Fashion rules are blurrier than ever, though Anna Wintour is probably living in a nightmare. The fashion industry had it coming for years now. Clothing lines went from changing every three months to changing every week. Fashion bloggers showed us you could dress like a high fashion trendsetter with the clothes you buy in Zara, while Instagram confirmed that basically everyone could be a supermodel. Dress codes were lost somewhere in the ’80s and finally buried when Rita Ora wore a bathrobe on the red carpet in 2017.
Three years later and part of a business clothes family is now officially everything comfortable. Yes, it is okay to wear PJs to a meeting, don’t worry, a shirt and underpants are also acceptable. Just imagine, if Katie Holmes wore a blazer and sweatpants even a year ago, fashion police would write her a life sentence. In 2020, she gave us a styling of the year. Fashion is now 100% for everyone.
This year we entered into a judgment-free fashion world. Why? Because everything we once believed was unacceptable, impossible, or tasteless, became normal overnight. Even a face mask suddenly became a fashion statement, an accessory, when it became clear we will have to wear them for a longer time. A fashion must-have suddenly has a different meaning and deeper layer to it.
Personal style is now something that everyone can afford. The fashion world has never been more accepting. There is still a lot to be done in the complex world of the fashion industry, there is no doubt, but for the first time in years, it makes me hopeful that people will become more than the clothes and accessories we wear. The year 2020 didn’t give us much, but at least we are free of impossible standards and judgments to look your best every second of the day. If you want to wear sweatpants to a grocery store, be my guest. If you wish to pair it with a blazer, a coat or skirt even, go ahead. You can’t do fashion wrong because everything is fashionable. You’re finally free.
