A Manifesto for Dressing Better

People of the world! Take more care about the way you dress, wash and look out of your eyes! This is not a superficial, neglectable attitude, but it represents much more about you and your world, than you might think.

We have had a lot of luck recently, the weather has been wonderful here in Brussels. Like summer, indeed! Bad tongues have already uttered doom: most probably, this was it for the year 2011 - all awaits us is rain from june on.
But this is not, what I wanted to write about. I was in town this week, twice. And in a good part of town, lovely shops, good restaurants, trees and expensive cars to be seen. But I was devastated by the sheer ugliness of how people feel compelled to dress. I know, everybody can dress as he or she likes, no discussion about that. Right of indivudual expression. Right to do what one feels right for oneself etc etc.

 But I mean, is it forbidden to think just a little bit about other people might see you? Do you dress really only for yourself? Heaven forbid - if one dressed only to please oneself, chances are high, that you are or a genius or simply, sorry, a person who lives on the moon. Or not so very clever after all. Or have misantrophic tendencies?

But coming back to the shockwaves. I wonder why people, when the sun comes out, dress like they are on the beach ( about dressing for the beach, I am pondering already a post, beware...) - shorts, miniature t-shirts, transparent plastic on the shoulders, practical footwear. Sometimes, if you are lucky, a nice pedicure to be seen, but rarely. Colours are not taken into consideration - perhaps most of the population is colourblind? Ever heard of the rule of max 3 colours in an outfit? Foolproof. But no, apparently not.
Even the very young and beautiful can only pull of that neglicence look if they have thought about it before they dress, and having it seen twice, it is only boring. Big yawn. apparently not a thinking person - more of a amoeba?

Why is it so difficult to dress in a way, that might be pleasant for other people to look at? It makes your day, if you see a beautiful person, who had a little bit of thought put to her appearance - to utter this not political correct word. If the person smiles, is clean and smells good too - wow. There you have a species in danger of extinction!

May it be a jeans, a unicoloured shirt, preferably ironed, some flats, a bag, sunglasses, clean hair, some lipgloss. If the clothes are wellfitting, they will do the talking. And it does NOT cost a lot of money, believe me.
A simple skirt, some heels, a blouse and a cardigan - good bag - will do the trick. If you have a necklace, leave out the earrings. If you have earrings, a watch will be sufficient, etc. Less is definitively more.

For the weekend of a three-piece-suit-bussinessman: shorts, boatshoes, a Poloneck. No need for fleece sweaters with teddybears. Definitively not.

Basic rules, to remind the mindless:
*No more than three colours on the person - haircolour is one of them!
*Cleanliness for hairs, face, shoes and clothes. Smile.
*Maximum 2 (two) pieces of jewellery; only one finger per hand with rings.
*No Battle of the Patterns - keep an eye of those combinations...
*Less is always MORE
*Being good dressed is not expensive. Basta.

Please, please let us all set an example to make the world in our little ways more beautiful. Say no to applications or wild patterns - they belong in the hand of an expert, and there also quite rarely. Please do buy good quality, instead of 14 t-shirts which will not survive a tumbledrier, let alone be washed by something hotter than cold water. Have only 4 colours in your wardrobe and make sure, they like each other. Have a decent handbag and if you need a rucksack, let it be a nice one - not one with 14 colours and 67 applications. Get some new white t-shirts - Petit Bateau is NOT expensive for the quality you get and go to Massimo Dutti for white t-shirts and affordable poloshirts. I have bought wonderful slacks at Carrefour for many years. At C&A, H&M, Zara, you find the most amazing things, if you have time to graze and only little money to spend. Some really nice stuff. Sometimes the fabrication is cheap and badly made and this shows, have a good look before you get carried away. Always.

Please let us be aware, that we are not alone on this planet - that the poor eyes of our neighbours, co-workers, friends and next of kin have to endure Hawai shirts, greyishbrownblack nontrousers, too baggy or too tight t-shirts with slogans, socks in sandals, too much of flesh rolling around that buried navel. I have to stop, otherwise...

All of this is too much a clear sign of neglicence, because this cannot be selfassurance, to be endured. Life is already pretty hard itself.

Let us start to become more aware, that WE DO PRODUCE BEAUTY OURSELVES. Not the others, we are responsible for the picture we present to the others and the world we make around us. Too busy and tired? Give it a try, it does not take so  much energy and time and you will feel rewarded  on a big scale.

One last word of doom for the eager tourist: Why is it, that people do dress completedly out of good senses when they are in holidays, visiting a foreign country, pretending to "relax"? Do they feel "anonym", or are they playing Mr. Jenkyll and Mr. Hide? Or do they think they belong to the Invisibles? Is comfort standing for ugliness one wonders? I mean, hello???

I repeat: Everybody, who has a brain, some eyes and a little bit of education can dress good and well. Well dressed does not mean expensive. Badly dressed does not mean cheap. Dressing for oneself alone has no style. Dressing only for others has no style too.
I do not want you all to be dressed in slacks and polonecks, but you get the point?  Next time you buy that lousy t-shirt, stop, think and do consider...
At least I hope. PLEASE!