Fashion and the Individual

In America the individual is celebrated. In Cyprus it’s hidden in the closet. Read on!
In the States due to the wide variety of people, we see many different types of groups and interests. You have, jocks, cheerleaders, queens, artsy-farty, the let’s-save-the-rainforest people, hip-hop (boy do they have hip-hop there), frats, blondes, rappers, conservatives, cowboys, yuppies… anything you can image each with their different looks and styles. Although they do not all necessarily get along (you tell me a hip-hip boy is going to get along with a jock and I’ll tell you that George Bush is my uncle) they have an understanding of the importance of being an individual. Nowhere other than America (maybe Japan) is there such a vibrancy for personal-marketing. Of showing who you are through your own tailor-make style.

In Cyprus we have the above groups to a lesser degree. They are; villagers and high-class for the over 30s and hip-hop, nerds emo and fashionistas for the under 25s. And of course the BabyBusinessMan style (Armani meets silver sneakers). But these are styles more than tastes. You will not get main different streams of people. Although I do have to say that there is a blogging community here in CY – albeit on the internet but still a community. Nevertheless, I find Cypriots very afraid to discover their own vibe and develop it. And if they want to, they go over the top and look ridiculous and no one lets them in any clubs because they look like circus freaks.

I had some American friends over this summer. They wore bright colours; yellow sunglasses in doors; they had big hair; they wore clothes that showed their tats, one amazing friend, actually had Machu Pichu tattoo’d on her back. All in all they were phenomenal and made us Cypriots look like we were at a funeral and it was being held in a club (cool idea actually). Nevertheless I lived that they made an effort to be themselves and show off their personality through their clothes. Refreshing or what! You don’t have to go out of your way to be original but be you. In Cyprus we aren’t. If you don’t look like this then you should stay home. And although we look good as a nation, we are good dressers and take pride in our appearance we don’t take pride in our personality and what qualities we have. We adhere to the sheep mentality and it’s a shame. Fashion isn’t just Gucci. Fashion and style is making an effort to look good with a whole lot of you!