Great Expectations

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Effortless-Olsen-alert, when did "throw-it on chic" become so calculated?Since moving to Australia my wardrobe has had to step up a gear. Or at least my standards have shifted upwards to dizzying heights. Previously I could normally be appeased by generic tops for £30 that will last a season or so. These days I want quality leather, glass smooth cashmere, class, elegance and a style statement all in one piece. Am I expecting too much of one mere item of clothing? Yes I regret to admit.It’s a bizarre thing, this fashion malarkey. It revolves to a certain extent around wanting to define ourselves as different and in my quest to do so, I have become not dissimilar to the next victim. It is a love-hate sentiment. I love clothes. I love the thrill of finding the “perfect thing” to wear with items in my wardrobe. I love the kick of wearing a hot outfit, the rag-rush I call it. Yet I can be left devoid of emotion when I feel the outfit no longer hits in the way it should. It’s almost as though I enjoy the thrill of the chase in acquiring a look but then feel flat when I own it. Fast fashion is so fast that even my inner chatter becomes bored when I get the apparel onto my clothes adoring torso.Indeed, the weather here is so heated, that I only have one chance to make an impact, with one solitary item. I can no longer rely on layering to pull of outfits of envy. Gone are the days, when I can strut in leggings, boots, vests, cardigans add onto that a jacket, a scarf and a beret and voila, I’m street-chic ready. No, no no. In Oz, you really have just one shot, one dress or one top and skirt combo to impress. Bare legs are inevitable and a single pair of sandals are a lust-must. Thus there is an inevitable pressure on my wardrobe to perform miracles in a way it has never had to do previously. It has all become a bit serious and pressured, calculated and cold. Shopping is more strained. I need to tap into my youth-fun phase of wacky impulse buys that somehow just worked, instead of considering colours and co-ordinating effortless chic. Don’t despair, I haven’t hit a rut yet, I just need some Aussie-inspiration to continue on my quest for style utopia.■BexBella

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