> CD #12: As seen on screen
Fashion inspo for highly suggestible types
As I mentioned before, I’ve been watching Jenna Lyons’ show on HBO and it is, at the same time, everything I hate and everything I need right now. Really, the show’s kind of trash, but I think my brain is so desperate for eye candy that I can’t look away. Which means I’ve also been wondering if I should be sporting big eyeglasses, wearing my tops unbuttoned, and incorporating feathers into my wardrobe.
I am the highly suggestible type, and what I watch often influences what I wear. It is, of course, not a revelation to anyone that TV and movies help to establish trends, but I thought it might be fun to look at a few of my personal screen influences before we break for the holidays.
When I was young, the two people I most wanted to look like were Alyssa Milano and Molly Ringwald, both circa 1986. And while I never had the guts to pop my collar or get my ears pierced so I could wear big earrings, that kind of loose preppy vibe has remained my style aspiration for decades.
I’d still totally wear Molly Ringwald’s outfit from The Breakfast Club today, even though one glance in my closet tells you unequivocally that I’m the Ally Sheedy character in that movie. In fact, I’m wearing a grey flannel sack dress as I write this. But I can’t help wanting to be more. Once, while getting dressed up for a party, my husband (who is usually clueless about pop culture) told me unprompted that I looked like Molly Ringwald in Pretty in Pink. I wanted to marry him all over again.
In the nineties, my favourite television show was My So-Called Life, and I think every single long dress I’ve bought since then is just trying to be that one dress Angela (Claire Danes) wore in the second episode when she buys a fake ID from Jordan Catalano. Watching the clip now I realize, somewhere in the past decade or so, I’ve stopped identifying with the teen characters and am full-on rooting for the parents, but that lovely dress still resonates. Also, I think I need to watch the series over again because I’m betting it totally holds up.
Next, on to a show that does not hold up: In the early 2000s, I fell hard for the Gilmore Girls uniform of shrunken blazers and bootcut denim. I really don’t know what I was thinking because that look only works if you’re built like Lauren Graham, but again, I am highly susceptible to advertising—especially if it’s disguised in the form of a beautiful, fast-talking woman with extreme wit, quirky charm and a heart of gold. I never should’ve tried to dress like a Lorelai when I was clearly a season 1–4 Rory. But goody-goodies never get to wear the cool clothes, and I have a weak spot for blazers worn with graphic tees.
I could go on, but I’m pretty sure we have all had enough of my nostalgic ramblings for the year. Also, I don’t think anyone needs to see me draw, like, fifty Betty Draper outfits from Mad Men.
Anyway, I’m grateful to all of you for reading my newsletter, such as it is, and especially to those who’ve sent kind notes. May you all have a restful, peaceful holiday filled with garbage TV and movies. Trust me: it’s the only way to make it through this one.
:) Teresa
What is happening even?? Closet Dispatch is a free, limited-run weekly newsletter by Teresa Wong. I’m taking a short break over the holidays, and so should you.
Enjoying the newsletter/series so much! It's making me think more about my own influences and predilections. Molly Ringwald in Pretty in Pink was formative. Also, Hole-era Courtney Love. Never have been brave enough to go all in on either of those looks, but I still have things I wear that I can trace to them!