Thank You Grace

Anna and Grace, Morgan Alan

Lately I’ve been really fascinated by fashion. I never used to care much about clothes; I’d pick up some things that I thought looked nice or appropriate, and that was that. More recently though, I’ve felt a shift; longer pauses at my closet, more poses in front of the mirror, and a slightly more daring attitude when putting an outfit together. I think it’s partly due to spending most of my time with people who are really interested in fashion, but it’s also due in large part to the documentary The September Issue.

Since being introduced to the film, I’ve watched it at least five times. It has taught me some things about Vogue, Anna Wintour, and fashion journalism, but more than that, I am learning about and becoming aware of people to whom fashion is life. Those people directly involved in the fashion industry who know the origins of fabric, who speak with the designers and preview their collections, and who find ways to present these clothes and styles in a way that makes it so blatantly obvious that fashion is an art, not some superficial, materialistic, consumerist pastime.

If you think my new found respect and love for fashion has led me to storm Holt Renfrew and the high-end stores of Yorkville, then you’re wrong. I’m certainly appreciating high fashion more, but that’s not the point. I’m finding that fashion, much like the arts and other cultural forms, is very much about your personal aesthetic. It’s about approaching everything with a look and a certain spirit, it’s about keeping your eyes open and being inspired, and then using that inspiration to fuel what you do, what you create, or what you wear. It’s about being constantly rooted in this aesthetic.

So, for me, fashion isn’t simply about trends or more expensive items of clothing. Nor is it about mocking people who wear Uggs, or leggings on their own (Heaven forbid!). It’s about expression. Just like any contributor to Blueprint, for example; we get our pen and paper or our drawing tools or camera or whatever else, and we put something into what we do. We put ourselves, our inspiration, and our aesthetic into everything that we do.

In fashion, we can just find another outlet.