What is taste?
Most often they judge whether a person has good taste or that he has a complete lack of taste by the way he dresses.
And it’s not surprising: it’s known that people are greeted by their clothes. The ability to present oneself, to create a holistic image from wardrobe items and one’s natural characteristics, to play up undoubted advantages and divert attention from shortcomings - these are, perhaps, the main features that determine the presence of taste in clothing.
It is a mistake to think that good taste means following fashion trends. Not everything that looks great on catwalk divas will look natural on a particular person. On the contrary, there are things “out of time” that looked great several years and even decades ago and have not lost their relevance to this day. Such wardrobe details are also called basic.
It is believed that a person with good taste does not change his wardrobe every season in accordance with the latest fashion trends, but only adds fashionable accessories and details to his basic wardrobe.
Of course, when choosing clothes, the owner of good taste will take into account the characteristics of his figure, his age, his manner of movement, and the appropriateness of this or that thing in a particular situation. He will never wear even the most wonderful beach dress to the office and will not go on a date in a business suit.
The presence or absence of taste also determines how it organizes its habitat, i.e. housing, workplace, interior of your car. And it is not so important in what style the apartment will be furnished, whether its occupant prefers ascetic minimalism or luxurious baroque. The main thing is that all the interior details look appropriate, organic and form a single ensemble.
But even the most stylishly furnished room must, first of all, be adapted for living, comfortable for the owner, be adapted to his usual rhythm of life and favorite activities. Combining comfort and beauty is the highest manifestation of taste in the ability to organize living space.
What is good taste?
How often do we think about what good taste is? Usually we think that it belongs to the category of abstract concepts like “casual chic” or “expensive minimalism”. I don’t want to decipher it at all, especially since I don’t have time for it - I have to keep up with tracking trends. But still, let’s allow ourselves to immerse ourselves in a fashion retreat for a while and look at ourselves from the outside. Are you overdoing it with trends? Do you understand a basic wardrobe? And what do you understand by the word “bad taste”?
Today, advice on appearance is heard from everywhere: what to wear, how to wear it, who to look at, who to follow. The palm can only be taken over by the topic of healthy lifestyle or eternal youth. But as a rule, everyone is silent about the basis of the basics - good taste. And that's probably why.
The sense of taste is instilled from childhood: we look at our parents and the environment, unconsciously absorbing ideas about beauty. Therefore, for all your aesthetic intelligence, thank not God or fashion magazines, but your mom, dad, grandparents
Money and wealth, the city where you were born - all this does not matter at all. The presence or absence of taste is not measured by money and geography. You can, of course, wave your arms and shout that we live in a free country and will wear whatever we want. We will not. At least every person has a chance to both start their life anew and be fully responsible for their appearance.
Street style 2017
Street style 2017
Street style 2017
First, let's define what is bad when it comes to taste and clothing.
The funny thing is that in reality being fashionable is not cool at all and in some places it’s even vulgar. Veiled bad taste that pretends to be serious knowledge of the matter
The shows stopped making noise, something sparkled and sparkled somewhere, and we ran. Either for silver ankle boots, or for giant raincoats or earrings of different sizes. As a result, we are proud that we managed to find a rare trophy and will have something to show off among our colleagues or equally advanced friends. This is bad not because things are ugly, but because we take a slightly hypocritical approach towards ourselves. We walked and walked in sneakers, for example. Then again - and thigh-high boots. Somewhere in the street style we spotted a “bow” and tomorrow we’ll be running to the party in a huge trench coat and a baseball cap. Of course, magazines will insist that it’s great to be different, but isn’t it more important not to lose yourself among the crowd of people dressed up in meaningless things?
I also feel very sorry for men who, apparently, are so insecure and unaware of their image that they still shave their temples or wear beards. Well, you know who I’m talking about – these are the victims of barbershops. In rare cases, the beard matches the appearance and content; for the most part, all these men are ordinary modest people who simply do not understand what to do with themselves and how to position themselves. And a beard is a safe way.
Street style 2017
Street style 2017
Street style 2017
Another sure way to show bad taste in all its glory is to dress up from head to toe or wear “all the best at once.” Only experts think that everyone has long moved away from this option, but no. Take a walk around the city center on a Friday evening. Timeless hits-combinations like minis with heels, styling and jewelry are still playing from local restaurants. And again, it's not about the things themselves, but about the presentation. It’s customary here, for example, to make fun of leopard print, but it’s all thanks to the girls from this group. Foreigners wear “leopard” in a completely different way, so there is no prejudice towards it or caustic phrases addressed to it.
“Expensive and rich” looks unimportant in any version - expensive or mass market. You have to be a native Italian to wear tan, gold, bright lipstick and colorful silk blouses with skirts, seasoned with a voluminous hairstyle, with their characteristic grace.
Have you noticed that there is another subculture that considers itself extremely original? Female art critics or male artists. The first ones wear floor-length linen skirts, jewelry from flea markets, knitted capes - everything is certainly designer, vintage or bought in Goa. The image seems to scream about freedom and creativity, and also about being different from others who are “like everyone else.” Terrible vulgarity, albeit the author's. There is another caste wandering around - more elevated intellectuals (they just have more money), who dress in shapeless things from Japanese designers and talk about the inner beauty of a woman. That, they say, her beauty is all inside, and the bag put on top only helps to reveal this invisible essence. Ladies, kamon! All that intricate draping and uneven seams don't add any intelligence or substance to your look, and they certainly don't make the look elevated or complex. Especially when we are talking about an adult woman who is still proving to the world her informality and rich inner world. Deliberately teenage and infantile clothing looks very, very vulgar on girls about thirty. Mickey Mouses, slogans, hoods, short jackets - in general, the wardrobe of a twenty-year-old daring girl.
Street style 2017
Street style 2017
Street style 2017
If you do not fall into any of these categories, you have a sense of adequacy and proportion, and this is great news! It is also important to remember that the real art for a woman is to look not fashionable, but beautiful. Which is what art is. That everything needs moderation. Wearing diamonds in the morning is a sign of bad upbringing. And if you still don’t know this, then it’s not the parents who are to blame, but the lack of curiosity.
Don't dress up like a city crazy person if you're going on a date or a job interview. You should not wear a neckline to work or meeting with family. It would also be nice to understand that shorts are a risky item of clothing and in the office with tights and a sweater they look incredibly stupid and ridiculous. In general, the golden rules of taste remind you of the appropriateness of your outfit. Free democratic views and the absence of dress codes have aggravated the already existing ignorance regarding the rules of etiquette, and out-of-the-ordinary appearance is a common occurrence today.
Get to know yourself. Study your figure, type, proportions. Buy things not for the sake of things, but for the sake of yourself and emphasizing external advantages. Do you feel that a complex cut is not your thing? Is the color red scary and annoying? Then we tell them a categorical no. Transparent, too tight, short are also not approved by the rules of good taste.
Moderation is our motto. You can blame me for my conservatism, but it’s better to buy one expensive plain shirt with a cool cut and good cotton than five frilly blouses that will lose their shape after the second wash. It’s better to wear this same shirt with regular jeans than to add a ton of other stuff. Superfluous usually means vulgar. In a minimalist or even, if you like, boring image, you can be seen without being distracted by everything else. And if you don’t hide yourself behind the imagery of things and layers of complex textures, then you are a happy, harmonious person who really has something to say to this world. At a minimum – about the absence of bad taste.
How to develop taste
But the ability to tastefully select things that surround a person, be it clothes or interior items, is impossible without the ability to understand the beauty of what has already been created by humanity over the long centuries of its existence. First of all, it is art. The ability to appreciate the beauty of the language of a literary work, the brevity or whimsicality of the lines of an architectural monument, the harmony of musical harmonies or combinations of colors on an artist’s canvas - all this speaks of developed artistic taste. Having learned to see and appreciate beauty in art, a person will be able to apply this skill in his life.
And, of course, the main “educator” of good taste was and remains nature. In any of her creations there is no dissonance, no combination of incompatible things, everything is harmonious and organic. If a person learns to see and feel the beauty of nature, to notice the “ways” in which it “achieves” laconic lines, unity of colors and forms - only in this case will he be able to develop a sense of taste. Indeed, we should not forget that man is also a natural creature, which means that the understanding of beauty and harmony in him cannot contradict natural canons.
