FashBlog.com

Heaven knows I’ve thought about this topic enough over the years; this may be a good day to pose the question to all of you.

Many moons ago, I found out that a co-worker had scrimped and saved for the tiniest Gucci bag, just so she could say she had one. As someone who grew up in a family devoid of name-dropping, I found it odd that a person would make such a sacrifice to impress others. I was yet to realize the impact and the emphasis our society attaches to names. I was about 18 at the time. Three years ago, my daughter’s 12 year old pal could tell the difference between a genuine and fake Louis Vuitton. Since the girl obviously couldn’t even afford a fake one due to lack of employment, I saw something wrong with this picture.

Does this strike you as somewhat sad? When little girls can recognize expensive merchandisers before being able to find their originating countries on a map, it’s says something about our focus and priorities.

Every time I visit an upscale store, I feel that there must be something wrong with me because I don’t feel an innate and immediate desire for that which sits in a hushed space, lit from above by a spotlight. I wonder how women can buy what’s often unattractive stuff, at its outrageous cost, if not to say that it’s “designer.” It can’t be because it lasts longer than non-name labels, because if one can afford it in the first place, one can probably afford to have several of everything and get rid of all every season. So it must be for appearances and the desire to impress others, concerns that are truly energy-wasters.

I’m well aware that there’s a psychological process at work here, where people feel that labels validate self-worth, and provide ego-security, but I still find it rather pathetic. Someone once told me that her grandkids “had” to have expensive tennis shoes to fit in, and I just shook my head…

I love it when I see celebrities eschewing designer labels for unknown artists, or better yet, home-made creations. (Doesn’t Beyonce’s mom make a lot of her clothes?) It appeals to my inner rebel to see those who can afford to buy anything say, “I’m doing it my way” instead. I want to stand up and cheer at their bold choice to step out in something other than a famous name gown, and the fact that they don’t need a label to have credibility as a well-dressed person.

Now, I must admit to owning one-exactly one-designer purse, but I bought it in my early 20’s when I was into that whole “impress the world with my success” mode. I’m glad that’s passed. I know that designers have to make a living too, so it works out that there are plenty of people who find it important to own those names on labels.

When I hear about people rushing to every season’s runway shows in hopes of being the first to wear certain designer’s offerings, it reminds me of something I learned in grade school. And that was, styles keep changing every season in order for the clothing industry to make money. How would the textile industry flourish if styles stayed the same? Looking at it in those terms, should the public feel like sheep being led to some kind of financial slaughter, especially considering the outrageous prices and even more outrageous looks of some designer clothing?

This isn’t to say that anything with a designer label is unattractive; it’s simply that the average woman’s lifestyle does not lend itself to spend a large part of her budget on clothes that can’t be comfortable being worn to the grocery store or PTA meeting. The term “fashion” covers a large territory, not the least of which is the ability to look great in ready-made clothes from regular department stores. Relying on one’s own sense of style and compatibility in selections says more about fashion than simply carrying a bag that, by its name and price, claims to advertise fashion savvy.

None of us should feel like we need designer names to validate our sense of fashion. In a way, we all are designers when it comes to wearing what looks good on us.