Same, Same, I Know Your Name
How clear is your sartorial identity?
The end of summer traveled at warp speed in my house. We are fortunate not to start school until after Labor Day, so these last few weeks were spent soaking up as much family time as possible.
I did, however, read a lot of Substacks in my time off and something hit me. We are in perpetual conversation about the acquisition – or non-acquisition – of things.
Let me be clear. There is nothing wrong with this. As a fashion lover, I will always enjoy conversations about what we’re wearing, hero pieces and treasure hunts for the ones that got away.
But one thing that this focus has spawned, is a lack of sartorial identity. We’re so obsessed with what we’re buying or not buying, we’ve lost sight of what we intrinsically want to wear. The true essence of our non-verbal communication cue to the world. The noise is so loud, we’ve lost our way.
My friend Conni said it best:
“When something gets hard, we want ease. What's easy? Shopping. It's the quick solve. But then, it starts to turn into a looming problem if all we're doing is the buying and not the styling. That's where the pile up happens.”
I’m seeing it at New York Fashion Week.
The idea of brand identity is fading. Point of view is blurred. 80% of the collections I saw were black and white. For spring. The season where fashion typically lets the color palette run wild. Don’t get me wrong – black and white is the majority of my closet. But the collections that walked felt safe, watered down and so focused on basics I was left wondering where the magic went. Where’s the dream? Is everyone’s point of view the same?
Part of this can be attributed to the cultural and economic landscape. We are reigning in; luxury spending is down. But I also have to blame my favorite villain – the fashion conglomerate. The corporatization of fashion has made it less about sartorial genres and subcultures and more about lightning speed trends (read: sales).
What suffers – other than our wallets – is intrinsic sartorial direction be it brand or consumer.
“…we have an abundance of very nice clothes without any kind of context.”
Noah Johnson for GQ
So what can we do about it? If you’ve lost sight of your personal style or are confounded by what to wear, ask yourself these questions to begin to find clarity on your sartorial identity.
Your Ensemble Challenge
What pieces in my closet make me think, “Damn, I look good” every time I wear them?
How many times per week do I actually get dressed? (i.e., you leave the house for something more than a quick errand like school drop off, a grocery run, etc.)
What are the Top 5 most worn pieces in my closet?
For the activities in my life, I mostly need _________.
Our sartorial identities are a beautiful juxtaposition between function and fantasy. It’s the brand’s responsibility to deliver the fantasy so we may cherry pick the ones that fit our sartorial identities. What I saw at NYFW left me wanting more (stay tuned for mini reviews). Let’s see how London, Milan and Paris fare.