A Cultivated Style

Cultivated style (cultivate = to produce by culture): a “style” which comes from and is understood by the culture.  Examples of styles people cultivate include preppy, biker, boho, and (the very 2013) rockabilly.Obviously, reasons vary for choosing a cultivated style; some do it to foster affiliation with a certain group (think high school goth), others because they want to be different (hipster?). (Some) girls just want to have fun.

At Vildy’s suggestion, I have been checking out the blog My Year of Fabulous, which chronicles the adventures of a mom as she test-drives various styles. While exploring her month of Rock ‘n Roll looks, I came across the link to Folter. And this picture.

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Yes, well, basically that model has my exact haircut.  A little longer. And styled in a cultivated, as opposed to contemporary, look.

(Btw, this photo was taken March 13 for the EWU graduation program and shows just how brown my teeth got from using high-fluoride toothpaste for two and a half months.).

There is IMO a personality component, which I haven’t completely figured out. I can only say that I, for one, would not probably ever feel comfortable adopting a total cultivated look of any variety. How about you?

3 thoughts on “A Cultivated Style”

  1. Because you’re a costume designer? 😀 I”m not but I don’t want to be in a costume, either. With the wide variety of trends all current at the same time, I think what seals the deal on the costume look is hair and makeup and eyewear. Even disco platforms (ugh) are somewhat normative as today’s stripper shoes.

    I also don’t like certain pieces or looks owing to Paula Reed’s book where she asks whether you indeed are a motorcycle rider, for example, if wanting to wear leathers. IOW, is it just a costume piece you are sporting?

    Although you didn’t mention this, I hate clothing worn ironically. For me, this includes the now standard advice to pair pretty dresses with denim jackets or army green utility jackets. This really bugs me.

  2. For me, I like irony with a very light touch. Like, instead of an army jacket with a pretty dress I might just wear a SR (Sturm, Ruger) pin. More enthymeme than contrast. And I might wear a tiny bit of leather to a show featuring a motorcycle theme, but never more than you would see on the average well-dressed person walking down the street.

    My husband has a leather vest, purely functional. It is slightly annoying when people ask him what he rides …

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