For the Plebs: Seoul Fashion Week

I spend a lot of time on tumblr. A lot. And while some of my feed is devoted to ballet, Japanese oddities and modern art, a large portion of it is taken up by runway shots. Picture after picture of the hottest, the newest and the best of the most current shows. These pictures pile up in my "liked" section (never to be looked at again) because for a few sweet seconds the clothes inspired me in some form, or more likely they made me briefly irrational with the desire that I was the kind of mixed-race 20-something stick-figure that could pull off "something like that". If you are that slim, gorgeous/exotic mixed-race young person, rock it sugar! If not, here's something for the rest of us:

From RE.D F/W 2014  - photo: Chung Sung-Jun (Getty)

Layers! I have found the easiest way to update my clothes in a figure-flattering way is to incorporate layers of different textures in a monochromatic scheme. The above outfit is from a recent show for Seoul Fashion Week, and I think it's a wonderful example of fashion done right. The designers certainly had their non-conventional pieces that I imagine will appear in music videos later this year, but there really was a lot of practical options. Regardless of your desire to buy hot-off-the-Korean-runway or not, adding some texture into your outfits (think leather cuffs on a blouse, felted slacks or sheer panels in a skirt) can be an easy way to update a wardrobe. 

For a fun comparison, here's my favorite kpop star, g-dragon, in a very... kpop outfit.

from kpopstarz.net

Yeah.

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Do you ever find yourself reflecting on previous versions of yourself and wishing they would just cease to ever have existed and disappear? 

We all have haircuts, fashion statements, and past-loves that we regret and want to crop out of photos ("un-tag" is the thing to do these modern days, I suppose). I challenge you to find me the person who looks back at themselves at 14 years-old and doesn't cringe a bit. Sometimes it's easy to just shrug your shoulders and sigh, dismiss it to youth and inexperience and let it go. Other times it sticks with you like a bad taste in your mouth.

Found on fuckyeahugly90sclothes.tumblr.com

Today I looked back through my old blog posts, things that 18 year-old Erin thought and felt, and had to try really hard not to be ashamed. I had to remind myself that I had written those things and felt comfortable sharing them in the evermore of the Internet. I still deleted all but one.

With a clean slate and a different frame of mind (I am by no means "mature" at 22, but I certainly not as image-obsessed negatively as some versions of myself), I decided to try my hand at writing a blog again. I've been dipping my toes in the waters of writing again but find my hand cramping as I struggle to journal out all my thoughts and feelings at the end of the day. Typing takes much less effort, and the muted tap of a MacBook keyboard is pleasing to the ear.

So here we are, again. Let's see what happens.