Fashionable Indiana Archives

Each month I can't wait to rush to the mailbox to see if my new VOGUE has arrived.  Oh, VOGUE, in all it's fashion glory with its beautiful people and fanciful items adorning each and every page.  It's like a gift to myself every month.  No one in my house is allowed to touch it before I do!  My oldest daughter knows that she is not to leap through it or read any article until I've done so first.  It's my own little pleasure in life.

One of my very favorite sections in VOGUE is NOSTALGIA.  I have learned about many incredible, intelligent, gorgeous, strong, independent women in so many of their articles.  I get to live each month in the past for just a few moments while I read about stylish women who wouldn't take no for an answer and persevered on to do extraordinary things with their lives and careers.  In the same breath I've also learned of many others who had it all but at the end of their lives died alone with no one knowing who they were.  The latter group are the women I enjoy reading so much about - they took chances and lived life to the fullest and even though they may have left us unknown, VOGUE somehow resurrects them each month so they really are never forgotten. 

I do believe that I lived in the 30's in Old Hollywood and did something to be rich because I'm just enamored with that era.  The clothes the clothes the clothes let's not forget about the clothes in this era - simply stunning and classy.  That was when people dressed to impress and it DID matter how you presented yourself to the world.  Once I get wealthy in this life I will only be in vintage Chanel, Balenciaga, and a few rare Elsa Schiaparelli pieces added in.  It sounds funny to think that one must have money to wear "old" clothes but it's true and when that day arrives that's what you'll find me in!

Along with my love of fashion I'm an absolute history nerd.  I love love love history and everything about it.  Art history, Russian History, US History, World History, you name it I love it - the only classes I received A's in when I was in school in fact :)  My major in college was Anthropology and I wanted to be Margaret Mead since I was 4 when my mom read me a story about her.  I say all of this leading up to the reason I browse the Indiana Historical Society web site all the time. 

During one of my recent investigative sessions I came across some wonderful images from the Root Store Fashion Show to the 4-H Dress Revue winners from the Indiana State Fair to the Herz Store League of Terre Haute Fashion Models.  I was surprised and elated all at the same time.  You don't think of the Midwest as being fashion forward but I was pretty impressed with the images I collected from their site - proud as a matter of fact.  Proud that back in 1933 these women not only made most of these creations themselves but they looked AMAZING and always put together at all times.  Now I can't personally go back to 1933 and hear what New York or LA were saying about our style here in Indiana but from what I dug up I don't really care. 

I hope you enjoy this trip back as much as I did!

Until Then:  "In the adjustment of the new order of things, we women demand an equal voice; we shall accept nothing less."  - Carrie Chapman Catt

P.S. - Thank you Indiana Historical Society for the wonderful images!

Fashion and Security

A funny thing happened to me just the other day - I realized I finally really know who I am now and what I want out of life. I know it took about 33 years but better late than never. When I was younger I thought I knew who I was or at least thought that is what I projected to everyone else. I was wrong and it probably showed too. Three daughters, about seven jobs, and one big reality check later, I have found what it is all about. Security - being secure with yourself, your family, your style, and your insecurities. Yes, you have to be secure with your insecurities. Everyone has them so embrace them - don't dwell on them - we know they are there - but try and live with them. You'll find that the positive aspects of your life will far outweigh the negative. You have to be aware of all of the components that make you - you!

A large part of what helped me have my epiphany was fashion. May sound silly to some but it's true. I was in Broad Ripple Vintage (because it always comforts me and makes me feel good) and it came to me - fashion is the ONE constant thing that has always been a part of my life. No matter who has come and gone (family or friends), my parents divorce, the deaths of two of the most important women in my life - I could always depend on fashion.

My paternal grandmother would sit for hours and sketch beautiful women in fabulous dresses for me when I was little, my maternal grandmother had trunks FULL of my great and great great grandmother's clothes along with VOGUE from the 30's and other fashion magazines dating back to the turn of the century, my great great Aunt Rose was born in the early 1900's and refused to wear dresses so she made her own pants (wide leg, high-waisted, sailor style with the six buttons at the top-original -FANTASTIC) and wore them with never a regret, my mom used to make her own clothes and my dad's jumpsuits back in the 70's, and my dad is the one who would take me shopping when I was little because my mom hated it - she still avoids it like the plague (I find it ironic she's my mother).

I've often said before that fashion is just "clothes or accessories" to some people - and that is fine. To me it is a part of life - it is my life - it's my passion - it's my job - it's one of my loves. There is nothing like finding that one piece you have been searching for that just makes you feel good. Fashion isn't superficial as others may see it. It's culture, it's history, it's art, it's our future, and it's our present. So along with instilling in my girls a sense of security, intelligence, and self-confidence, I hope that I sub-consciously instill the gift of style as did my ancestors in me. It wasn't something that was passed down in some big ceremony - no it was something that was subtle and alluring and passionate and it glistened through their eyes, their pictures, and their legacies. I found that the most tenacious women in my family had the strongest sense of who they were as women along with the BEST PERSONAL STYLE. To me, fashion is security in who we are and who we want to become.

Until Then: “Elegance is not the prerogative of those who have just escaped from adolescence, but of those who have already taken possession of their future.” Coco Chanel