Normcore (no hashtag)

The other day I was sitting down over a glass of Malbec with my mother, enjoying a delicious meal and chatting about a recent visit to Langham’s Chuan Spa, more on this in a future post…

My mother is based in London’s Soho, so she often has the opportunity to spot the local über stylish and report back on what she has seen and heard (I know, trend updates from my mother. How did I get here?). Anyway, we got chatting about the latest trends for 2014 and happened to get onto the subject of Normcore.

Normcore, for those who like me live on the outskirts of fashion street (looking in), is an approach to dressing that is apparently all about personality and nothing to do with fashion.

The newly coined term was thought up by New York trend agency K Hole, but has since been picked up by the media and trendys alike, repackaged and sold to the world as a kind of Alan Partridge chic. Think dad clothes or your aunt Beryl off for coffee with the gals at the local.

In fact, ‘inventor’ Christopher Glazek has slammed the incessant misuse of the word and has since written the following on K Hole’s Facebook page. “It doesn’t really make sense to identify normcore as a fashion trend. The point of normcore is that you could dress like a Nascar mascot for a big race and then switch to raver wear for a long druggy night at the club. It’s about infinitely flexible, sunny appropriation.” Right then. Soooo just dressing appropriately? Have I missed something? This is what’s trending now?

I am all for clothing that can make you feel comfortable and at ease, dressing ‘appropriately’ for a situation can help. Again, I love clothing that reflects your personality, but this is not rocket science.

Do we have to give this day to day, somewhat obvious activity of dressing for an occasion or dressing in clothes that suit us a name? Please no.

To be honest, it may have an effect on those fashion clad lovelies who make a concerted effort to standout by wearing outlandish gear – I am sure there will be a lot less cut-off shorts at church.

But for the rest of us, it really is business as usual.

As you were.