The Recessionista

Author: Christian Morel

I believe I speak for everyone when I say that spring can be a very liberating time of year. We will be shedding the coats and sweaters that have swallowed our shirts and belts. I personally look forward to leaving my woolen items at home and putting together glorious combinations of beautiful button-down shirts, pretty pantaloons, sensational skinnies and show-stopping shoes. If you share my excitement, then I suggest you pay attention. I plan to teach the fundamental tricks to developing the perfect look for the beautiful days to come. I do not intend to tell you what needs to be purchased from our friends in Burlington, but instead encourage you to explore your drawers and closets and take note of stylistic choices you have already made. This will allow you to develop a flawless, aesthetically pleasing outfit every day on your own terms.

My sartorial philosophy is that we all hold the potential to produce beauty each day within our own aesthetic realm. Some of us like to wear skinnies and others like to wear loose high wasted slacks. We all have the right to wear what we want; however, we must remember to dress with precision and simplicity or exaggeration. Allow the clothing to be an extension of your personality.

This column is not intended to tell you what should and should not be worn. I hope that by reading each article, you will have the ability to make this decision yourself. The creativity and patience needed to create a masterpiece each morning come with time. We all have to start sometime. Why not start now?

On average, I spend about 15 minutes making my outfit for the day. I consider it a ritual, and in doing so I condition myself to pay close attention to what I will be presenting to the general public each day. Is this not what we think about every morning? "What will I wear to express how I feel today?" or "Who will I see today?" These are some but not all of the questions that I ask myself every day. A fun way to create this ritual is to make a game out of it, because, like in a game, we can either win or lose. However, we should not consider losing an absolute failure. As I said before: we all have to start sometime, but, most importantly, we all have to start somewhere.

I remember a time in my life when I did not care about my appearance and thought that spending more than five minutes creating an outfit was ridiculous. Yet, as I would place more thought into each outfit I began to notice changes in my day. I received compliments on my appearance, which then helped me to develop more strength and control over my day. I think we can all use a little control over our day, considering how chaotic the life of a Middlebury student can be. I challenge you to develop a morning ritual in which you take about five or ten minutes to create your outfit for the day. Make sure this outfit is comfortable - and by comfortable I mean emotionally, not necessarily physically. Let us not forget that sometimes fashion equals pain. Give this ritual a three-day trial run and see what happens.

Spring is the greatest time to start this process. It is warm enough to show our skin and brisk enough to layer. Let's toss our heavy winter apparel into the back of the closet and pull out the short sleeves, short shorts, and shoes that we have been dying to wear. Consider this spring to be a time of creativity and exploration. Let's impress others and at the same time impress ourselves. Do not fear your creativity. I will be here every step of the way to fill you in with fun facts and tricks to help you reach fashion nirvana.

You have been given your homework assignment, readers. This will be the first of many fun exercises that will be aimed at making you look and feel awesome. I hope you enjoy your training, my little fashion padawans. Dress you later.