What is elegance?

My favorite billboard ever was perched high on top of a vintage building in downtown Sydney, Australia. Fortunately I was perched high also....on the top deck of the Hop On Hop Off double-decker sightseeing bus so was able to see it!

Elegance is an attitude

These may not actually be Kate's own words but how true they are.

What really is elegance?

It seems to come easy to some women, with hard work

for others, and never to many.

Do you need money to be elegant?

If you're dressed and accessorized in the latest

styles, is that elegance?

Is being 'trendy' akin to being elegant?

The word elegance comes from the Latin

elegantia "taste, propriety, or refinement".

I like fashion designer and icon Coco Chanel's words -

"Elegance is refusal", which means leave off all
the flashy jewelry and garish styles,
instead dress in simple styles created
in luxurious fabrics that one could wear forever.

To me elegance definitely means maintaining a quality

of style and grace in one's personal self. Expensive
designer or 'trendy' clothes are not required.
Yes, a genuine Chanel bag would be nice, but any good
leather bag costing substantially less would, to me,
be even nicer.

Good classic shoes, and I love them, do not add to
elegance if they are not cared for - polish is inexpensive.

The importance of fabrics? I could write a dozen or more 

posts on that subject alone. To me, fabric IS the answer for 

making a garment elegant, beautiful, wearable for many years. 

I grew up around fabric - my mother being a dressmaker,
my brother being a textile executive who started his career
in the mills, then searched for the best fabrics
internationally for British clothing manufacturers.
When I sewed my own wardrobe, I spent more time locating
the perfect fabric than actually making the garment. 

At this point in my life I no longer sew my clothing. 

When shopping for new pieces I have specific ideas in mind.
They must be good quality and well made - this is getting
harder to find in my price range I admit. For instance,
I always turn a garment inside out and check stitching.
Fit is very personal - I like easy, comfy clothes, nothing
tight fitting - elegance does not come with skintight clothing.

So why am I talking about clothing today?
Because the sun is shining, it's a little warmer, and I
feel like I need to go through my wardrobe over the coming
days, searching out some elegant items to mingle together
and get ready for Spring. Surely the coats and boots can soon
be stored. I love them - I felt elegant in them for several months,
but it's time for a change any day now.

 To storage…………

Did you see 'proper' skirts are back…………fuller, often
with flattering soft pleats, and the length between
knee and ankle, think Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly.
Nice, and about time!