I'm not sure if the title is the most apt way to describe what I'm trying to say but it's the only thing I could think of that would come closest. Anyway, here's the deal: I've been into fashion for a little while now but obviously you more seasoned followers/contributors might be able to bring different opinions to the table, but there are certain "fashion faux pas" that I find to be extremely irritating and reek of ethnocentrism.
Hips
For instance, I was watching the Fashion Police on E! (rarely do the people in that room know what they're talking about), but one thing said by George Kotsiopoulos (who I typically agree with, probably because he at least is in the fashion industry unlike those other hacks) really annoyed me. They were talking about Tyra Banks or somebody and he said that she needed different kind of jeans to hide her "wide" or big hips. Now, as a black person, in the black community larger hips are accentuated and celebrated, not hidden. This isn't the first time I've heard or read comments about hips too. And certainly, this attribute is not confined to one race. White actresses, Rachel McAdams springs to mind, have wide hips. I once read a comment on her thread which was something to the effect of her hips are too wide and she needs to cover that up. Seriously?
Height
This is a bit more complicated I guess because models are notoriously tall, but this is something that I can't quite understand either. Height, or even looking short when you are short, is also considered a faux pas. This is something I have more trouble explaining, but I guess it's just when people wear certain boots or jeans, they "cut off their legs" and although sometimes I can see where it looks off, there are certain instances where it honestly looks fine. They simply look shorter and I don't think that should be considered a problem. I know tall is seen as being more elegant and model-esque, which I get, but I can't get behind the banning of short women from certain dresses, usually long gowns. Now wearing something untailored is different from wearing a long gowns. My examples of short women who make it work:
raihipurcell.blogspot
zimbio
Hips
For instance, I was watching the Fashion Police on E! (rarely do the people in that room know what they're talking about), but one thing said by George Kotsiopoulos (who I typically agree with, probably because he at least is in the fashion industry unlike those other hacks) really annoyed me. They were talking about Tyra Banks or somebody and he said that she needed different kind of jeans to hide her "wide" or big hips. Now, as a black person, in the black community larger hips are accentuated and celebrated, not hidden. This isn't the first time I've heard or read comments about hips too. And certainly, this attribute is not confined to one race. White actresses, Rachel McAdams springs to mind, have wide hips. I once read a comment on her thread which was something to the effect of her hips are too wide and she needs to cover that up. Seriously?
Height
This is a bit more complicated I guess because models are notoriously tall, but this is something that I can't quite understand either. Height, or even looking short when you are short, is also considered a faux pas. This is something I have more trouble explaining, but I guess it's just when people wear certain boots or jeans, they "cut off their legs" and although sometimes I can see where it looks off, there are certain instances where it honestly looks fine. They simply look shorter and I don't think that should be considered a problem. I know tall is seen as being more elegant and model-esque, which I get, but I can't get behind the banning of short women from certain dresses, usually long gowns. Now wearing something untailored is different from wearing a long gowns. My examples of short women who make it work:
raihipurcell.blogspot
zimbio
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