My letter to AAWMAG

I wrote this letter to the editor of All about Women and can be read at their archive page at http://issuu.com/mtimes/docs/aawoctober2011/1

One man’s take on women’s fashion

I read the October article “falling for the look’ and was amused, confused and addled at different points.  I know, I know, I’m a guy and you aren’t marketing your rag to my ilk.  And I’m a dues paying member of AARP and a closet bohemian with an opinion. 

I am amused at the conscious or unconscious attempts by the author to implore others to go out and spend their hard earned money on the latest fashion nuances. “The “must-have” for most closets”.  And the “can’t do without a cape” followed later by “crucial time to build your wardrobe” is laughable.  And to what gain is this encouragement to go out and fill your closet?  To do so will make you look “trendy, classic, and Bohemian” and you too can have that “bold and daring look or an “edgier look.”  And I ask, is that a good thing? The author seems to think so. Is there a reason maybe found in the phrase “blouses that result in a classic, feminine feel.”  So is that to say that feeling feminine is based on what is worn?  I did an experiment to see if I feel more masculine in my Carhartt’s compared to my sweatpants. Same either way.

I along with many men think women’s fashion makes little sense e.g. capes.  I would assume they wore capes in olden days because they were easier and cheaper to make than a coat with arms and buttons.  So what advantage is a cape now, other than to look edgy, bold and daring?  Give me a break. 

I thought it ironic that the author is a psychology major.  I’d love to read an article sometime in your magazine about how the fashion industry psychologically manipulates the populace to throw away or fill their closets with perfectly good clothing only to buy overpriced, lower quality clothing often made in sweat shops, or at least, by people paid barely a living wage.  Till then I’ll read my second hand copies of Adbusters.

As for the reasons for certain clothes over others, is it only to imbue a feeling?  Is it to communicate a statement to the competition (I can afford to buy (or fit in) this, and you can’t, therefore I’m better or more desirable than you).  I wonder if in a few cases, some might dress to appear to be more attractive to a potential partner.  And that is about the only thing I can say I know anything about…what is attractive to me.  Clothes communicate a message.  I like the person whose clothing says “I shop smart, looking for quality, clothes that are functional, feel good, fit good, look good, made by people earning a fair wage.  I abhor pretense and anything over the top or glitzy. I live by the Latin saying Esse Quam Videri – To Be Rather than to Seem.”

Just sayin’.

Richard Tidyman