Common sense. Where did common sense in fashion go? Did it ever exist? Or am I the only one baffled by the stupidity we call fashion?
This all started up at my mother's at Thanksgiving...
Actually, I take that back. This has been going on for several years, probably predating Lily's birth, but I wasn't aware of it until I started shopping for her. Every year, I go to different stores looking for cute Christmas dresses for Lily to wear. And every year, regardless of whether I am in the Central Valley or in Los Angeles, none of these "Christmas" dresses have sleeves. O.o
Yes, adorable, but freezing.
Okay. I get it. To someone in the Midwest, California seems warm, even in winter. (Unless you are in the mountains, of course.) However, those of us who live here year around, 30-40 degrees Fahrenheit is cold. Even 50 degrees is cold. And, at the end of December, we wear long sleeve shirts, jeans, and bundle up with jackets. So, I ask you, why would anyone think we want to dress our daughters in a dress sure to give her pneumonia?
But I digress... This isn't about previous years. This is about this year's fashion stupidity. And this year has some doozies.
Back to my story:
My mother picked Lily up some Hello Kitty pajamas at Walmart. Except the pajamas were missing one small component: a top. Lily, being female, obviously doesn't need a top. I mean, women don't wear tops, surely. O.o So, Mom had to buy her a shirt separately (thin because, you know, it's winter after all, and it's warm outside.) Not that I have anything against these pajamas. I'm just baffled as to why the tops are missing.
By the way, I have noticed that Target is also selling pajama bottoms, just pajama bottoms, for women. No tops. Um, okay.
Now the tops my mother bought are so thin you might as well be wearing muslin. Wait! Muslin is thicker than these tops. So, Lily's legs and bottom are warm, but her core, which is the part of her that needs to be warm the most, is not. Of course, these PJ's are Lily's favorites. (sigh) Perhaps this is China's way of getting rid of all of us.
Now, the pajama tops aren't the only shirts that are paper thin because now all the rage is layering. Layering paper thin tops. Paper thin tops that cost $25 a piece. (Ka-ching went the manufacturers.) You must buy another top to wear underneath because you can see through the original one. The spaghetti strap top that goes underneath is only $6 and as thick as a top should be. The paper thin tops will last maybe a few washing before you have to shell out another $25 to buy a new one. That one you paid $6 for to go underneath? That one will last you 5-10 years. (g)
The other day, while at a kid's birthday party, I saw a mother wearing this fashion. We were at an ice skating rink. She was freezing. I was so surprised.
Now, I don't care what other people wear (within reason...some things should not be seen.) However, when fashion fads affect my wardrobe, I am less than pleased. And this year I happen to need new turtlenecks. (I told you I'm no fashion maven. I'm practical and like to be warm.) A few of mine are from college and are in desperate need of replacing. So, I asked Mom for some for Christmas, but due to this stupid fashion trend, the turtleneck I want might as well be available only on the moon. It's not going to keep me warm, unless I layer. Well, I do layer. If it's really cold, I'll wear long johns, a turtleneck, a sweater, and a jacket. But it's not that cold out here most of the time, and I want practical shirts, ones that will last me another (cough, cough) ten years (or more) and ones where I don't have to layer three together to be half as warm as I want to be.
Common sense. It seems as if no one has it anymore. Can someone please tell me where it went? And who are these idiots designing clothes? While they run around in their fur coats, we freeze in their designs. I want my unfashionable, sensible, warm clothes back. And if a designer can't create exciting clothes while keeping temperature in mind, perhaps they aren't that good of a designer after all!
13 comments:
Try shopping for an eleven year old, five foot six girl who still fits into a size sixteen at the waist. (though her legs are far too long for kids' sizes any more)
Try shopping for an eleven year old, five foot six girl who still fits into a size sixteen at the waist. (though her legs are far too long for kids' sizes any more)
My "bitch", if you will, is going to a store to buy tops and I'm 5' 6" and weigh 125 pounds and I cannot fit in a large? What's up with that? Who are these people making clothes for?
SMH.
Patti
What I have noticed these past few years, how young teenage women dress in winter as if it is still summer. Scantily dressed. That seems to be the growing trend. Less is more these days. The less clothes they wear, the more skin they show. Fashion, or image being more important then freezing their butts off. I got to thinking myself, that they should design sexy winter cloths, since looking sexy is more important then their own health or comfort. Young girls today will rather freeze and risk hypothermia, then look daggy.
Jaime,
Lily is a skinny mini, like your daughter, although not that skinny. Finding jeans that will fit her long legs and her minuscule waist is challenging to say the least. I have to get the ones where you cinch them into the last button. Of course, they are uncomfortable, so she won't wear them. Once the waists are small enough, the legs are practically halfway up her calves. O.o Really? Most of the kids in her neighborhood are the same way. So, she runs around in those poly/cotton blend with elastic pants.
If I had to buy for your daughter, I don't know what I'd do.
Patti,
Well, my mother just gave me these three beautiful turtlenecks from Land's End. I ordered them. Size medium should fit, right? (I'm broad shouldered from years of swimming.) Um, no. When I held them up, they might as well be muumuus. So, now I have to send them back and exchange them for smalls, but will they fit my shoulders? That remains to be seen. My torso is really a small (well, what is considered small these days), but my shoulders are a medium. It didn't used to be this way. Why when I was young... (grin)
Darrel,
I've seen the same thing and am boggled by it. However, if you go into the stores, the options for clothes are exactly what they are wearing. Now, do they wear that type of clothing because that's all that's available? Or do they wear it because they care more about fashion (stupid fashion, but fashion none the less) than staying healthy? It's hard to say. It's one of those which came first the chicken or the egg questions. (g)
Marci
Thinking more on fashion and common sense, I think when it comes to women anyway, clothes are designed, not for comfort do much as appearence. Like dressing that delish turkey. Looks so yummy. women like to look yummy. With all clothes design, comfort of the wearer should be paramount not how they look. Practicality and comfort.
I had done a course in marketing.trends are started by the manufactures, in targeting impressionable teenagers, especially women. They ate told what is cool and will make them popular, because they want to be cool, accepted and popular, they follow the trends planted by advertisement campaigns. To me it is unethical to use psychological means to manipulate the young and vulnerable. It is alarming how the youth of today are being targeted and used by researching ways to get them to buy a product. Young women are the majority of victumes, in marketing stratagies. It's immoral.
I say comfort and looking good can go hand in hand. I boycott anything that isn't comfortable. (g)
As for marketing, yes, what they do is awful. It's why I don't let Lily watch much TV. It's also why so many women (and men) have a skewed view of their own beauty. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but beauty lies in everything. Sometimes, we need help in seeing that beauty.
I also live in the Central Valley of California and know what your talking about. All the winter clothes are thin, thin, thin. Right now we're having a cold spell. I'm freezing as I'm writing this.
I've been wondering about the common sense of
designers since I was a kid. I mean really? Bare bellies in winter time? Or teenage slut clothes for those six years old and younger. Yeah, don't me started.
Hey I am not into women wearing burkas. I can apreciate when a women dresses sexy. I appreciate the amount of fantastic cleavage, that is in abundance at the shopping mall. The latest thing I have bern noticing are denim jeans cut off at the hip joints. It's when they still dress like that in the middle of winter that blows my mind. There ate plenty of winter outfits available out there. It's just a matter of choice.
@Janice, if you are cold, put something warm on. LOL!
No, that's our point, Darrel. The new clothes are thin and cut so that they don't cover your midriff. Even in the middle of winter, the stores are selling paper thin, sleeveless shirts. O.o I just bought some for my SIL for Christmas. I apologize, but she said, "Oh, I can put something over it." Maybe she can, but why should we have to. So, I refuse to buy this stuff for me.
LOL:) I was going to suggest Land's End; I love their turtles! And their baby cable v-necks. But I'm now an XL, thanks to giving birth at age 38 which put my metabolism on strike (LOL). I also love the new cardigan look, and I'm with you on the shirts. Paper-thin over paper-thin does not equal WARM until you throw a heavy cardigan over it, or heavy coat. I'm all about being warm, not necessarily fashionable. And I poked fun at the 'Christmas Fashion' of sleeveless holiday wear in one of my books, lol!
As for the pj bottoms, I sleep in fleece ones, but the matching fleece tops made me too hot at night, so I wear either my hubby's 3XL tees or bought some 2XL t-shirts to go with them. Problem solved:)
And I had a similar problem with a 'grandchild' who was 5 years old and desperately wanted to wear Hannah Montana clothing, but she weighed 80 pounds and wore a size 10 in the junior department with the legs of her jeans rolled up. She finally 'grew into' her pants four years later...but the cute tops in the kiddie department only fit her until age 3.
Try finding longjohns for men at Walmart, K-Mart, etc. I finally found some underarmor/longjohns at Walmart and had to buy the tops and bottoms seperately. With tax, two tops and two bottoms cost me almost $50. I couldn't believe it, didn't want to spend that much, but the hubby had to have them for work and hunting.
Post a Comment