This is my contribution to Judith's excellent Hat Attack #26 on Style Crone. I've worn this straw hat before for Hat Attack but not with these zingy clothes. Blam! A blast of sunshine!! The sunglasses and pants are new to me and the belt has been in regular rotation lately.
AND -
At the 40+ blogger meetup in Vancouver in July, Shawna of The Director of Awesomeinvited the last women standing - Sheila of Ephemera, Sylvia of 40+ Style, and me - to her room for a little pyjama party after the jazz bar. We were determined to stretch out the merriment for at least one more hour.
Of course I brought my satchel of wigs. As we know, wigs are to a blogger photo shoot what monkey bars are to a playground. Here are a few of the shots I took - I messed with them slightly to enhance a particular mood. Aren't these women stunning?!
Above, Shawna, quintessential woman of the '60s. I love this long-legged sophisticate look. In her hand is a blue wig (also on Sylvia later), but in black and white you might think it's Fifi (or a tribble). She's wearing a faux fur stole, also from my bag, and those are the ties hanging off the bed.
Sheila is the best sex kitten! She is a fearless model and I had to be quick to keep up. She looked spectacular in every wig and every shot.
"The Supermodel." Sylvia put on "Fifi" and then wrapped the fur stole around it. I never would have thought of it. She was a natural in front of the camera but I'm not showing you all of the photos I took, except to say we laughed a lot.
Below are Sheila's pink bossy pants - she calls them that. I love her confidence but I don't think she's bossy - that would be me with my camera.
If you hang around me with my wigs and camera, you're bound to end up in compromising situations. Of course, I obtained permission from everyone here to post these photos. And thank you, Shawna, for being such a mod, gracious hostess.
I feel like a cat who nonchalantly drops dead birds and other little animals at my human's doorstep when I post unexpected photos and videos. You are summoned by my meowing, poke at my offering to see if it's still alive, and think, oh, she's been at it again, as you watch me saunter away.
Which brings me to this. Sheila sent me three pairs of shoes during her closet overhaul: Fluevog (correction: Gold Button, but I love them like Vogs) booties, heeled granny shoes, and sandals from the Mountains of Italy! Her gift inspired this 30sec video.
I had some cool footage from an outing on an elevated train so I wanted to play with green screen. The sound is poor but it's betta' than nuttin' ya sorry mutts. Heh. Thank you, Sheila!!
Have a great weekend, everyone, as if you need me to tell you. It's a long one here with Labour Day on Monday. I'm so jealous of those dames having a meetup with Sylvia in New York. Ya wise guys!
Edit: I just found out that Catherine of Not Dressed as Lamb has a new Link-up thingy under the theme "I Will Wear What I Like" in response to hideous style rules for women over 30. Thirty? Bwahahaha!! For me dressing is as much a political act as a statement of aesthetic preference, so I shall wear exactly what I please.
"Use it or lose it"
We must cherish our right to freedom of expression
and not be cowed by cows
Catherine's last round was only for Instagrammers but she has broadened it to include blog posts as well, so I'm goin'! - at least this time because I happen to meet this week's theme: Colour.
Who are we? Are we defined by our hair, our makeup, our clothes? Of course, the answer is that we are defined by the intangibles, but I heard this from a woman I style-eyed recently: Nobody ever crossed the street to meet a personality. Our looks and presentation form first impressions and our personalities make or break them.
This post is a continuation of my investigation into women's identity and style, very a la Cindy Sherman, the New York conceptual photographic artist. The first post I did in this project was called "One face six ways."
The Investigation
How do our perceptions of people change with different kinds of hair?
How much does hair affect our behaviour?
For this study I applied heavy makeup and tried on three wigs: Ginger, Annette, and Tina.
NATURAL (below): Wigless is my natural state but I wasn't used to this much makeup. The makeup served as a cover so I felt freer to do things outside my usual self and it exaggerated the transformations.
GINGER (below): I felt vixen-like but overwhelmed by the hair! I dressed as Ginger for two parties about 12 years ago and really disliked the attention. I was the bone to a bunch of hungry dogs! I rarely spoke all night - I was in shock.
ANNETTE (below): (The cone is misshapen after 14 years in a drawer!) This woman is from the sixties, say, Elizabeth Taylor Cleopatra. In kitten heels I walk a poodle in a diamond collar, go to a party and do the twist, and wake up in the morning with smeared makeup, stinking of booze, ready for a fresh martini and a gherkin.
TINA (below): This is the wig I have always disliked most and it is the one that made me feel like I lost myself the most. I don't really see myself here and yet I enjoyed the discovery process of the transformation.
These are closeup summary shots of the personalities that emerged in these wigs with this makeup.
In every wig I tried on, I had a sense of being someone else. Considering that a wig is really just an extension of a hat, our cultural interpretations of hair elevate the wig far beyond mere body adornment. For example, when I wore Ginger my personality was unable to live up to the expectations that the hairstyle invoked. Even hair colour has deeply ingrained stereotypes: ditzy blond, fiery redhead, white- or black-haired crone.
I once saw a movie in which women cancer survivors attending a conference joyously doffed their wigs; they threw them exultantly into the air as a symbol of empowerment and liberation. At the same time, I have seen women with deliberately shorn heads treated with derision or bewilderment. Throughout history, the cutting of a woman's hair has been punishment for a lapse in morality. Even biblical Sampson lost his strength when his hair was shorn.
I'm wondering, what's your relationship with your hair? Do you change your hair style to reflect or even evoke big changes in your life? Do you wear wigs? If so, do you mix them up depending on your mood or outfit? Do you wish wigs were more commonly worn? Do you think that hair colour affects how people perceive us? How does hair length affect perception? I'm just curious.
