In the years since moving to Los Angeles, my personal style has shifted quite a bit. I wear more dresses, lighter colors more often and sometimes I like an outfit that’s a little fugly. The weather here emphasizes a different part of my closet than at home on the East Coast, but I still take issue with the fact that it seems my penchant for a black top and black pants, with a black jacket and black shoes (and a black purse, to be honest), is not exactly widespread in LA.
Of course, the vibe of L.A. is quite different from that of New York (my point of reference) and there’s a certain je ne sais quoi and edge that the harsher winters and more humid summers, along with a more seemingly cutthroat (though I would argue L.A. isn’t a total piece of cake to adjust to) culture, bring to the table — and to an outfit. When you go out, to a restaurant or a bar or a comedy show, for example, there is definitely a more casual expectation for clothing, but you see more women in patterns and brightly colored tops and dresses. Maybe it’s just where I’m going, but it seems as though darker, more solidly-patterned outfits are rarer to see.
I know that some think the all-black outfit is boring or depressing, but maybe I am bored and depressed. Regardless, I’ve never felt sexier than in a black dress or black bodysuit and black jeans, and I love my tall black boots. The confidence boost is one I don’t feel when I wear a flowery dress or bright pants. Like, I mean business. I don’t always feel light and airy and my clothing reflects that, but there’s a certain strength I feel in my anger or sadness at times that is perfectly expressed through a solid black outfit.
Maybe it’s the sunshine in L.A .that distorts some of the harshness of life, but sometimes a layer of armor feels essential and that’s what a little black dress or a vague impersonation of Neo from The Matrix provides. The Addams Family might be onto something, and maybe I do look like I’m going to a funeral, but at least I feel powerful and sexy. A girl needs that sometimes.