You can't deny that you, at some point in your life, have been (to some extent) afraid of the sight of a heavy metal/punk-rocker in the street. You see him coming towards you dressed in a big black leather jacket full of studs, jeans trashed to a maximum, hair pointing right up to the sky, scary boots and even smokey eyes. Why are you afraid? The dark, gothic and tough style obviously makes you believe that the person is as tough as their clothes. It's a simple fact - the way you choose to dress can reflect the person you are or want to be.
If you were to say hi to the punk rocker, and ask him the way to the bus, what do you think he would reply? Or would he even reply? I was surprised when I asked and he told me with the sweetest voice that the bus stop was just around the corner. In this short article I will pursue some of my curiosities regarding the relation between personality and style.
I think clothes can have everything to do with how a person is - or nothing at all. Of course it is a matter of one's interest, but also a matter of attitude. I mean, a bitch can still be a bitch, even if she or he dresses badly.
What I said earlier about how you could dress as the person you want to be, it is only partly true. You still have to have the guts to wear the striped pants or the silver maxi dress. It's all about your own opinions. Is your aim to look good, cool, sweet, different or all at the same time? Courage. Guts. That is what I think you require being able to dress exactly the way you want. You have to be brave enough to ignore critical opinions from others.
And that takes us to the "I don't care" aspect of all this, which I am most curious about. Sometimes when you ask people about the way they dress, they just say: Fuck it, I don't care what anybody thinks". Can that opinion reflect a person's actions and attitude towards others? Or is it simply just in the way they dress? And why is it so important to feel different for some? Are they so tired of all copying, lack of alternatives and so on that they dress different as in a protest against mainstream dressing? Or are they just attention-whores who want to raise awareness of nothing but to themselves?
It is also not about what you wear, but how you wear it and if you can pull it off. If that punk rocker had been strolling around with a personal energy equal to zero and an insecure appearance, I would certainly not been afraid of him. So even if you dare to wear the clothes, doesn't mean that you can actually wear them...are you following?
So the answer to of all this is...dress as you are and how you feel. The most beautiful gown doesn't look good on a person that doesn't feel comfortable in it. But be aware that people judge you by your clothes and as you grow as a person, your style will follow. So even though you don't dare to wear striped pants at the moment, maybe you will sometime in the future when all the pieces of you come in place. And maybe you can wear the striped pants just as well as the punk rocker wore he's big black leather jacket.
