When Fashion Toes the Ridiculous Line

(Image via Style.com)

What I'm wearing to my office holiday party this year.

Aesthetic versus wearability has always been a fine line to walk in fashion. Some of the most amazing pieces we see on the runway are things we couldn’t really get away with in real life unless our names are Anna Dello Russo or Daphne Guinness. A true fashion lover can still see the art and beauty of these pieces without feeling the slave-to-fashion compulsion to wear them to work with an Ann Taylor blazer. Maybe you’re bold enough to wear something extreme on a night out, maybe you just appreciate its aesthetic value from afar.

But, can the unrealistic aspect go too far? Especially when we’re seeing things not on the runway but in stores and on e-commerce sites, implying that these are no longer things to gawk at and appreciate visually, but things we should want to wear for the everyday? It’s hard for me to say these words, as someone who worships so many designers and their every passing whim, but are some pieces just ridiculous?

Take this Rick Owens hat, for example, with its inefficient cat burglar mesh mask. This hat has been picked up by several sites, like LN-CC (pictured), FarFetch and The Corner. But, would you wear it on busy days running through the city this winter?

Or, what about sheer skirts? They’ve been everywhere for a few seasons now, being offered by high end designers, fast fashion chain stores, and everything in between. We assume we’re supposed to wear something under them, but street style dictates otherwise and that leaves me to wonder, how many of us out there think wearing a wisp of chiffon over just our underwear is a practical and appropriate look? Too many of us, according to what I see in New York. Unless you’re going to a fashion show – and literally just from home to the show and back home – this look is too bedroom-only. 

(Image via LuxeHippie.Tumblr.com)

How about the Alexander McQueen visor? Admit it, it looked SICK with blooming feathery dresses on the runway, but it was a bit eyeroll-inducing when BryanBoy wore it around fashion week with shorts. The thing is, they're just sunglasses - but you are making some directional statement when you choose these over your YSLs or Ray Bans. You can't exactly just pop them on with a sundress. But should you decide your off-duty look isn't space age-y enough, you can snag these for $475 right on Alexander McQueen's site. 

At the end of the day, though, the only person who can decide how far you can go with your everyday look is you, and I encourage you to scare the bejeezus out of your co-workers on a daily basis. The Rick Owens knitted hockey mask seems a bit serial killerish to me, but who knows? Maybe you can make it look totally amazing with the right outfit. Always push boundaries, but always stay in your comfort zone or else everyone will read that awkwardness on your poor li’l face.

Handbags and Hugs,

Astor