The Paris Uniform by eighty jane

A few days back from my trip to the fashion capital of the world, I’ve had a bit of time to reflect a bit on my experience. I was surprised (and maybe a little disappointed) to find that Parisian fashion didn’t seem to stand apart from the global crowd. It might be a result of the nature of fashion these days: We all read the same magazines (the same publisher, at least) and, perhaps more importantly, we read many of the same blogs.

My trip consisted of days in New York City, Paris, and Amsterdam – and each seemed to be a mosh of the same H&M-informed style palettes. To be fair, each of these cities has more than their share of tourists, and each is a “Western” city. Perhaps if my international jaunt had included Merida or Calabar or Jakarta I might have gotten a bit more variety.

Above, see a Polyvore representation of the most common look I saw on the streets of Paris. I wish I could say that the striped shirt was characteristic of the classic Paris style we all think of, but I think it’s just a reflection of a global trend toward horizontal stripes. The look lost it’s jazz after seeing it for the 88th time, but it’s made up of good foundation-like pieces, so I’m not mad at it. Click here to shop the look.

I love looking at street style blogs and on occasion I snap a pic myself. But I’ve notice that generally all the subjects captured look like they could fit a showroom sample size (I’m guilty, too). Certainly street style photogs can’t think that cuteness only comes from skinny chicks… can they?

Apparently, there’s at least one out there that doesn’t. Meet The Manhattan Project – a blog featuring smart street style worn by average-sized people. The blog is fairly new, so the library is still pretty small. See a couple faves above.

While it’s pleasing to see this blog in action, I’m afraid it’s not exactly progress. Segregation rarely is (if ever). What I’d prefer to see is street style blogger published subjects of all sizes. Hmm.. what’s that saying? “Be the change you want to see…” or something like that.

More Weekend ATL

Getting adequate blogging time is tough for a jane on the go. So please accept my apologies for not bringing the goods more often (stay tuned…). However, being busy means my style-spotting eye gets a considerable workout. This pas weekend there was much to see as Atlanta was the host to an incredible array of cultural offerings. These included concerts from Mos Def and Paul McCartney, the biggest “ethnic” hair show in the world, and numerous art gallery events.

One of my weekend highlights was attending an art auction at the infamous Eyedrum. Despite the sticky heat (90+ outside and no AC inside…), the crowd was good-humored and stylish to boot! Maybe it was the super-affordable prices on some really great artwork that got the guests going. Here are a few that I admired. Unfortunately, I was outbid on my favorite piece. Can you guess which one it is?

From left:
* Kelly McKernan – “Decomposition”
* Aaron Whitehousee – “Finding Fossil of Steer’s Head in Texas”
* Angus Galloway – Untitled

So I didn’t leave with any art But any event that involves a theremin is one I call a success!

Lace tights are big in street style lately – everywhere from Melbourne to Estonia to Los Angeles. I’m on the fence on this trends. Seems to 80s for my liking… though I do love an interesting pair of tights.

Melbourne

Singer Kelis was spotted at a party in LA wearing this style. She’s actually been wearing lace on her legs for a few years now. Not surprising as she’s know for being very fashion forward.

Here is is last October at a party in New York City.

photos: justglitterlust.blogspot.com, melbournestreetfashion.com, bossip.com