when i say i know nothing about fashion, i’m lying. 

i know plenty about fashion. i know that black and brown make a frown, unless you’ve pair them successfully in a pant/top, shoe/purse, or jacket/pant combo. i know short hair isn’t in right now. i know being petite and wearing pastels makes you look young. i know the empire waistline should never be worn by women with bigger than a medium b cup. i could go on. there is a point i’m trying to make here. 

fashion magazines, women’s magazines, teen girl magazine’s and a myriad of other publications dealing with how to look your finest and how to dress your best are as fickle as a two year old the day after halloween when picking through his loot. does my metaphor make sense? here’s the point. trends change more frequently than the average bank account can keep up with. the mark of a fashionable, sensible, stylish, beautiful woman (man/person) is a knowing of yourself. audrey hepburn knew she liked givenchy, so he dressed her. sienna miller knows she has wonderful cheekbones, so her hairstyle is always aware of them. charlize theron has phenomenal legs and skin tone; you would be hard pressed to find her not accentuating these qualities. i believe people should dress for themselves, for their professions, for their ambitions. i believe all this is also possible within each individuals budget. 

there is no reason to look homeless if you are not (olsen twins, i am absolutely judging that period of your lives). 

more attractive than a woman in all the latest grunge-inspired faux-leather and femme enough frocks is a woman who knows herself. who can speak to her own interests. who can dress her own frame. fascination begins with a person having something fantastic within them. it exudes from all corners of their lives. 

don’t hear perfection in all these words. perfection is preposterous. i’m talking about self-awareness. knowledge. discovery. growth. 

i’m nineteen years old and just finished reading the latest issue of instyle. you know, the one with jennifer garner displaying her precious smile and ability to wear all shades of pink? i finished reading it and felt that women should know, it’s okay to not be fashionable. it’s okay to not be edgy. it’s okay to not be rail-thin or phenomenally curvy. 

it’s not okay to not take pride in yourself. it’s not okay to not love the woman in the mirror. it’s not okay to believe you are not fascinating, you are not captivating, you are not lovely. 

you are. you don’t need revamped winter wardrobe to assure you of that. 

know yourself. 

to thine ownself be true. 

and from that, springs joy.