To paraphrase Hamlet, “To accessorize, or not to accessorize, that is the question. “
Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of ‘one too many statement pieces’ or die in a sea of unrelieved clothing,” I am unsure. Because, really, those are the two extremes and people generally fall into one or the other. The middle ground of clothing and accessories meshing into one cohesive package remains elusive.
I say all this, mind you, as a recovering accessory addict. Someone who was comfortable spending their hard-earned cash on (amongst other things) a Murukami for Louis Vuitton silk scarf, a Rifat Ozbek plastic peace symbol necklace (don’t ask), and handbags of numerous shapes and sizes. All of which started, relatively harmlessly, as a reasonably affordable method of adding a piece of a designer’s collection to my wardrobe. “I can’t afford the coat,” I rationalized, “But I can afford the scarf that’s tucked, so nonchalantly, into the coat”.
This is fine, in moderation. Until the day when you walk to your closet and realize that:
a) You have an awful lot of accessories but very few outfits that actually need accessorizing,
b) All the money which you frittered on a pair of sunglasses here, and a necklace or two there, could have been used to buy some actual clothing from the collections you loved.
c) The majority of the style images that we see of people looking “fabulous, yet casual” is not achieved solely by the fact they’re wearing expensive shoes or carrying a designer handbag. Chances are that “casual” t-shirt or plaid shirt cost a decent amount in its own right.
This was where the search for that mysterious middle ground comes into play. Judicious sale shopping for actual clothes, and taking a step back from potential accessory purchases to ask whether you actually need another Alexander McQueen skull scarf can work wonders. Of course, one of his multi-colored butterfly print scarves is another matter (I said recovering, not cured).
Photo courtesy of Serena Star.
