ShoeSense

It's Monday, so it's a Carnivale!

The question Clothesaholic asks for this week, in short, is:

What movie, TV show or video featured clothes that made an impression on you? What movie, TV or video wardrobe did you try to emulate?

I had a double hard time trying to answer this one. First, I drew a blank. I couldn't think of aything at all I was trying to emulate (save something so obscure, old, and juvenile that featured the 80s fashion in all its glory--leggings, loose blouse pinned in place by hip-hugging crooked wide belt, huge earrings, bangles. For the record, I was never able to pull that look off, so let's get over it, shall we?). Still, I wanted to find the show/movie/wardrobe that I MOST tried to emulate or that made the most impact on my sense of style, and I couldn't find it for the life of me.

So, when it finally hit me, though, I was in shock. In SHOCK, I tell you. "Surely," I thought, "I could never tell anyone that THIS is what I've been admiring!" (Without even being aware of it, might I add, as I rarely stopped to think about it). Remarkably, it's still an 80s' show (which I got to see in the early 90s back in the old country).

So, don't hate me if I tell you that it's... Cybill Shepherd in Moonlighting!

I LOVED that show. I can't tell you if I still do since I'm pretty certain I haven't seen an episode since, oh, 1993 or so. But Cybill Shepherd! No matter what she put on, she exuded a classic sense of style and an ease that transcended the times. I mean, here she is looking defiantly at a Bruce Willis in his hairday, umm, I mean, heyday:
That casual crisp shirt, thrown over some breezy ensemble, looks both laid-back and sophisticated due to the ornate bracelet and the beautiful gold ringlets. To me, that's just practical and timeless fashion. Sorry I can't find more telling pictures, but you oughta remember the series.

Now here's the deal: in all honesty, I'd love to take as a style model Audrey Hepburn or Katharine Hepburn, in just about any movie they've been in. It's just that, well, their kind of wardrobe doesn't work for me. My body type is closer to Cybill's (well, I could stand to lose a few pounds), and I even, from a certain angle, in a poorly-lit room, look like her (as my mother fondly and annoyingly often pointed out). I'm tall, broad-shouldered, athletic, and unapologetic about it, and the truth is, I look good in that type of outfits--and when something looks good, why spoil it?

So I guess that's been my subconscious influence: a classic, crisp, clean-cut style, which I'm accessorizing with slightly more unexpected choices (colorful shoes or purses, for example, or even the occasional turquoise butterfly brooch) to make the outfit my own.

posted by Cristina Hanganu-Bresch @ 3:14 PM