Fashion vs. Personal Style: What’s the Difference? {Sarajane} |

One of my idols is the beautiful Coco Chanel. She’s a long time advocate for timeless style while simultaneously being a designer of fashion. Her balance of the two is thrilling to me and her empowerment for the freedom of choice in regards to what you wear is commendable. One of my favorite ‘soapboxes’ is the difference between personal style and fashion. I believe neither to be superior and both to be beautiful and delightful in their own way. But, as we delve into more fashion topics over our time together, I find it necessary to define them both.

Here are my definitions for the two:

Fashion:

It’s constantly changing. It’s defined by designers and fashion editors. It’s often a risk to take. There are strict rules of fashion. You can buy it off a rack. It is NOT subjective!

Seriously, fashion is this beast that I adore. One season harem pants are the new thing, the next season, harem pants are for fools. She’s like a bi-polar beauty that just can’t make up her mind, and wants to make sure that you’ll follow her no matter what terrible turns she may take. For some of us, we will watch that beauty until she’s taken her last drink. Because when she’s doing things right, it’s incredible. It’s worth the turmoil, the ugly darkness between the light, the years of polyester and platform shoes.Because, the moment she pulls out that blue and white striped wrap dress from Banana Republic, your heart skips a beat. You know that nothing else has made you feel the way that dress will. You realize in that moment that you can be anything.

The dark side of fashion is that you CAN do wrong. There are rules. You don’t typically get to wear black and brown together, except currently, that’s acceptable. You don’t wear gaudy wedges that detract from the rest of your outfit, you don’t. You don’t buy sweaters with acrylic in them. You don’t wear things that detract from the special pieces of an outfit. You don’t wear leggings as pants. Don’t match your shoes to your pocket book. {The old rule being just the opposite.}

All of these things may seem binding to some of you. Exhausting even. But, if followed correctly, you’ll look amazing. Fashion is so appealing because, it’s easy. You can buy it right off the rack and do close to no wrong. You can follow the guidelines, trust your designers, and look amazing.

Also, it’s just fun! I love the constant changing of the seasons. The risks that we take. The delight from buying something that may only be amazing for so long. The nostalgia that comes with trying on old 80′s prom dresses. Whether you believe it or not, fashion, though ever changing, is timeless.

{Designs by: Alexander McQueen}

Personal Style:

Can break the rules of fashion. Can be timeless. Knows the lines of your body. Displays personality. Has an easier time shopping on sales racks and thrift stores.

I know that it may seem like I’m partial to fashion if you read it’s description. However, I am equally in love with a sense of personal style. I swear.

People with a great sense of personal style can look at what’s on the runway and in magazines and turn that into something that fits their look. They may not even read magazines or care about runways, but, they will turn heads and draw compliments when they are out and about.

The key to having a great sense of personal style is simple.

KNOW YOUR BODY! Don’t overwhelm your outfit. and Know what you want to present to the world.

Don’t pay attention to sizes and trends. You have to know what looks right with your coloring and your body shape. As much as I love a cute jumpsuit, you will NEVER see me wearing one. But, I have dear friends with a different body type that can rock a jumpsuit! Also, just because you may typically wear a size 6 doesn’t mean that you should buy everything in that size. You may find a pair of jeans that cut you in too much and will need to buy a size 8. That doesn’t mean anything, except that you know what looks good on you! Thus, having a great sense of style.

If you have a great grasp of what is flattering, you can wear close to anything. As long as you are pulling out the positive qualities in your shape and hiding the ones that you’d rather not draw attention to.

Think about what you want to present to the world. It’s important to me to be bright and professional at the same time. As a business owner, I want to be taken seriously. But, not too seriously. I run a business based on personal relationships and being who you are. So, I want to represent myself, as myself. I’m pretty relaxed in personality and want that to show in the way I dress. However, I prefer to dress up. So, I wear clothes that are either really bright, or classic. I dress extremely girly and rarely set foot in a thrift store.

However, I have a dear friend with her own sense of personal style that is more laid back. She dresses relaxed and comfy. She shops at thrift stores like it’s her job and pulls out these awesome layering pieces that I love. It works for her because that’s who she is. If I were to do the same, it would be a poor replica.

It’s key to represent who you are, along with who you want to be.

Next, people with great a great sense of style may wear nothing that’s current and still look amazing. Why? Because they are confident in their ability to represent themselves. A girl wearing jeans and a white T can look more fabulous than a girl wearing a pencil skirt and stilettos. If they are at home in their clothes. Starting tomorrow, we’ll be posting regular ‘Street Fashion’ blogs. Girls and Guys that we find on the streets of Asheville and other cities that we travel to that just have something. They may be wearing the latest trends, or they may just exude a great sense of personal style. As you look at these photos I hope you take a moment to analyze them for yourselves. Make your own fashion decisions based on a mixture of the two. Because, as with everything else in the world, it’s all about balance.

{This photo is by one of my favorite street fashion bloggers The Sartorialist}

She may not be wearing the most current outfit, it’s clearly not expensive, she probably cut that top up herself. But, there’s just something about her. It’s personal style!