Sara:
Liberty of London has been incessantly promoting their new scarf hall, leading us to believe that scarves are super important and here to stay. What are your favorite scarves, and can you make them work with just about any look?
Well, I'm going to have to agree with LoL (haha!), because scarves are not only here to stay, they've been here all along. According to the internet (the most credible source on earth) scarves were devised by ancient Romans as a purely functional garment. They wore scarves to shield their necks from the sun, and used them to mop up sweat. Nice. Eventually, it became used as a fashion accessory.
Scarves are a classic European statement piece. When I think of scarves, my mind immediately goes to French women and their enviable, easy style. A plain white Oxford shirt can be spruced up with a well-placed scarf. In fact, any outfit can improve exponentially by accessorizing with a colorful scarf. French women are famous for their ability to transform a mere square of cloth into a gorgeous fashion accessory with a few twists and knots of the fabric. Have you ever read a fashion journo waxing poetic about French women and their scarves? Man, I have. I loved this article by Susan Sisko Carter that talks about French women and their scarf-wielding intimidation factor.
It also recalls to mind a passage in Carol Shields heartbreaking and moving (and Pulitzer Prize winning) novel, Unless. On pages 58-61 she writes about her quest to find her daughter Norah the perfect scarf.
"My daughter Norah's birthday, the first of May, was coming up in a week's time, and she longed to have a beautiful and serious scarf. She had never had a scarf in all her seventeen years, not unless you count the woolen mufflers she wore on the school bus, but since her grade-twelve trip to Paris, she had been talking about the scarves that every chic Frenchwoman wears as part of her wardrobe. These scarves, so artfully draped, were silk, nothing else would do, and their colours shocked and awakened the dreariest of clothes, the wilted navy blazers that Frenchwomen wear or those cheap black cardigans they try to get away with."
Personally, I collect vintage scarves and have a huge array of printed silk scarves that are almost too beautiful and too fragile to wear. My favorite one is a HUGE silk scarf depicting colorful scenes from Alice and Wonderland's "Through the Looking Glass." The date stamp on the bottom corner of the scarf says "1952."
Vintage silk is my favorite type of scarf. When I wear them I like to do the triangular drape in front. Take the scarf and fold it into a triangle. Drape the triangle portion across the front of your body, like a bib. Next, take the ends and wrap them behind your neck such that the ends now come back around to the front. No knotting required!
Liberty of London has collected scarves from major designers like Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney. They also have exclusive prints of scarves, and they have arranged them all artfully in a gorgeous space. They also give lessons on different ways to wear the versatile scarf. If you can't make it Liberty of London's Scarf Hall, there are hundreds of youtube videos to give you ideas on how to wear your beloved scarf.
Liberty of London's Scarf Hall
My favorite look is a plain white t-shirt, jeans, and a trim boyfriend blazer, with a brightly colored scarf to accessorize. This look is simple, chic, easy, and user-friendly. If you love scarves, send me your pictures with your favorite way to style your scarves and I will publish them on this blog! In any event, you can always take a page from ancient Rome and wear one for sweat-mopping purposes.
3 comments:
I think it's funny that I've been thinking about learning how to wear scarves lately, given I am fairly ignorant of fashion trends generally. I first clued in when (and this is ridiculous) watching Inception, and Ellen Page's character wore something around her neck all the time. I liked that look.
I've started wearing a lace triangle shawl I knitted last winter in the way you described. It's kind of new and different AND easy for me, The Styleless One, and (let's be honest) getting the compliments on my handiwork is nice, too.
Send in a pic, Ash!
Ash, there is one type of scarf that you should absolutely try - the Pashminas from India. Actually they are larger sized scarves about 80 inch in length so you can wear them in various ways.
Grace has lived in India so I am sure she must have tried one already. I am a Pashmina lover since its so light and soft like silk but also gives me warmth when worn like a wrap sometimes.
Anu C
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