I post a lot of fashion photos on my social media (IG: onmyshoebox). Inevitably, I get two distinct types of comments:

1. Wow, she looks hungry. Someone get that girl a cheeseburger.
2. Wow, she looks angry. What’s she so mad about?

I want to address the second type of comment in today’s post. In all fairness, there is a misconception that fashion is “serious” and that fashion people are snobs. I’m not saying it’s not totally true – the fashion industry can be super-exclusive. There are VIP lists, haute couture, front

row stars, red carpets and velvet ropes. Many people like clothes and shopping, but FASHION is in a much higher echelon.

I remember one time I was speaking to a woman who I thought was really into fashion – she even went to fashion merchandising school. And then I mentioned Manolo Blahnik and she had never heard of him. What??? He’s one of the most famous shoe designers in the world. How insulting! Fine, I’m a snob.

Sometimes fashion people DO take themselves a little too seriously. I think there might be two reasons for this. One is that fashion is a multi-billion dollar industry. It’s not just about going shopping at the mall. It really is a serious business. Secondly, compared to medicine, engineering, agriculture, computer science – fashion may seem… frivolous. Sometimes fashion people can be sensitive and might get a bit defensive when they’re not being taken seriously, and so will overcompensate.

Not everyone buys into the seriousness of fashion, though. There are many designers who have FUN with fashion! Betsey Johnson used to cartwheel down the runway at the end of her shows –

even when she was in her 70s! And just this week in Paris, Thom Browne sent a giant unicorn down his runway. It was unexpected and whimsical!

Fashion CAN be fun, and there’s no better proof of that than Homecoming Week. Didn’t you have fun dressing up in a different theme each day? I loved following along on The Feather’s social media and seeing all of your creativity – you all put a smile on my face! It was awesome seeing all the students get so into the spirit of homecoming, whether it was patriotic garb on Monday to all the hilarious onesies and bathrobes on Thursday.

Thank you for using fashion to display your school spirit. Normally I’m the first one to point out that pajamas are not appropriate for school, but during Homecoming Week they were acceptable and even encouraged! I hope you had fun, too.

~ Silva

If you have questions or topics you’d like to see addressed in this blog, please email me at [email protected]. You can read more from me at www.onmyshoebox.com.