Take a Risk: Texture And Strut For The Holiday Season

Click to enlarge.

How nice that this lady agreed to let me photograph her for our little blog!

Here’s the story that goes with the picture:

I stopped into Marshall’s the other day to get a gift certificate for someone and of course I had to take a spin around to see what was up, as one does. A tall, attractive woman was combing the racks next to me and we both spotted a crazy-fun furry vest. I pulled it off the rack and said, “This is cute!” and she said in a friendly and encouraging way, “I was looking at that before.” I instantly had a vision of her totally rocking the garment and I said, “Oh, I am way too short to carry this off but you could absolutely do it!”

She blushed that wonderful blush that people do when you identify their beauty or strength in a way that they had maybe been too insecure to do for themselves. The woman told me that, in fact, she was looking for something to wear to a party, and she was looking for a royal blue top (so as to avoid the clichéd red or green we both agreed one should avoid for the holidays). The fur vest had caught her eye and seemed like something fun that she would enjoy, but she had worried that she was too old to wear it and so put it back on the rack. I said there was nothing youthful about the thing — it was dramatic, and fun, and textured and she had the height and bearing to make it smashing. “TRY IT ON!” I insisted, and blushing again, she did. And she looked great in it, as you can see even though her eyes are closed and the lighting is horrid because we’re in Marshalls. One has to use one’s imagination.

“You know,” she told me, “My sister is 65 and she always wears fabulous things like this, and I always wonder why I don’t take more chances the way she does.” And I said, “Exactly! Get a great shirt and pair of pants and some big earrings and do your make-up and command that party in your faux fur vest!”

Texture is always fabulous, pigeons, as long as it doesn’t overpower you and make you look like you’re being devoured by a Muppet or attending the event as the Abominable Snowman. A textured vest is good, or a quilted bag, or for gents, a nubby infinity scarf or tweed jacket over a slim cashmere sweater.

But the point is, don’t poo-poo the slightly wild thing you don’t think you could pull off until you TRY IT ON. TRY IT! The worst thing that could happen is that you look hilarious, in which case you laugh and put the thing back for someone else. The best that could happen is that you step out of boring habit and put some strut in your step. Even People Of the Cloth can have a little strut, kids. There’s no law that says we can’t.