10 Reasons to Be Modest

One of the very best articles I've ever read on reasons for modesty was recently republished online here.

Here is an excerpt:

“I love vulgarity. Good taste is death, vulgarity is life." These words by English fashion designer Mary Quant, who took credit for inventing the miniskirt and hot pants, reveal one of the most important, though rarely pointed out, aspects of the “fashion revolution” that started in the sixties: vulgarity.Indeed, fashions have increasingly tended toward vulgarity. It is a vulgarity that tramples upon not only good taste and decorum but which reflects a mentality opposed to all order and discipline and to every kind of restraint, be it esthetic, moral or social, and which ultimately suggests a completely “liberated” standard of behavior.

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Fair Trade, Organic Skirt

Here is an interesting skirt that I purchased a while back from a consignment shop. It is a funky, long, draw-string skirt with adorable detailing on the about a foot and a half of the hem. The color was an unsual peachy-beige. The style was both casual and pretty enough to look like I cared about what I put on that day, so I picked it up for about $10. The tag was 'still' (*or put back) on it.

The backside of the tag reads:

Global Girlfriend specializes in style and human rights with our fairly traded line of apparel and accessories hand-made by women and communities in need. We work with over 20 women's non-profit organizations globally to design products that not only fit your unique style but really make a difference!

Below that there was a clear sticker which reads:

This Global Girlfriend item was made for you by:
A women's non-profit in India run by an order of Franciscan nuns who employ and care for 120 disadvantaged and handicapp women. Our garments are made from 100% organic cotton, which is farmed locally by a group of 300 oranic cotton farmers in Maharashtar India. Each garment is lovingly produced from seed to sewing machine.

How COOL is that?
My friends like the skirt and have asked me about it. When I told them the story from the tag they swooned. The best news? The skirt is still for sale, in even prettier colors. The site has a number of different items, and I am NOT recommending all their apparel. But this skirt does get my vote for both MODESTY and STYLE. (I don't know about those nuns making the above-the-kness, low-cut dresses -- eventhough I realize that the designers are from Global Girlfriend in Littleton, Colorado.) The only thing is the skirt needs a good, solid, long slip. The fabric is a fairly light cotton, and even with a good slip you won't be too hot even in the hottest of days. It looks a bit longer on me (perhaps because I am only just barely 5'3") than on the model in the inset pic. The details are also a bit hard to see in the pic: it has a few, sewed-in ribbing contrasting the mini ruffles along the bottom of the skirt. It's very cute with flats. I washed it in cold water and let it hang-dry, and I didn't notice any shrinking.

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Fashion Industry: Is Modesty Truly a Threat?

There is no way that the fashion industry would ever suffer from diversity, rather, it would suffer more from too less diversity, if anything. In fact, diversity is what drives the industry, and the reason why new trends come up every year, for every season. Modesty is NOT a threat to the fashion industry, only perhaps to the consciences of those within the industry who promote immodest clothing. If the fashion world decided that burqini's were the way to go, many of the fashionable women of the world would be wearing them. The alleged necessity of being sexually provocative in order for fashion to be more popular and more lucrative is a lie, because there are many more driving and prominent reasons for fashion. The shock value of nudism is wearing off because it hardly has no where to grow (we're a culture that sees it all every day -- at the beaches, pools, streets, markets, etc.). The direction fashion has to go now is towards virtue.

I saw a clip from the movie where a fashion editor, played by Stanley Tucci says sarcastically, "Fashion is all about inner beauty." His character here means to point out, via irony, that fashion is 'all about outer beauty.' Well guess what? That's absolutely true, fashion is, in large part, about inner beauty. Fashion designers are very much trying to express a mindset of the woman who wears their clothing. It is not just about the outer beauty to those running the show. One of the first thing that is asked of a designer when he/she presents a new line is, "for what kind of woman is this line intended?" In other words, what is the wearer of these clothes seeking to convey about herself to the world? It is not all about how the clothes fit, but what the woman says about who she is. The trouble is that most designers are more followers than they are leaders. Much of their artistry is restricted by norms more than by invention, because they are always concerned with the direction of fashion.

What designers are not concerned about, however, is the direction of a society in terms of morality. That's why, for now, it's up to you, the individual.

Anyone who thinks that dressing in the fashions that exploit ones sexual person is a way of expressing one's freedom hasn't really thought this argument out very far. We are more than sexual creatures; we are creatures made with feelings that go to more than just the sensual appetites -- we have thoughts and feelings that inarguably penetrate the soul. When an individual expresses this fact in their decorum, they are stating that the core of who they are is significant, and should be regarded as such.

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