Modest is still hottest

Fashion is indefinite. Like time, it is never still. It changes like the second hand on a clock, sometimes briefly returning to a place it has been before.

Fashion is also subjective. It changes as a reflection of our culture, our era and social norms.

Trends tend to start in Los Angeles and New York and precariously trickle down to the Southeast corner of the U.S. that most of us call home.

On Troy’s campus, we are likely to see many interpretations of what people deem fashionable. We have a unique opportunity here to observe a culmination of different trends from all over the world.

Some styles are original to us, inspired by our humid weather and affinity for outdoor adventure.

On one hand, we see oversized T-shirts, Nike shorts and Chacos, oh my! Sometimes this trendy outfit is enhanced with a baseball cap to cover up what dry shampoo cannot.

On the other hand, this season, we have probably all noticed the new trend that celebrities in Hollywood have glamorized slowly seeping into Southeast Alabama.

Is it just me, or have I been seeing more boobs around campus than ever before?

The other evening, as my friend and I were eating in the Trojan Center, we couldn’t help but become sincerely tickled at a woman we saw in a semi-transparent cream-colored spaghetti-strap top, which wouldn’t have been so bad if she has been wearing a bra.

The “Free the Nipple” campaign and resurgence of a ’90s fashion faux pas has encouraged a culture of revealing it all as an expression of women’s power and feminism — a protest of accepted social “gender” norms.

We virtually saw everything, or the outline of everything. I have to say, like the infamous camel toe, that is something I just do not want to see while eating my delicious Einstein’s Buffalo Chicken Tostini.

However, I fear we will be seeing a lot more than that, as I’ve witnessed an increase in women bearing it all, showing off lacy bralettes as substitutes for shirts and shorts that cover up less than conservative undies.

Fashion is supposed to take a trend to another level, but what is too far?

I believe we are seeing a divide between  the “modest is hottest” and “less is best” fashionistas on this campus as a reflection of the ever-widening divide in race, religion and politics as well as a decline in individual moral compass.

Fashion is your medium to show the world—your parents, friends, future employers, future spouses—who you are. So what are you telling the world about yourself?

How much do we sacrifice on the altar of being trendy? I believe there are greater altars in life.