FASHION IS BAD FOR US

Or more importantly, the policing of fashion is bad for us, and recently, it seems to be getting quite a lot of airtime. 

Summer is notoriously bad for body fascism. People are wearing less clothing and baring more skin and as a result, everyone more open to criticism than at any other time of year. 

The phrase 'no one wants to see that' gets thrown around so that it's a wonder we don't have an epidemic of people sticking pins in their eyes. Or vigilante groups throwing carefully positioned sarongs over anyone who has the indecency to not have the body of an Olympic athlete. 

Etiquette consultant William Hanson recently called exposed flesh 'revolting' and 'appalling'. Although it's little wonder that a man who makes his living teaching outdated modes of behaviour doesn't appreciate the trend towards wearing less, he isn't alone, and that's a bit worrying. People will always have different tastes, and it’s not unhealthy to have a personal preference towards being more covered up; but it is unhealthy to be obsessed with how other people are dressed. 

There's a big difference between having an opinion on someone's outfit, and deciding on their right to wear it. We're naturally judgemental, and you're bound to see someone and think they look bad in what they're wearing at some point. That's perfectly fine. 

What isn't perfectly fine is thinking that you are an omniscient being who knows exactly how all clothes should look and which body types should and shouldn't be allowed to wear certain types of print/cut/materials. 

We didn't get these opinions from thin air though, they're all around us. Every fashion magazine and TV programme has an opinion on what you should wear depending on your size and shape, and we're not just listening, we're taking it all in. 

I can't say my times tables off the top of my head, but I can tell you that horizontal hoops will make you look wider, and vertical ones will do the opposite. Apparently.

On the face of it, this is all useful advice, meant to help us feel better about ourselves, right?

But has it made us cruel? Why do we have so much disdain for people who dare to bare, or wear tight clothing, or potentially unflattering prints? Surely that's their decision, and surely something can't actually offend your eyes.

The worst thing is that it hasn't just made us hard on other people, it's made us hard on ourselves, and no time is worse for this self-criticism than the summer. Because apparently as soon as it's more physically comfortable for us to have more skin on show, every inch of that skin needs to be honed and toned to perfection. We each have our own little Daily Mail ‘sidebar of shame’ in our heads, and the most featured face there is usually our own; because we think we know what looks good now, and we think we know what we have to look like to be ‘allowed’ to be happy with ourselves.

A 'summer body' isn't a thing. Neither is a 'bikini body' or any other type of body that suggests it's necessary for you to be less than completely satisfied with the way you look all year round.

Likewise, anything constitutes an outfit, if you feel happy walking down the street in it, then that's enough, and everyone else should be more concerned with their own lives. The amount of skin you’re showing is not anyone else’s concern, and the only thing it says about you is what you like wearing.

Leggings and a bra? An outfit. Denim hot pants and a crop top? Also an outfit. A sheer dress? Still an outfit. 

No matter what size. No matter what shape. No matter how much skin is on show.

xx