Appearance matters more than anyone ever wants you to believe. Companies want you to think that they believe the “real you” is perfectly beautiful, but they bank on your low self-esteem. Of course, with shows like “Fashion Police”, companies don’t have to contradict themselves…the media is enough to make you feel terrible about your clothing choices. Have you ever just really wanted to wear something or buy something but backed out because of what someone said, or because you anticipated what someone would say? Unfortunately, this is a perfectly normal reaction that came as a condition of growing up. I know that I’ve personally done it to the point it affected my own happiness…for example, I skipped out on my senior prom because of some people’s reactions to the idea of me wearing a pantsuit (which, by the way, was totally “in” at the time…see ‘Cara Delevingne red carpet pantsuit reign’) instead of a dress. I thought I was making a statement by skipping out (as it didn’t allow for them to say anything about me at all), but really, I was letting their opinions dictate what I do. Luckily, there is a way to change the way you think when getting dressed.
What would Marlene Dietrich do? Well, first off, she would undoubtedly rock a pantsuit. Besides being popular for her superior acting and singing, Marlene was well known for breaking gender and sexual norms, as she enjoyed wearing suits and tuxedos as much as she enjoyed wearing Lanvin and Dior, and was openly bisexual in a time that may not have been as accepting as today. I’m telling you, if anyone were to wear a gaudy, patterned dress or extra-slouchy boyfriend jeans and still look good, it’d be her. You see, contrary to what retailers say, it’s not what you wear, it’s how you feel in what you wear. Today, people are too concerned with how other people are going to feel about what they’re wearing (i.e “Is my boyfriend going to like me in this lingerie?”…while that’s certainly a valid thought, how you feel in it is what’s going to turn him on) and not enough on how they feel in it. I think Marlene really had something when she said, “[I dress] not for the public, not for fashion, not for men.”
