“Scheherezade is easy; a little black dress is difficult.”
-- Coco Chanel
[Warning: the below requires an open mind that is ready to think beyond the metaphor of fashion that is being used here. We are not being strictly literal today, people. Breathe deeply, open that mental door and read on.]
It all started with thoughts about the Little Black Dress - that classic of fashion. That idea started from one of those e-news thingies that Neiman Marcus sends to my e-mail box. They were touting the “Major Black Dress”. I thought “huh?” Of course, they were talking about the Little Black Dress - the ones they have in their stores; but, then they hit me with this zinger: “The littlest things can have the biggest impact.” Bravo! Well said.
Now, that is the point of the Little Black Dress. I think the LBD is a metaphor for a philosophy I love. One revolving around paradox. Less is more. Simplicity can be complex.
Great beauty does not come from piling on more and more garish jewelry or shocking styles (along with behaviors that are supposed to “shock” and grab attention). All that just comes off as ludicrous to me. I’m not shocked. I’m confused - confused by what on earth they think they’re achieving. Unfortunately, some “celebrities” today seem to be clueless on this subject; but they also seem to be clueless on other subjects, which is my point.
Perhaps with all their showiness they believe they are demonstrating they have “arrived”. They are only demonstrating to me they missed the bus completely (and the train, plane, boat, and all other possible modes of transportation).
So, I went from contemplating Little Black Dresses and their paradox, to the metaphor I think they embody, to Coco Chanel herself and some of her thoughts on fashion and life.
Coco Chanel is for me a woman of pure inspiration. It isn’t just because I love her fashion creations, and the cosmetic company that bears her name. That’s the stuff on the surface. I know something about the woman - from curiosity about her to some study of her. Here was a woman who *made* herself. She was an artist and her work was great art. Her way of thinking was the way of a great creative mind - as great a creative mind as any classic artist from Michelangelo to Van Gogh.
Her works are worth all the money people spend for them, not because they are apparel like the jeans we buy at the discount store; but, because they are art. You don’t take your old Chanel clothing down to the Goodwill when you’re done with it (you might sell it on consignment at a good vintage store, but it doesn’t go to the Goodwill unless you’re nuts).
Like all clothing of its type, it is classic, and it is durable, and it is valuable because it is Chanel. It is art. This is not about putting cloth over your bottom so you can go out in public. Although, please *do* put cloth, or something over your bottom before you go out in public, because unless I know you *really* well, and tell you outright I’d like to see your bottom, I don’t want to see it.
Ever.
Anywhere.
So, guys pull up your damn pants, PLEASE! If I want to see anything that personal, I’ll let you know.
Back to Chanel, fashion, and metaphors for a better society in general.
So, yes, high fashion influences more “everyday” fashion, if you will - and we all subscribe to the everyday sort; but, I think it is more important than that. What Chanel, and others like her do is reflect artistic quality, which reflects quality in life. This is not just about looking good and being pretty. I think it is a reflection of how society thinks and operates; and people, society is having some pretty low thinking lately.
From Chanel herself there is this: “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”
Lately, we’ve all heard of certain athletes, other celebrities and politicians (in what should be a Hallowed Hall of National Dignity) shooting off their mouths in particularly rude and abusive ways. Also, you can go down to the newstand and look at certain magazines that will tout the fashion successes of various celebs versus their faux pas. Then you can also read about their personal successes and faux pas (or worse than faux pas). Is it just me, or do some of the worst dressed also seem to be the worst lived? Maybe all the gaudy garbage they drape on themselves is indicative of how their minds are arranged.
What’s worse is, society as a whole seems to think some of this so-called fashion is cool and hip. Hey, I like to be cool and hip; but, ugly, garish clothing is just ugly and garish. Period.
This isn’t about being prudish, or square, or boring. Coco wasn’t any of those things - nor was she “practical” (ugh), or lacking in innovation; but, there is innovation, and then there is just flash and trash (The F&T, I call it).
Here is what Coco said about going too far: “When accessorizing, always take off the last thing you put on.”
Wow! There is so much style wisdom there; but, there is major life wisdom there if you apply that same concept to other things. Layering a lovely Little Black Dress with a scarf, five necklaces, ten bangle bracelets, a belt and a clever little jacket isn’t good fashion. The more a person adds onto that mess isn’t improving things and making that person look like a fashion genius. There is a lot of wrong thinking there - wrong thinking that may be occurring elsewhere in that person’s behavior.
The Little Black Dress, done well, stands alone and shows off its wearer to her maximum potential. Resist “adding” to that.
Here’s more from Coco: “Look for the woman in the dress. If there is no woman, there is no dress.”
Here are two more from Chanel, to get you thinking (keep your mind open beyond clothing - we are talking about *so much more*): “A woman is closest to being naked when she is well dressed.”
And this: "A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.”
Look, I’m not wealthy enough to wear Chanel (yet). ;) I live most of my life in black jeans and comfortable shirts. The point isn’t that you should be wealthy enough to wear Chanel everyday; but, you should think like someone who is able to do that. There is a way of thinking that is *quality*, and a way of reflecting that *quality* thinking in our outward appearance *and* behavior. It’s the Coco Chanel Little Black Dress approach.
To close, here are a few more gems from The Great Woman:
(On preparedness and courtesy)
“I don't understand how a woman can leave the house without fixing herself up a little - if only out of politeness. And then, you never know, maybe that's the day she has a date with destiny. And it's best to be as pretty as possible for destiny."
(On higher standards)
“Dress sharply and they'll remember the outfit; dress impeccably and they'll remember the woman."
(On being “real”)
“Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury.”
(On quality living)
“Some people think luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity.”
“I love luxury. And luxury lies not in richness and ornateness but in the absence of vulgarity. Vulgarity is the ugliest word in our language. I stay in the game to fight it.”
Ah, yes, Coco. Thank you.
Polla Filia,
J.F.
