For those of us with more
eclectic style it can sometimes become impossible not to come off as looking like
you’re wearing a costume. I can’t help
but think of a time I was out with friends and a stranger approached me
stating, “I love your costume!!!” Immediately I was confused. Since when was bell bottoms paired with a vintage
shaggy alpaca coat a costume? Plus,
it wasn’t anywhere near Halloween. What
in God’s name made this person believe I was trying to disguise myself as someone
else?
I guess for certain individuals it’s simply hard to
believe that one could dress like this on a normal day. Of course, I blame this on yoga pants. As I’ve mentioned many times before, I’m
a true believer in the idea that athletic wear is completely destroying society’s
sense of style…at least in the Midwest.
If I see one more pair of Sorel boots styled with leggings and a black puffer
coat I’m going to freak out. Okay,
honestly I’ll confess to owning a pair of Sorel’s myself…how could I not when
they gave the boot a name like, “Joan of Arctic?” Oh yes, those marketing people own me. However, why can’t anyone pair
these puppies with something interesting like a vintage jumper? How about this…why not go completely old
school L.L. Bean and matchy match those potentially kitschy rubber ducks
with flannel lined mom jeans and an over-sized fisherman’s sweater? Now that’s a Sorel look I could totally get
behind. Of course, I suspect someone
would probably accuse me of that pesky costume thing again. I can hear the mocking now, “Ayuh, watch out
the cah’s bound to slide on that wicked ice!”
The reason I have this pretty ridiculous
topic on my mind is due to the fact that I can’t help but look at the above
photographs and think, “Okay yeah, now I see it. That outfit does look a little costumey.” However at the time, I swear, I seriously didn’t
notice. I was simply constructing an
outfit out of individual pieces I’ve collected over time…little did I know how
very Eastern European I was starting to appear.
I suppose I could try to justify this outfit by stating I felt compelled to give a shout out to my Croatian ancestors. However, I can’t help but wonder why I feel the need to make any excuse at all for an ensemble that came into existence simply
because I love wacky clothes.
Of course, it didn’t dawn on me that this outfit
was a little different until I posted a picture of it on Instagram and received
a message from a very good friend of mine stating he could probably trade me for
two yaks and a pack of smokes. While I could
not stop laughing at this, I informed him I was definitely worth at least 3 yaks. Later that
day, I got the comment from another friend that I, “reminded them of a
Cossack.” I honestly loved this
statement as well. Mostly because my
high school mascot was a Cossack and it seemed so damned appropriate. Suddenly it occurred to me just how much
attention this initially unexciting outfit was starting to get. “Huh, I thought it looked boring,” I wondered.
In conclusion I’d like to make the argument,
“Dress in a costume every day!” Not only
will you get lots of attention, but you’ll also enjoy
several comments that are bound to make you laugh. More importantly, always dress for yourself even if it is crazy, because crazy is a whole lot more interesting than the
dreaded black puffer coat. Just let that
freak flag fly.
-r.
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