Pants? What for??

How can there be so many problems with an outfit that covers so little? Leave it to Taylor Momsen to take it far past the disingenuous mistake of “showing your underwear” to looking like a goth baby prostitute. We see many celebrities with a disingenuous mistake somewhere in their outfit. This is usually a bra strap showing, an outfit that is more transparent than usual or some "accidental" rips in their jeans. People may choose to sport a disingenuous mistake to make it seem like they aren't trying too hard, they may do it for subtle sex appeal, or just because they like the way it looks.    

When looking at Taylor's outfit (if you can call it that), it is difficult to say what her reasoning is. She has made it clear that wearing pants is too much to ask of her, but wearing only lace should be illegal; especially when you are at the ripe old age of 17. Like many teen girls, it seems that Taylor has taking an interest into the Twilight phenomenon, but once again she takes it a step too far. Rather than sporting a “Team Edward” shirt like many of her peers, she has opted to wear no shirt at all and make up her face to look resemble a vampire. Perhaps it is time for her Mom and Dad to step in; after all it is obvious that Taylor is not the one “wearing the pants” in this parent-daughter relationship.

Disaster at the office

When you hear the phrase “gender-bending” or “cross-dressing”, the first thing that comes to mind is probably Mrs. Doubtfire, not celebrities’ red carpet attire. We are seeing more and more female celebrities trading their couture gowns for corporate garb. Maybe they are tired of dealing with uncomfortable dresses that often require Spanx and double-sided tape in order for the dress to fit just right, or simply stay on their bodies.

 Annalynne McCord may be giving Avril Lavigne a shout-out here with sporting a men’s tie; a look that first took place in a 1970's Vogue spread about women in the workforce. More and more women were entering getting office jobs, trading in their housewife aprons for power suits. Women felt that wearing a suit, even if it was feminized, gave them a sense of gender equality. Now, in the twenty-first century, this idea is still relevant. Avril Lavigne explained in an interview that she made the men's tie her signature look because she felt it was a way of subverting male dominance. This look worked out for Avril because it became her signature and our generation associated the work tie with a young, female singer rather than the generic businessman.

Annalynne McCord is not promoting anything with the office look in this instance. She looks awkward and out of place, not empowered or even comfortable. Women sporting a power suit or even elements of the men's suit can be chic and powerful, but not in this case. Annalynne's outfit proves that the business suit is almost never red carpet appropriate, no matter how far the sleeves of her blouse stick out.

Homeless-chic?

We are all familiar with the terms shabby-chic, urban-chic, casual-chic and even business-chic to describe certain fashions, but the newest look in the “chic” family is much less, well, chic. This look is called “homeless-chic”. Sounds to me like an oxy-moron, but many people, including celebrities have taken a strong liking to the new-age bag lady look.

The phenomenon of the poor wanting to look rich and the rich wanting to look poor has been present in Western society for some time now, but it seems to be more prevalent today than ever before with designers’ collections and public figures in the media. Designers such as Vivienne Westwood  and John Galliano have featured collections emulating the styles of people living on the streets.

The poor wanting to look rich makes more sense because it is human nature to constantly try to improve or reach a certain status. The lower class strives to be in the middle class and the middle class strives to become upper class; so when you are already in the upper crust, where do you go? It appears that the Hollywood elite is going back to the bottom, or at least it appears this way in how they are dressing. There is almost a sick irony in seeing millionaires sporting expensive outfits that look like they were stolen off of a hobo. Is it because they are too busy to make themselves look presentable and groomed? Maybe it is a way for them to be incognito, hiding under layers and layers of clothes to the point where they are almost unrecognizable. Whatever the reason, this “homeless-chic” look is taking Hollywood by storm. The next time you see someone dressed in rags carrying at three-dollar Starbucks coffee, take a closer look and you may just have yourself a celebrity sighting.