Ever since I was little girl my grandmother and I would take shopping trips every Sunday afternoon. We would mostly frequent local department stores such as Macy’s, Robinson’s May and Nordstrom’s, however on every third Sunday we would visit “The Boutique’s". My grandmother taught me everything I know about fashion, she taught me about its trends, its innovators as well as in depth view into the way the fashion industry works; yet the most important thing she taught me was her personal philosophy concerning clothes and their importance to individuals.

“When a woman puts on a beautiful dress she undergoes a transformation." Although my grandmother never thought that the boons of shopping should be restricted to the estrogen half, she often recited this phrase as if it was her own personal mantra. We used to spend hours trying on different garments, from accessories to event-pieces and evening wear. We would scour through clothing racks looking for textures, intelligent lines and expressive hues, however the final test would always be the way that we would feel in our garments. Grandma would always ask me, “How does it make you feel honey?" And so I would tell her how I felt about it, discussing hems and other tangible factors however the final word concerning my dresses always came from my grandmother. Her barometer was simple, if she saw my spirit singing then we would have to buy the dress. “Life is short…" she would say to me, “and so we must become everything that we want to be right NOW!" My grandmother passed away 5 years ago.

Since my grandmother’s death I have had a great deal of time to think about the things she would tell me. I currently play a small role in the fashion industry as a consultant and am surprised to see many different contrasting ways that people approach fashion. Some are completely into textures and colors while others obsess over the lines of a particular piece, I personally ask people how they feel when they put on a garment and if I can see their spirit singing I know that the garment is perfect. I will always love you Grandma.