Elle UK – September 2019

ever.PennyMartin,editor-in-chiefofTheGentlewoman, isanotherexample

• herauthenticallypared-downstyleis notmadeforcameraflashbulbs,but
  forher.VogueParis’EmmanuelleAlthasironicallyalwaysstoodoutbecause
  ofthesimpleuniformshewears(blackjeansandahalf-tuckedwhiteshirt).
  Theseindividuals’styleis breathtakinginitshonesty.
  Sadlyliesandmistrusthasbookendedthisdecade.OurBrexiteering
  politicianshaveliedtous,socialmediahasliedtous(ofcoursewe’llkeep
  yourpersonaldatasafe),andwe’vebeeninundatedwithglamorous
  scammingstories,suchasthoseoffakeheiressAnnaDelveyandTheranos’
  entrepreneurElizabethHolmes.Butwitheveryexposeddupecomesan
  ever-more-mistrustfulandhypervigilantpublic,longingforsomethingmorereal.
  Whichmeansthattoday,thechicestthinganyonecanbeis simplyhonest.
  It’sempoweringtoadmitthehardgraftit tookforyoutogetthere.
  WitnesstheresponsetoBRICKSmagazineeditorToriWest’sadmission
  thatsheworkedasacleanertosupplementherwageswhiletryingto
  makeit asafashionwriter.Therepliesweresoheartfeltsheurgedher
  thousandsoffollowersto‘shareyourdayjobsorsomethingyou’renotas
  proudoftoday’,using#instagramtransparency:‘I knowit’sscary,butyou’ll
  besurprisedhowmuchyou’renotalone,’shewrote.

‘Beingmorehonestwithmyselfallowedmetobemoretransparent,’West

explainsofherdecisiontotellthetruthaboutherlife,ratherthanpretending

it’sthekindofglamorousaffaircommonlyassociatedwithfashion.‘After

finallyacceptingandlearningtoovercomealotofpersonaldifficulties,

I thoughtit wouldbestrangetothenbea well-curatedversionofmyselfon

socialmedia.I feltdishonest.Transparencyis empoweringasit is relatable.’

Brandsarereactingtoourrenewedloveofauthenticitybypresenting

lesspolishedadsandvisualmessagesoftheirown.Trailblazerssuchas

PatagoniaandDovehavebeenjoinedbythelikesofGucci,whosebeauty

campaignfeaturedimperfectteeth;Glossier,whoseBodyHerocampaign

embraceda varietyofbodyshapes;andUSrazorcompanyBillie,whose

‘ProjectBodyHair’campaignattractedwidespreadpraiseonsocial

media.AsonewomanwroteonTwitter:‘I justnow,at3O,forthefirst

timeinmylife,sawanadforrazorsinwhichthewomenhadhairontheir

bodiesbeforetheystartedshaving.’

Backonthefrontrow,thisembracingofhonestyhashadtheeffectof

stickinga pinintoanoverfilledheliumballoon.‘Thepressureis off.I cango

backtowearingjeansagain.I canconcentrateonwhatI signeduptodoin

thefirstplace:writing,’saysonefashioneditor.WhenevenAlexaChungis

postingpicsofherselfinjeansanda jumperwiththecaption:‘I wearthismost

days.I’msorryI’vebeenmakingit looklikeI don’t’(‘lolsame’,commented

actorKateBosworth),youknowthegigis up. Photography: Getty Images.

ELLE.COM/UK September 2O19

And make no mistake: it was exhausting. When your income is directly

affected by how you look, it stands to reason that your appearance takes

on a vast, somewhat unhealthy importance. If you work in the fashion industry,

your own behaviour is mirrored by everyone around you, which makes

you strive even more. There are insider stories of fashion editors getting into

crippling debt to pay for the very clothes that kept them street style-ready.

For others, their debt was to the brands and publicists who loaned them

entire wardrobes. Soon, style became less about natural individuality and

more about hypercompetitive dressing. It was totally normal to see the same

person wear several outfits in one day, simply to maximise visibility. And, the

more surreal and striking these outfits were, the more likely they were to get

photographed. (One editor I know jokingly turned up to London Fashion

Week a few seasons ago in a bright-yellow builder’s hard hat from B&Q

to test the theory. She was photographed dozens of times, and her image

posted on fashion news feeds the world over.) What’s more, it’s now difficult

to spot the real photographers from those on the payroll of the very women

they take photographs of. Fake photographers, borrowed clothes, style that

neither felt authentic to the individual nor to anyone watching... By the SS19

shows, front-row dressing felt overinflated and disingenuous.

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when things started shifting. But change they have.

(Maybe it was the day a blogger almost got run over in Milan.) It would be

too simplistic to posit a date. Rather, it was a sea change, a slow dawning

that this way of life was dishonest and unsustainable. Thankfully, a transition

is happening in the fashion world. Where once the ultimate goal was to

become a style icon and brand extraordinaire, now something less brash,

more considered and – hallelujah! – more honest is revered. Expertise is

prized over exposure, credibility over celebrity and truth over fiction.

‘I’ve noticed that there’s been a change over the past two seasons,’ says

one highly regarded fashion director. ‘It got to the point that it was just so

ridiculous, and none of it was spontaneous. I remember seeing someone

outside a show in New York wearing a bra top during an actual snowstorm,

and people lying down in the middle of the road just to be photographed.

Now there are a lot less street-style photographers, because if the editors

aren’t playing the game – we’re too busy fitting in meetings between shows

to be messing around with outfit changes – then suddenly there’s a smaller

pool of people to be photographed.’

Long-time newspaper fashion editors such as The Telegraph’s Lisa

Armstrong and The Guardian’s Jess Cartner-Morley have never been more

revered: not just because they didn’t capitulate to the trend for calling in

head-to-toe looks to be papped in (they’re too busy filing news) but because,

in an era of blaggers, their deep subject knowledge is more valuable than

ELLEVoice

158

Carine Roitfeld

Alexa

Chung

Veronika Heilbrunner

Emmanuelle Alt

Virginie Mouzat

Stella Tennant

Liya Kebede

Caroline de Maigret

“ NOW SOME THING

less BR ASH,

more CONSIDERED

and MORE

HONEST is RE VERED ”