April 3, 2010

"You're as cute as me. You are. In some cultures, maybe cuter."

Socks — with skirts — are a big fashion trend... but we're told not to wear them if we're over 30:
First of all, don’t even try this at home if you’re over 30; this is very much a girl’s game - and a girl with great pins, at that.
Over 30!

Well, too bad, I'm nearly twice the limit, and I've been relying on socks for nearly the length of time it would take a newborn baby to reach the limit, and nothing can stop me. But I get the point: You can do what you want, but it's not the fashion trend unless you're young enough to be entitled to believe without derangement that you're really cute.

***

Does this — Helena Bonham Carter, age 43 — seem deranged?



Can I wear these...

shoes

... when I'm over 50 and I'm operating in my law professor capacity?

***

Bonus movie dialogue:
Romy: I can't believe how cute I look.

Michele: I know!

Romy: You know what? This is, like, the cutest we've ever looked.

Michele: Oh, it's definitely the cutest.

Romy: Don't you love how we can say that to each other... and know we're not being conceited?

Michele: Oh, I know. No, we're just being honest.

***

Michele: Yeah, I let you have the ideas... so you won't feel bad that I'm cuter.

Romy: You are not cuter, Michele.

Michele: I am so cuter. It's, like, common knowledge, Romy. Everybody thinks so. I'm the Mary and you're the Rhoda.

Romy: That's Ridiculous. You're the Rhoda. You're the Jewish one.

Michele: Oh, my God. I'm talking about cuteness-wise, okay? And cuteness-wise, I'm the Mary.

Romy: That's crazy! You have absolutely no proof that you're cuter!

***

Michele: I can't stand that we're mad at each other. Okay, I'm sorry I said all those things. You're as cute as me. You are. In some cultures, maybe cuter.

38 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, Helena is a bad example - that outfit wouldn't be any better if she were younger. I don't see why we can't do cute socks as we get older - it's not really a mutton dressed as lamb situation, just cute!

Anonymous said...

"Can I wear these... shoes ... when I'm over 50 and I'm operating in my law professor capacity?

It's precisely because you are a doddering old law professor that you can get away with wearing those shoes without people actually laughing directly in your face and pointing at you.

But they're still thinking it.

We tend to not want to make fun of the kooky elderly in this culture.

It's not sporting.

So, yeah ... you can wear those.

Scott said...

Some securities analysts say that the length of women's skirts is a predictor of overall stock market performance--when skirts are short, the market will be good; when they are long, markets will suck.

If the new fashion trend is a long skirt with socks that prevent you from seeing any leg at all, then we should be buying gold.

Omaha1 said...

Helena looks ridiculous, but it's not because of her socks. She is wearing a smocked dress with bloomers, which is inappropriate for anyone over age three. I wonder if she also has ruffled panties underneath?

I think your little shoes with socks are not just adorable, but also practical and sophisticated. Socks are not just a fashion accessory for midwest winters, they are a necessity if you don't want to spend the first hour of your day distracted by the annoying and painful tingle of thawing toes.

Any shoes I wear during the winter months must have ample room for socks, since I don't like to wear boots or tennis shoes to work, and then change when I get to the office.

rhhardin said...

Go with comfort.

Crocs all year, unless there's snow, or the ground to be traversed is uneven.

Crocs without holes if the grass is wet.

Wool socks with crocs when it's cold.

Cheap brand X crocs, actually.

traditionalguy said...

Cute is enhanced by clothing, but cute comes from inside of the cute person. Dull clothes cannot hide inner cuteness. It radiates so strongly that the other females in the room get as angry as mad tea partiers. So be as humble and plain as you can Professor and maybe they will not snipe at you for the cuteness . (N.B., normal males are attracted to radiant cuteness and cannot stop smilng).

Ron said...

That dress exacerbates the genetic betrayal that is her legacy.

AllenS said...

If the shoe fits...

Moose said...

jeebus, Ann. You finally get why men might WANT to wear short inspite of what someone else might think.

then again, you probably don't...

AllenS said...

... wear it.

Sydney said...

Helena Bonham Carter has not been cute since she took up with Tim Burton. He has ruined her.

Unknown said...

i think the problem w/ women wearing socks with skirts (when the skirt doesnt cover the socks) is that it breaks up the leg line. if ones legs are long enough, socks with skirts looks OK. but otherwise, it looks sorta frumpy.

what's wrong w/ tights ?

or what about the peds ?

reader_iam said...

I don't care what you wear on your feet anymore than I care whether men wear shorts.

So long as I can dress myself, by myself, I'm good.

traditionalguy said...

My thought on these socks is that they add the appearance of a baby. Nothing is ever cuter than a baby ( a/k/a as a surviving foetus not voted off of the womb). The baby will seldom have shoes on since she is either being held or is a Bed Dweller. We call a really cute woman, Baby, and the sincerety of a childlike woman never goes out of fashion for me.

reader_iam said...

sincerety of a childlike woman never goes out of fashion for me.

Tradguy, I realize that the anecdotal is no more than that, and that one's personal experience does not a universal truth make. However, just for the record ...

...the vast and overwhelming majority of the "sincere" childlike women I've met are anything but behind men's backs, especially THEIR man's back.

Just sayin'. Now I'll go back to minding my own business and leaving other people's illusions alone.

: )

Unknown said...

um.... 'childlike women' ...

i dont even want to know. just make sure your childlike woman is over 18, ok, tg. seriously.

Peano said...

Can I wear these...

Yes, assuming you want to convey the message, "I'm a hippie who never quite got over the '60s." Those shoes will certainly do it.

Charlie Martin said...

Actually, Helena Bonham Carter does seem deranged, now that you ask.

David said...

" Helena Bonham Carter, age 43 — seem deranged?"

Oh yes.

Michael Haz said...

Socks on women are okay, anklets especially so.

Not that we should worry about your footwear; it's your life, so wear whatever you want.

LegosnEggos said...

I wore socks with sandals and shorts on a date with my husband (then new boyfriend) back in the '80s. I thought I looked quite proper and preppy. He has never let me live it down.

LegosnEggos said...

And trouser socks, however colorful, with pants and flats is acceptable -- not the same as something shorter length and showing a bare calf against a sock, which can be visually irritating on a grown woman.

Unknown said...

Bloomers, pantaloons, and, especially, drawers were never intended as outerwear. Keep in mind, they all come from the days when women designed women's fashions. That today, when women's designers include a great many homosexual males (probably the one who gave Helena her "look"), this stuff is being dumped on women doesn't really surprise me.

As far as Ann is concerned, what you wear under long pants is your business, especially when it's 40 below, although I do think you ski togs, long hose or tights and a long skirt, are fetching. But, yes, stay away from the Mary Janes from Clown Alley if you intend to be taken seriously in class.

rhhardin said...

Go with comfort.

Crocs all year, unless there's snow, or the ground to be traversed is uneven.

Crocs without holes if the grass is wet.

Wool socks with crocs when it's cold.

Cheap brand X crocs, actually.


But not if you're a nurse on a highly polished floor or you'll think you're Sonja Henie.

traditionalguy said...

My thought on these socks is that they add the appearance of a baby.

The first comment from the linked article, "...as a registered paedophile, it's actually stockings, not socks which i'm partial to. If anything these are a turn-off.". so we have a difference of opinion.

WV "friae" What you got with a Coke and a Maccus Magnus in 10 AD.

Unknown said...

I'm all for your wearing them, but you do understand that those are like shorts on a man, right?

Trooper York said...

The socks aren't the problem.

The real question is who is going to get the ruby red slippers after the house falls on you?

Just sayn'

Chase said...

LOVE Romy and Michelle! One can actually judge the social "with-it" skills of friends and acquaintances by asking for an opinion about the movie. Seriously. Fro example, a response of "I didn't get it" translates into that person's poor ability to understand today's more potent forms of satire - Jon Stewart, Steven Colbert, et al. It's not about political alignment - just the actual ability to "get it". or not.

Delightful!

Unknown said...

Chase --

I enjoyed Romy and Michelle quite a bit. I don't care for Jon Stewart and detest Steven Colbert.

Discuss.

Moose said...

Trooper - you bad man you...

Jennifer said...

Hey, those are pretty cute. With the move to Germany, I'm finding myself settling back in to the lovely, lovely lifestyle of walking everywhere. And a very comfy yet stylish set of supportive shoes is in order. Pronto.

What/who are those?

Anonymous said...

Helena usually looks like an unmade bed.

I still haven't seen "Romy and Michelle's." They filmed some of it at the Newport Beach Public Library.

Chase said...

Oli -

I also don't care generally for Jon Stewart or Steven Colbert.

But I "get" them and what they attempt to do.

Happy Easter Weekend!

Paul Kirchner said...

In some cultures, maybe cuter.

Ouch. Reminds me of an old Woody Allen line: "She was the sort of woman who would have been considered attractive in an earlier age, but certainly no more recently than he Pleistocene Epoch."

Oligonicella said...I don't care for Jon Stewart and detest Steven Colbert.

Me too. I liked them for a while years ago and then I decided I couldn't stand them. I got tired of Stewart's morning-DJ-style delivery, saying everything real loud and laughing at his own jokes. Colbert became such a pimp for Obama he wasn't funny anymore.

William said...

Some stars use ugly as camouflage coloration. The trick is to get the passerby to advert their gaze before they notice who you are......Here's an interesting, little known fact about feet. They go bald. The balls of your feet wear down or out or something. At a certain age sensible shoes are a necessity and not a choice.

Largo said...

Helena usually looks like an unmade bed.

Damn you Kirstin!

Never again will I will able to think of the phrase "making the bed" in complete innocence.

Largo said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Largo said...

another test. ignore please.

Joan said...

HBC is eccentric. Unless you want to be (or are) eccentric yourself, she's an invalid point of comparison.

And I know you love those shoes and they're comfortable and all, but they are hideous. Love the color, though. (I love Børn shoes, they're comfortable and spiffy looking.)

Dress for yourself. Know what you feel good and look good in, and go with it. That's what fashion is all about, anyway.

Unknown said...

I think she looks amazing anyway.