FashBlog.com

In a few past articles here at Fashion Blog, I’ve referred to clothing that was considered inappropriate by fashion experts for a number of reasons. Usually, it referred to showing an excess amount of skin (either bare or through transparent material or lace), or not wearing proper undergarments. These instances may or may not have been cases of the wearer consciously choosing to be attention-striving; she may simply think she looks good, or sexy. (Either that or she found herself without clean undergarments and decided what-the-heck.) But this particular article isn’t going to debate that issue; this one is going to be focused on clothes that are worn for the specific intent of drawing attention to oneself-along with a few reasons why that’s never a good idea.

There are probably equal reasons: what the stores actually offer and how the wearer chooses to wear what they have. I’m not sure which party is more guilty, but if pressed, I’d go with the individual, because the final choice for wearing or buying is always up to her.

Some of those t-shirts with sayings often cross the line from flirty to suggestive, with a few going all the way to obscene. Some souvenir shops are culprits of such tacky attire, but, with online resources, it’s easy to find almost anything printed across a person’s chest. Probably the worst I’ve ever seen was a long shirt worn by a fairly young teenage girl on a school picnic at a local amusement park. It had the saying “There it is” with an arrow pointing to her crotch. Considering that the park has a huge sign saying that offensive clothing was not permitted, it’s obviously a mistake that this chick slipped past the guards. (And how could a parent let a young girl buy, let alone wear that?) Even kids who couldn’t read couldn’t help but notice that arrow and where it led. I wondered if broadcasting herself like that resulted in repercussions, like a bad reputation or failure to find a respectful boyfriend. That kind of t-shirt, along with many other blatant clothing and accessories, seems to be a pitiful cry for attention that a gal doesn’t think she can get by her personality or brains.

Years ago, I remember seeing gals wearing different socks and/or different shoes. That is something else I never really got. After all, you buy that stuff in pairs to begin with, so, unless you’ve lost a mate and have absolutely nothing else available, purposely mixing things up is akin to shouting “look at me”. I’ve vague recollections of a famous actress becoming known for doing this (but I don’t wish to name her in case my memory is failing me) and it baffled me because this gal was more famous and beautiful than the majority of A list celebs, so it wasn’t that she needed more attention. I guess it was sort of a “creative” phase that she’d hoped would become her trademark, but, again, someone who is really confident should need not to resort to any kind of trademark, should they?

There have been some truly ugly dresses worn by famous people to award ceremonies or fundraisers, and they inevitably make the lists of “worst dressed”, if not for the year, then for the week. The majority of these are yelling out for attention, albeit negative. Many have totally contrasting tops and bottoms-perhaps a very businesslike or prim top, and a huge, fluffy, frilly bottom. Or, they may be at far ends of the spectrum in terms of materials, patterns or colors. They could possess dizzying asymmetrical lines. A lot of times, feathers are involved.

Such clothes do nothing to enhance a woman’s figure or allure. How can a gal feel comfortable when she obviously looks so different from everyone else, and not necessarily due to her natural beauty or an outfit that flatters her innate qualities? She has to know that it’s the clothes generating attention, and that’s cheating. It’s cheating herself of the attention that she deserves by being more true to herself and buying into the idea that any publicity is better than none. It’s not. Nor is it ever good to be noticed in a bad way-regardless of what women on the “worst dressed” lists say.