The Sunday News
Rutendo Chidawanyika
NOT everyone cares about fashion and not everyone cares what people think of them, however, the way you dress and present yourself says a whole lot about you. Dressing for attention is usually a women’s thing, men rarely dress for attention but they do. Not that it’s a bad idea, but if the attention falls on the negative it is definitely not worth it.
Compliments such as “you look beautiful,” “nice dress” or “you are fashionable” are what we hope to hear when we get to our destination but if you get comments such as “you look nice but” or “you would have looked better if”, then that is a problem. If you are 20 and below then dressing for attention may not be such a bad thing but if you are over 25 . . .
Please note the type of attention being referred to is not the good kind. You should definitely care how you present yourself.
Signs you are dressing for attention:
Showing lots of skin
No, this is not about body-shaming. If you got it, flaunt it — but there are ways to do it so that it looks sexy and chic, and not cheap. The trick is to pick only one body part to show. If you have a low cut dress showing cleavage, then keep the dress longer. If you are doing a crop top, pair it with high waist pants or high waist skirt or even add a cool jacket. Be mindful of highlighting your best features. If you are showing leg on that particular day or night cover up on top.
Skin tight clothes
Be comfortable in your skin, we always say, but some take it 10 notches up. With the current trends of everything being so fitted and tight it’s easy to get carried away. Please stop blaming bad dress choices on fashion because looking like a sausage in those skinny jeans is definitely not the look. If you cannot bend in your outfit or walk very fast or attempt to run then chances are it’s super tight. Get the proper fit and be comfortable, you will look better if you are comfortable and you will be more confident
You are still dressing like you did 10 years ago
The quickest way to age yourself is to wear something out of date, unless it is a timeless classic silhouette. Looking modern is more important than looking trendy. If you had the meanest legs back in the day then you-go-girl but you cant continue in those micro minis. Leopard print is an on-going trend, we agree, but some ABUSE this trend. If in the 90s it was chic to wear it from head-to-toe and you are still dressing the same in the now that’s very odd considering times have changed. We still do leopard print but subtly, a scarf, a bag or a pair of shoes is enough for the day. Do not feel the pressure to wear them all at once.
There is no difference between your dressing and that of teenagers
That’s an absolute no. The clothing teens wear is not the clothing you should wear and vice versa. The cuts are different, and their lifestyle is different than yours. That said, trends are open to interpretation across the ages. The way a youth is doing the leopard print trend may not be the way you should. If she is doing leopard print leggings and you like leopard, translate the trend and get a kicky pair of leopard pumps. And men, even if you can squeeze into young men’s low-slung pants, with your boxers hanging out, don’t. Just don’t. Stick with fitted flat-front pants.
Men wearing graphic humour t-shirts
Know when and where to wear these. If you spend a lot of time with your grandkids or teenagers and are wearing it for the purpose of entertaining, that’s appropriate. However, if you are interacting with people your age, it’s silly for day-to-day. Think of the real message you are conveying and the first impression you make. You want people to think that you are pulled together, creative, powerful, self-possessed. Weird statements on t-shirts say you have a sense of humour but maybe you can project that in a different way, perhaps with a piece of jewellery, bracelets, or bright colours.
Stay away from inappropriate clothes. Attract the right kind of attention.
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