Denim and Heels
posted by: HerberWellss in General on June 4th, 2009
A few weeks ago, George Will in the Investors Business Daily and Daniel Akst in the Wall Street Journal wrote about denim. Both felt that denim is symptomatic of an attitude of indifference and lack of respect. Denim on the wealthy is, Akst says, “the wardrobe equivalent of driving a Hummer to a Whole Foods store — discordant.” They feel it is silly for those whose only physical labor consists of loading their bags of clubs into golf carts, to dress as if they were going to do real physical labor. Mr. Will states that, “Denim is the carefully calculated costume of people eager to communicate indifference to appearance.” He goes on to say this indifference shows the lack of maturity and respect for others.
Initially, the articles set me on edge because it was very close to home. Denim has helped the cotton industry and we are cotton growers. Then I read an interview of Carine Roitfeld of Vogue Paris. She never wears jean to work. Only for holiday. She always wears skirts and heels to work. Her quote is, “Jeans are for my assistants.”
Last week, a friend of mine died suddenly and I went to her funeral. As a part of the service, a couple stood up to sing. The woman wore a pair of designer distressed jeans paired with platformed heels. The man wore wrinkled jeans that had holes in the knees. I was angry with them because of their disrespect to the family by wearing such inappropriate, casual clothing. He wears that same outfit to church because he wants to feel “comfortable”. Holes in the knees? Oh Please. So, with three articles and a funeral in mind, I came upon a couple of photographs.
This is, arguably, the most beautiful couple in the world. Aishwarya Rai and her husband Abhishek Bachchan. They were at a Cinema Verite 2009 Press Conference in Cannes. Aishwarya spoke on behalf of Cinema Verite, an event dedicated to films and social actions that promote human rights. She looks wonderful. The dress is beautiful and her wedges are cute. He has paired a tuxedo jacket with distressed jeans. I thought the distressed jeans were out of place. A couple of other men wore jeans to the event, but I saw many other photos of handsome suits and beautiful dresses. The COST of these jeans isn’t important. Which, I’m sure, was substantial. That is not the issue. The issue is: Is denim appropriate everywhere?
This next photo has nothing to do with my point, I am including this photograph because her dress is so pretty. Her shoes are Jimmy Choo Kenzie platform sandals and her dress is Elie Saab.
The next photograph I found was of Isabelle Huppert as they were presenting the judges in Cannes. She wore Louis Vuitton and looked great. Her jeans were not distressed, but the attitude she projected was definitely casual, where every one else wore a dress or linen suit. Does this woman have 24 inch hips?
Now, I am not going to give up my jeans. Ever. But I am re-thinking my habit of wearing heels and jeans to church, parties or events.
So, what do you think? Is wearing denim or jeans with heels the equivalent of driving a Hummer to Whole Foods? Is it OK to wear denim anywhere, at any time? Where do you draw the line? This is something I am sort of struggling with.
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July 20, 2009 at 3:49 am, Custom Jeans - Womens Custom Jeans Just For You | Hana-Sui Online Boutique said:
[...] Denim and Heels (shoeblog.com) [...]
June 14, 2009 at 2:13 am, NewStyleWeb said:
Great points made in the article and comments, this issue seems to me to be a generational thing, in the 90's casual fridays and tech savy companys became well more casual, which made jeans much more acceptable and a chic statment of ones "coolness" but I am from the old school of tought but still understanding the modern age, there is a time for jeans and a blazer, and there is also a time for a suit.
June 06, 2009 at 1:10 pm, Wendyann Herron said:
Being a graphic designer and fine artist, people expect my style to have an edge. I will pair a black pinstriped trouser with classic Converse Chuck Taylor tennis shoes or jeans with heels. I feel my style should always stay a little rock and roll.
But, going to a formal event, I only let the edge show in my early 1960s style eye make-up. I would never wear jeans to work or a funeral.
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My mother does not own jeans and I have never seen her wear jeans. She is working class but wants to portray herself as “fabulous” and “charming and pretty”.
June 05, 2009 at 7:17 am, Rai said:
I live in jeans and heels. I often try buy shoes that look good with jeans. I don't think this combination will ever go out of style. As long as woman want to be comfortable yet still sexy.
June 05, 2009 at 4:49 am, r5bales said:
Scarlet, I too have turned into my mother.
June 05, 2009 at 3:10 am, galligator said:
I think jeans are generally a casual look and so are appropriate for most, but not all events. I do not agree with the implication that denim is only for the working class and moneyed families are slumming by wearing jeans (Denim on the wealthy comment). Denim is comfortable, breathable, and remarkably strong. As such, it is a great everyday fabric for casual wear – whatever your socioeconomic class. But, since it is a casual fabric, there are definitely events where it would not seem appropriate – ie. most offices, funerals, formal events, etc…and that is primarily because clothing in some circumstances reflects a higher level of respect for those around you than you might normally exhibit…
June 05, 2009 at 1:08 am, Scarlet said:
This post made one thing perfectly clear to me: I have become my mother! Hah! She was a lovely Southern lady with a fabulous sense of style and taught me everything I know about shopping, even though our aesthetic—I'm very funky and modern—couldn't have been farther apart. That said, and straight from my mom, NO, NO, NO–jeans, no matter what the wash or how fancy the detailing, are absolutely inappropriate for certain venues and occasions, like funerals, weddings, red carpet events, etc. Sometimes one must dress UP!!
June 04, 2009 at 10:02 pm, Orestria said:
I think it depends less on the type of jeans in a price sense, and more the type of jeans style wise. a dark wash trouser jean that's well fitted can be dressed up to look very formal… maybe not black tie wedding or red carpet event, but formal. meanwhile, i find distressed jeans, and baggy jeans, always just look like slumming around clothes.
It also depends on your attitude when you're wearing them, to some extent.
Course, just because a good pair of jeans might pass the bar of acceptability, doesn't mean it's the most appropriate thing for every situation.
June 04, 2009 at 3:17 pm, Uma said:
Don't think jeans should be worn to church or a funeral. For some functions it's ok…like a casual night out…but not for any formal events like baptisms, weddings or anything of that sort.
June 04, 2009 at 2:25 pm, savvymode said:
I live in jeans and love them but there are places for jeans. for formal meetings and events, jeans are not acceptable. i get really annoyed when i see people in jeans going to the theatre, wedding, formal dinner. It’s about respect for oneself and others. Great post.
June 04, 2009 at 11:18 am, Alex said:
i love my jeans, but i only wear for casual dinners with friends or family, or on my day to day life (i could wear them to the office, too because i work in a customer assistance center, so they don't pay much attention to your clothes… still, i don't wear them because i keep dressing in skirts and shirts and dresses.)
i've never worn jeans for a special event, not even birthday parties at a house or restaurant where there's people i've never met before.
i think that it's ok to wear them day to day, because they're fab and super comfy, but i don't know, i guess i think the same way that these people who wrote the articles…
i don't judge people who wear jeans like that, though…
June 04, 2009 at 9:02 am, Inky said:
I agree the clothing itself is not significant, but what we've associated with it, in this case, denim has become casual, no matter the finish, cost or designer label.
As for me, I dress vintage or vintage inspired, typically 1940's style, which often finds me "overdressed" to most outings, functions, parties, etc. People are always asking what I am 'all dressed up for' even if it is just to get some coffee or do some marketing. I am lucky I telecommute and never have to see my employers, but on those rare cases I would never wear denim to work/work functions.
No matter the cost, denim is casual. It makes that gentleman in the white jacket look like he simply didn't give a hoot about the event he was attending and it's disrespectful to himself, his spouse and the attendees.
Denim is for weekend wear. Period.
June 04, 2009 at 7:52 am, Bronwyn said:
There is nothing intrinsically meaningful in any clothing; the significance is all in our mental associations. These change with time – my stepmother wouldn't let me wear jeans for years (in the 60s, she was an older parent, and she was inordinately worried about what other people thought), because "that was what poor people wore", and "people will think we can't afford real clothes".
I personally like to wear black to funerals, and hats to weddings, but that is just me. A biker friend of mine wore his patch to my aunt's funeral and I could see people looking askance, but from him that was a mark of respect.
Times change, people are different; you may as well get used to it.