“What dreadful weather we have! It keeps me in a state of continual inelegance.” –Jane (Austen)
To this I say, come now Jane, climate mustn’t keep style at bay!
I may just be too observant, but it seems to me that you, like I, have, to no fault of our own, fallen into a major fashion slump. It may very well be that this persistently dreadful weather (two days of sunshine here and there are not compensation for the biting cold/icy rain/howling wind that comes at night) is, in fact, the cause for this unfashionable phenomenon, but I think that the weight of a spring semester workload is so great on that we cannot possibly conceive of concerning our brilliant minds with “trivial” matters like dress. Well, I’m sorry to say that neither the weather nor your workload is a valid excuse for a Princess to turn into a plebeian.
It may be cold, but that doesn’t mean we can’t look hot.
First, let me remind you of the fact that there are places, dare I say it, more important than Princeton and they can help us come out of our Fashion coma. New York, Chicago, Philadelphia—the major walking cities—have all recently taken to Skirting, a look that, even more recently, has been shown on many a runway, that is (suspense built?)—The dropping of the hem.
FYI, given that you and I grew up in the generation of the 90’s mini, I consider any skirt that spans from mid to lower calf a “long” skirt, but in the 010’s most opt to differentiate a “midi” (mid calf skirt) from a maxi (a.k.a. the “long” skirt).
The Long Skirt may evoke mental images of a nun, an Amish girl, even the Madonna, but thanks to the penchant of Fashion present to reinvent relics from Fashion past, it need not be solely an emblem of modesty. You can turn the sex dial way up with towering heels, bare legs, and a sheer blouse tucked into a high waistline, but I would advise one to do so for a night on the Street, and not a morning lecture. To dial it back down, try ankle boots and tights with a long skirt that fits best to your actual waistline! Finally, the key is to keep a sense of proportion in mind when electing to outfit oneself in a particularly voluminous long skirt.
Take this diaphanous long skirt, it can be worn over leggings or tights to make it cold weather appropriate, but I’m confident that when Cancun season comes (it just has to, if I see one more drop of rain or feel one more gust of wind, I’ll snap) it’ll be just as tasteful (read sexy) worn alone.
Can’t we bring this citywide style boost to sad, drab Princeton? Is not our campus as walking-heavy as said major cities? In fact, we walk (and think?) more than they do. Because trekking from Frick to Pyne takes infinity and beyond, I think the best way to forget how long it takes you to get from point A to B is to fixate on how insert adjective of choice here you will look in your new skirt. Not only will you have come out of your style slump/coma, strutting from Frick to Pyne in a long skirt will make you comparable to a modern-day Grace Kelly or insert icon of preference here.
Basically Princess, when you wear a long skirt many a Prince will consider you a queen, angels will sing, and a chorus of praise will ring in your ears for eternity. As (no minuses) will fall out of the sky and onto your transcript. And your daily ritual of opening your closet to a sea of bleh will become one of opening your closet to a sea of intense inspiration.
Now that you’re officially up to date go out and buy a long skirt before it’s too late!
P.S. Many designers are now in love with this dropping of the hem. This makes me wonder, will the mini-skirt soon join the trove of relics from Fashion past or is it an item as classic as the Oxford and red lipstick, never to be neglected nor forgotten?
Collegiate to Collegiate/Princess to Princess, tell me what you think!