Sometimes it only takes a small detail to have you stand out from the crowd. It could be a bright pink glove or the presence of an attribute like kindness.
This past weekend I was in Iceland doing a campaign for a fashion brand and it was one of those perfect experiences where all my desires come together. I love the designer, we have many things in common, she is generous and a beautiful, direct and honest person. I love the clothes she picked, the story that was being told, the setting and in this case, the photographer. Watching him work was like taking a master class on composition and design. It was a meditation on details, the tiniest ones like the placement of a rose, the addition of a glass of whiskey, or the choice of a piece of art. Every detail, small as it was, completed the story. And although there was much preparation beforehand, like scouting locations, developing the mood, there was also the willingness to take advantage of unplanned but delicious moments like the model stuffing pizza in her mouth and the capture somehow becomes an art shot.
I love when there is a narrative that goes with a job I am doing. When people have actually gotten who I am and thought about how together we can tell an interesting story. When this happens, I feel and experience myself as being a creative, not a salesperson. Commerce and beauty do not have to be mutually exclusive when there is art, collaboration and creativity involved. After all fashion will always be about aspiration and desire. I lean into the experience and perform the story of a certain woman. The woman who… The woman who the designer, the photographer and I are all conjuring up in our dreams.
Over dinner I hear from the photographer how little room currently exists for trusting his creative direction and judgment on the part of those who hire him now. How much he loves working with this woman, now my friend, who gives him complete creative direction and how wise a decision that is when one sees the results. In some ways while I hear him talk about the trajectory of his long career as a photographer the word “bureaucratization” come to mind. The state that emerges when individual professional discretion and decision-making is taken away in the alleged service of efficiency. As Max Weber, the sociologist maintained, this creates an “iron cage” or a technologically ordered, rigid and dehumanizing kind of work, Why would fashion want to do that to itself?
I completely understand what the photographer is talking about. It is amazing how many people want to write your copy, tell you how to do your photo and want to dictate what goes on your site and your social media. I always decline these kinds of jobs. If I can’t be creative then there is no point for me in doing this. So far I have broken every rule about how to be successful in this business and yet I am doing okay, I’ve had enough bureaucracy in my previous career. So I am holding out in this one. Like the photographer I want to be in control of the tiny details that make something memorable like a fuchsia, velvet glove worn with everyday activewear.
BTW time to pick your brains, my dear braintrust. I have been approached by a number of people about writing a book. What are your thoughts on what this book should be about? What would you like to see me write about? No memoirs please, I would bore myself to death.
I’d suggest writing a well researched book about real steps older women can take to both develop their authentic styles and shop according to them. I shop vintage and Dior, when I can spring for it, and Topshop works too, but I want instruction from you, my knowledgeable, cool peer. Write it and I’ll buy it.
In a way it is a habit of mind, the one that allows you to seek what you need to express yourself rather than stay in one box or store for that matter.
In my opinion it should be about no matter how old are you everytime is the right time to do what do you want to do . Feelings and emotions can be re-discovered and re-experimented . Many wimen think that after 50’s it’s time to go down and don’t try-to go up . (sorry for my english. I’m a psychologist from Barcelona, Spain)
I love no matter how old you are…anytime is the right time
i just think u should add New York elements into the book, for example, a scene maybe central park or iron building, a specific clothes, a story about your own or others.
NY always appears in my pictures but I could be more purposeful about it.
Your journey, as it has been, aesthetic and epistemic epistles written experientially, as you have been, an amalgamation of insights, introspections, observances, evaluations, opportunities, laws of attraction as experienced through the filters of your beautiful, sensitive, relatable, aesthetic, to say the least, deliveries. Let the context be driven by experiential beauty and texture not by corporate dikat and tradition. Allow the book to be an organic expression, a parallel blossoming of what has and continues to ocurr, as you see it, not as someone else envisions it. Then it will be true to you, you true to it, then subsequently true to your beloved reader.
Noel and a big dog
Thank you and from someone as literary and eloquent as you are in your own writing this advice is exactly how I approach the blog writing so I will bring it to this task as well.
Write about continual process of discovery and reinvention of who you are as an individual, a creative, a thinker, etc. and throughout the different ages and stages of life, using examples of women who have exemplified this approach to living. We are never finished creating who we are becoming and many of us want/need the inspiration to keep moving forward, despite what the media says, or more significantly doesn’t say, about us. Unfortunately, there is precious little inspiration for older women who choose to keep growing and reinventing themselves. We are virtually invisible (pun intended).
I think the important point you make is that given the current time, we do not have to be. So helping people reframe the social construction of age but giving concrete skills in how to do that.
It could be about the reasons why freedom is so important, the inner freedom we are to conquer during our time on earth, and why it is so important to realize the potential we have in us. It does not mean it should be about how to be a star or how to be an icon, but rather about how to be a real person, what it is to be a human.
Anne
This is a book we truly need right now.
"sometimes it only takes a small detail to have you stand out from the crowd" … I agree!
Don’t poo-poo a memoir. I think you can build on your experiences – they may seem small to you (like a small detail) but from a readers perspective it could really resonate with someone else. And that is really all we want to read – we want to read that someone else has had the same experience and has had those feelings, etc. etc.
Like a book that does social group work in a sense.
Given your strong academic background and creativity of expression, I would love to see you write a commentary about the impact of the small-scale and individual designers that you love so much. I can see this unfolding from a world perspective perhaps analyzing how this impact morphs in different market places around the world in relation to societal and economic influences and the speed at which they are changing. I realize that this is a challenging suggestion, but I’m betting that you could find a great hook into it to create a manageable, but riveting glimpse into the influences of these independent creatives.
I think I am getting such wonderful suggestions, I may have to write more than one book!
Hi Lyn,
I have read of few of the books on fashion and style out there. Each book has it’s own feel. I would say that some of my favorites are the one called "Rare Bird" about Iris Apfel, the Style like U books based on the website and the book by Leanne Medine of Man-Repeller. (I think the last book is an autobiography and it was just hysterical.) I liked the "Art of Dressing" by Tziporah. I have read both "Advanced Style" books. Anyway if you do decide to do a book, I will certainly read it. I guess a book has a bit more permanence than a blog but I guess that could be argued either way. I do like the feel of holding a book and reading it in bed and I do love looking at the glossy pictures. Some of my favorite non-ficion reading are books about shopping bans. I think that "In The Red" is my favorite so far.
If you haven’t seen the Advanced Style Documentary based on Seth’s blog, it is rather interesting.
I just recently bought the "Fabulous Fashionistas" DVD which was a program un the UK and those ladies rock their own look and share their outlook on life which is very inspiring.
Regards,
Maggie
Regards,
Margarita
Hi Lyn,
I like the "Paris Street Style" book too. It might give you some ideas.
Maggie
Thanks for this suggestion I will check it out.
I was drawn to your blog many years ago by your invitation in the "about" section,…"She Is The Woman Who…" I think that’s still a good basis for a book.
Great idea! What do those attributes mean and how to cultivate them.
why don’t you continue to write about interesting themes in a book like you do in this blog. You are so creative and inspiring it would be a joy to read. Ruth,London
I have been going back through the posts and definitely have a few that would be a good template, thank you.
I was drawn to your work because of its substance as well as style.
I was fascinated that you managed to balance a longtime academic career with fearless sartorial self-expression. I was also drawn to your expertise in social work which points, in my mind, to concern for social justice.
I think the intersection of fashion and social values sets your work apart.
Because there are plenty of style mavens of every sartorial stripe. And lots of people working in fashion in–echoing the Icelandic photographer you mention–less than creatively satisfying roles.
Your POV represents a refreshing new model.
I think it inevitably involves telling your story–which is quite the opposite of boring to your followers. I agree with a few other here: Don’t poo-poo memoir. Or at least elements of biography.
It’s a hero’s journey.
Thank you for this. It could be interesting how one stays in a both/and position such as art and commerce, commerce and social justice, fashion and inclusion etc.
I simply love your style. It’s so refreshing to see the creativity, and how you execute the looks so gracefully.
Your book, if written , should definitely be centered around age, fashion, and grace.
~~~Lawna Proctor
Gracefully Aging Around Fashion
Your so adorable, and
Thanks for you suggestion.
It is unfortunately true that our generation and that of your parents have left you with a big mess that will now be yours to clean up: wars, budget challenges, pollution, global warming, battles of health care, natural disasters. They’re all there for you. We’re willing those to you. Are you ready?Let no one be slow to seek wisdom when he is young nor weary in the search of it when he has grown old. For no age is too early or too late for the health of the soul. I know a man who gave up smoking, drinking, sex, and rich food. He was healthy right up to the day he killed himself. I always try to collect some informative information about how to solve women waistline problem. But I don’t know that is right or wrong for me to solve our all body problem instantly. Here you collect that information: https://waistlab.com/best-waist-shaper/
Your blog has always been a splendid blend of visual and literary stimulus, so I hope that your book will continue on that path. I have always particularly liked your investigations of new designs and designers, your philosophical exploration of the meaning(s) of what we put on our backs, and how they fit with a particular world view. Could you consider taking a number of photo shoots (say, one for each month of the year?) and explore each one in depth? The focus could shift from month to month, reflecting your own changing world views and those of the designers (including yourself?) and photographer(s) represented.
Thanks for taking the time to give me this valuable suggestion. This is an intriguing idea and one I have been thinking about for a long time.
Your style is special. I am very impressed with you. You have created your own characteristics. love
https://weekendsale.club/
I’m new to your blog and a mess when it comes to style. But I’m not entirely new to book publishing. I think you are correct that young people worry about aging and are relieved to see someone who is in her sixties and cool and stylish.
But I would not make the book about "age" any more than your blog actually is about age. Age is only one of the constraints we all deal with, however young or old we may be. What your blog seems to be showing is how to be yourself and express that self through personal style and fashion.
We all want permission to be ourselves and the strength to resist standards that say we’re too this, not enough that.
And in a sense, that strength is the opposite of the narcissism that dominates social media. One person’s narcissism denies other people their subjectivity and turns them into objects. You are a subject, not an object.
Now after all that high-falutin talk, I must admit, I always want a good how-to book, because I’m not confident about style and how it works. Claire McCardell’s What Shall I Wear? is my current read.
BINGO. Thanks for reminding us all we are subjects, not objects and that social categories do not define us.
You should write about mental health and fashion. What’s your perspective? Being a social worker gives you insight into the inner workings of a human. How does that affect designers? Runways? Fashion culture?
Thank you for this suggestion. As a social worker I also feel lucky to see that it is an individual in transaction with environment that creates an individual problem so perhaps I will look at that transaction.
As an ex sculptor turned RN, you inspire me. I love fashion and art and feel that one informs the other. I am reminded as I approach 50, that age is but a number. Keep styling for us, keep inspiring. Visual candy, it’s more than just sweet.
Thanks for the feedback I love the idea of thinking visual candy.
I just discovered you and I LOVE you! You are amazing in your presence. You could include how to pull up your self confidence to do what you want, for self confidence carries it:) I’m close to 60 and love color and mixing different ideas. Love hats! I wish they would come back or I had the courage to wear them anyway:)))) AND Steam Punk! I don’t really want to look like everybody else… hahaha
I’ve been thinking lately about fashion as communication–not just expression. I would love a book that considers how fashion works for the wearer, and how it may be perceived by others. For example, how do we assess the potential impact of our clothing choices on the people we encounter day to day? There is aggressive style, submissive style, invisible style, probably even passive-aggressive style, and much more. What role do these fashion statements play in social dynamics? What is our responsibility toward others in our choice of dress, and in our acceptance of others’ dress? Is it responsible to dress only for oneself? This is a fraught topic, I find, when I discuss it with anyone, from any generation.
Yes, please write a book on how you approach dressing as a creative act❤️❤️