Style and Fashion, Male and Female

Being a member of the male side of the species, I've been told that "style counts, fashion discounts". And while this is true (especially today), there is a different view that the stylish man must take into account. This view is that of the fashionable female. For, while the man should be stylish, the woman was made to be fashionable.

This does not mean a woman cannot look elegant while still being fashionable. However, for these two seemingly opposite things to coexist something must be considered: while elegance is informed by the past and fashion looks to the future, fashion must keep an eye on the past while two feet march into the future. If, infact, fashion has nothing tied to the past we end up with the newest fad that disappears within a year and is forgotten forever. Tradition is important for the fasionable.

Now we return to the style/fashion and male/female relationship. Just as a man and woman are each other's counterpart, style and fashion are inseparable. Say, for instance, a dashing couple entertain a party. The dress is formal, so men wear classic dinner jackets and women wear elegant dresses and fashionable accessories. The stylish male, being tied to the past, is the background for the fashionable female, who is to be the centerpiece of attention. Like a painting, the unchanging background scenery supports and surrounds the bright and stunning center of attention in the foreground. That is the place of the man and the place of the woman.

And while their tasks are so different, the stylish man and the fashionable woman are not opposites. Rather, they compliment one another and bring out the best points of the other's dress.

So males, be timeless and focus on classic style from the past. And females, be classic while also being forwardlooking. The man's job is easy: to be the background for the female. The woman's job is hard: to stand out while not being too loud. A simple and complimentary combiniation will always be successful.