I've always had an issue with the lack of care people have about getting dressed up, particularly in America. We walk around in jeans, a t-shirt with someone else's name on it, flip flops and we call that an outfit? What are you saying about yourself with an outfit like that? That you don't care, that your concern is with comfort and not personal definition, or is your personal definition comfort? How have we degraded our daily appearances to the world for the simple concern of comfort. Think back to the 1920's or 50's when people would only have 4 or 5 good outfits that they would just mix and match to wear out. Today we spend $75-150 on a pair of jeans that have holes in them. I completely see the style in cut up jeans: punk, raw, tough. But when Abercrombie & Fitch are selling these such jeans would you really call that punk?
I can understand comfort dressing when you have a personal twist on it. Your making it your own and expressing who you are while still being comfortable. But what really gets to me is when people have absolutely no care in the world for their personal presentation. I find it to be a bit sad when other's care so little for the way they are showing themselves to you or I everyday. Now I don't come from a family that is full of fashion fanatics. In fact not a single person in my family even really had an interest in the industry until I suddenly decided to make my entire life about it. Not that they have any interest now, but my point being that I could easily argue both sides of this argument and as I'm writing this a voice in my head is slyly finding reasons and explanations about why our society has gotten to the way it is. Maybe it's technology, a need for constant advancement, the (and excuse my cliche-ness) fast paced lives we live. Maybe everything else is more important and significant than the way we dress ourselves. But tell me this, if you were to have someone in a tank top, jeans, and UGG boots approach you and someone in a fitted pencil waist dress on who would you be more inclined to get to know?
My dad and I were talking about this issue the other day and he came up with the term "anti-dressing" to describe many people's mind sets now when they go to their closets every morning and I think their couldn't be a better word for it. We've come from Victorian ages to flapper, pin-up, house wife, beatnik, hippie, punk, country club prep or 80's retro. Whatever it may be we have done it, but the whole time we've done it with style. My question to you world is where has the style gone?