The Death of Fashion

The Death of Dressing Like You Mean It

There was a time when people dressed like they cared—about themselves, about the occasion, about the world at large. Those days, it seems, are long gone, buried under a mountain of sweatpants, graphic T-shirts, and flip-flops worn in November. Somewhere along the way, we traded dignity for convenience, and the results are nothing short of tragic.

Walk through any airport, grocery store, or coffee shop, and you’ll see it: a parade of grown adults who appear to have dressed straight out of their laundry hampers. Pajama pants in public? Why not. Crocs with socks? Of course. And let’s not even get started on the unholy rise of athleisure, which—despite its name—neither requires athleticism nor any leisureliness in choosing a proper outfit. This isn’t the first time I have addressed this on Savvy Snowbirds, I vented once before and you can read it HERE 

JERRY SEINFELD ONCE SAID, “YOU KNOW THE MESSAGE YOU’RE SENDING OUT TO THE WORLD WITH THESE SWEATPANTS? YOU’RE TELLING THE WORLD, ‘I GIVE UP. I CAN’T COMPETE IN NORMAL SOCIETY. I’M MISERABLE, SO I MIGHT AS WELL BE COMFORTABLE.’”

There’s a laziness to it all, but also something deeper—an alarming loss of respect. Respect for the occasion, whether it’s a dinner out, a day at work, or even a funeral. Respect for the people you encounter, who now have to endure the sight of your unironed T-shirt and scuffed-up sneakers. And, most of all, respect for yourself. Once upon a time, clothes were a way to say, “I’m here, I’m ready, and I take pride in how I present myself.” Now, the message is more like, “I gave up halfway through putting myself together, and you’ll have to deal with it.”

The pandemic certainly didn’t help. Forced to spend months indoors, many of us adopted a work-from-couch mentality that extended to our wardrobes. But here we are, years later, and people are still acting as though we’re one Zoom call away from pajama-clad normalcy. The world has reopened, but the button-down shirts and tailored trousers haven’t come back with it.

It’s not about money, either. You don’t need to dress in designer labels to look put-together. There’s a certain elegance in simply wearing clothes that fit, that are clean and well-maintained. But these days, even that seems to be too much to ask. Instead, we’re inundated with oversized hoodies, ripped jeans that look like they lost a fight with a chainsaw, and an endless supply of sneakers that seem to get dirtier by design. On more than one occasion, upon picking my granddaughters up to got shopping – I had to tell them to get right back to their closets and pick out something more ‘nana approved’.  It’s become a thing now to send me pics with  ? Is this nana approved? 😂 

Dressing well is not about vanity; it’s about dignity. It’s about showing the world that you care enough to try. I can’t even put into words how women show up for Hollywood’s award shows. If they are looking for shock factor…they win 🤦‍♀️

I’m not calling for a return to the era of hats and gloves at every outing, but is it really too much to ask for a little effort? To iron a shirt, to wear pants that aren’t elasticized, to acknowledge that some occasions—hell, most occasions—deserve more than what you’d wear to clean out the garage?

So the next time you reach for those sweatpants or think, “No one will care if I wear this ratty T-shirt,” pause. Think again. And then, for the love of all things decent, put on something that says, “I showed up.” Because showing up is half the battle, and dressing like you mean it might make you feel better. I know it will make me feel better lookin’ at ya!!! 😂 

This post was written for and featured in BAYWATCH NEWS Magazine (Florida) 😊

You can see it on PAGE SIX HERE