Last week you could have found me on the Laura Ashley blog, wearing this fabulous skirt. I have an unabashed love for pastels. I start wearing them in full force as soon as the daylight starts lingering a tiny bit past 4 pm. I wore this gorgeous new floral pencil skirt on an outing to Columbia Road flower market. It was a warm day, and I felt so seasonal – perfection! I have a very short torso and sometimes high-waisted clothing can make me look really disproportional. To combat this, I paired the skirt with a grey crop top. I added a necklace and watch that picked up colours in the skirt and my trusty, super-comfortable ballet flats.
This skirt made me feel glamorous and very grown up, in a way that I was still comfortable in. Because, let’s face it. I’m not very chic. This skirt was a great way to add a touch of sophistication to my very girly, but slightly girlish wardrobe. I’ll fully hold my hand up, and say, “Hi, my name is Amanda, and I like wearing clothing that is typically for “girls”.”
There are two interesting points in the criticism of being girly. One, that dressing younger than your age is bad. Two, that being “girly” is bad. No child should be forced to embrace blue or pink based on their gender. Nor do I believe in gender specific toys. I loved playing with my brother’s trucks, and he loved playing dress up and tea party with me. But hand on heart, no matter what my parents dressed me in, I gravitated towards pink and frills. It was my own personal preference. There was a period of time when my mom would get me dressed, and I would promptly go get changed into my favourite matching (wool) pleated skirt and cardigan outfit, regardless of the weather. Eventually, my mom stopped fighting this battle and just let me wear it. And I did. Practically every day. And after that I wore a Dorothy from the “Wizard of Oz” costume for weeks on end. Whenever I got to choose new bedding for my room it was pink. Pink everything. But when I got to middle school / high school I started to feel ashamed of my love for pink. It was too girly. It was too Elle Woods. Cool girls don’t love pink. Pastel dresses and bows made me feel like a traitor to gender equality. I stopped wearing as many dresses, and I bought neutral bedding. Until I took a step back. I was letting my ideas of gender dictate what I wore, by rejecting the things I actually liked? This is crazy.
But why is dressing for your age such a divisive thing? Can’t grown women love bows, ballet flats, tulle, short hems, peter pan collars and crocheted collars too? I suppose the argument is that regardless of what someone might like personally, others will judge them in a professional sense on what they wear. How could I forget that a clean silhouette is a direct reflection of the intelligence and capability of the person? Hmm… I can see the points of this argument, but I will continue to wear my floral Cath Kidston backpack and crocheted collars and if people chose to see the brain behind it then so be it. If not, that’s their loss. And sometimes mine.
I’m sure my fashion sense will continue to evolve, but right now, girly is here to stay.
Skirt: c/o Laura Ashely (currently on sale). Ballet flats: Coach. Watch: c/o George at Asda. Top: TopShop. Sunglasses: Rayban. Neclace: Blue drusy pendant (similar)
What do you think your style says to the world?
