coveted status of a published author of a nonfiction book.