True Fashion is Passion

By: Carly Blackwell

After being subject to a second lockdown in 2020, that is continuing to at least February moving forward, I began to connect more with my health and wellness passions, and less with fashion. 

But after an interesting Zoom meeting, I realized something very important about fashion - it allows us to show up visually as our best selves, and it connects us to each other. There is something highly rewarding about wearing items that are on trend, colours that are in style, and fabrics that compliment the seasons.

As I have mentioned in a previous article, I never felt truly a part of in fashion. Being 5'4" on a good day, and having previously been unable to budget, keeping up with trends or even really feeling good in my clothing didn't seem to be in the cards. I therefore maintained a beauty regime through cosmetics and hair, leaving very little resources left for clothing. But something that I have discovered as of late, is that it's not about perfectly fitting clothing or a perfect long slender body. In the world of fashion, only a small percentage is couture, and only a small handful of players are professional models. 

This all-or-nothing attitude impeded me for many years. Since I felt I couldn't measure up, I took what I consider now to have perhaps been shortcuts. I disregarded all that makes fashion exciting, such as fabrics, textures, cuts, and colours. I opted for black cotton that started as a uniform seven years ago when I became a Hudson's Bay employee, and I stayed in that up until very recently, veering only for the occasional grey or a various shade of pink.

The hard and fast truth about fashion is, there is a dedication that needs to be given to it in order to 1) buy responsibly, opting for more sustainable (and for now that means more expensive) pieces, 2) know what's trending, which changes about every two months, if even, and 3) mentally be prepared to try on the pieces and the potential mental fallout of it not fitting as believing it "should", while then having the confidence to wear it should we proceed with the purchase. 

Ultimately, fashion is a passion. It requires time, energy, and money, and therefore, it requires real commitment. While historically this realm was reserved only for the upper-class, we are breaking barriers in this brave new world that demands inclusivity.

Nevertheless, this aristocratic birth means that it's a life force that cannot just be mimicked with the next fast-fashion company that cheats the spirit of fashion, the customer of decent fabrics, and the ecosystem of our world. There is an actual discernment where anyone who is willing to learn can participate full-heartedly, no matter their body-type or bank account, if they are willing to do the work.