Lesbian Chic is Not a Fashion Trend
Photo by Think Stock
Being gay-friendly is one thing. But suggesting that sexual orientation could possibly be a fashion trend? That’s taking things too far. But Style.com recently released a list of top trends for the fall season. And yep, “lesbian chic” is among them. And it has us scratching our heads.
The new article (written by Maya Singer) asks the question, “Is lesbian chic here to stay?”
She says:
Lesbians! They’re everywhere. This summer, the New York fashion scene was buzzing with gossip about a couple of high-profile ladies who ditched their marriages and started dating women; across the pond, meanwhile, British Vogue ran a whole article on that phenomenon, while society rag Tatler chimed in with a feature on London’s seven “loveliest lesbians.” (Only seven?) Just last week, Models.com posted photos on its homepage of the nuptials of model Harmony Boucher and her bride, Nicole.
Gross. Not only does this trivialize a whole subset of people, but it makes it seem as if this oh-so-chic lesbianism could just as easily pass by us. Will they then be writing a story about how lesbians are so yesterday? Please!
Unlike jeggings and those overpriced women’s shoes and bags everyone salivates for these days, lesbianism isn’t a design invention – nor is it something that can or can’t be fashionable. It just is. To suggest anything but the obvious is to basically shelve sexual orientation alongside a pair of Doc Martens and that old Lilith Fair t-shirt you have hiding in your closet.
While we hope that maybe the piece is meant to be a little silly, a little tongue in cheek, what the author is missing is the awareness that turning sexuality into a “here today, gone tomorrow” idea is just as dangerous as suggesting it doesn’t exist at all. Perhaps what she really meant to say (or should have said) is that as more women come out, we have a lot more interesting, diverse women to look to for style cues in the lesbian community. And that’s an observation we can certainly get behind.
