Weekend thoughts, traveling edition
Do you wear a belt on a plane?
I went to Texas to visit family this week and only brought one (1) additional outfit with me, which allowed me to skip the rolling suitcase. It felt light and free, but did not leave room for anything I might find at the local antique mall, where I almost always find something good to bring home, 50s scarves or 30s dresses or some other wonderful textile (did not this time!). They also have such incredible antique furniture that I can never bring home with me and every time I say to myself, someday I will drive home with a van and that might still happen but it hasn’t yet.
My travel outfit today is wildly different from what I used to wear before the pandemic, or more accurately, what I used to wear when I only wore 40s-50s vintage every single day, even on airplanes, something I started to taper off around 2019. It’s a bit shameful to think about now, but I used to get so judgy around folks at the airport who were prioritizing their own comfort over being pleasing to the eye to everyone around them, as though it was some kind of intentional display of a lack of respect that they somehow owed to a crowd of strangers? We absolutely do owe respect to one another in a public environment that is both stressful and boring, but that respect should come in the form of patience, understanding, space, kindness. It probably does not need to come in the form of a waist cincher and lipstick.
This is admittedly a great outfit. The dress underneath was one of my absolute favorites, slim black wool with red plaid details on the front, by Dorothy O’Hara. The hatbox I think belonged to my great aunt who was fabulous, and despite my wary look, I felt fabulous.
From the outside, one might wonder if I was trying to conform to some patriarchal influence here. Every time you see a video on the internet from the 1940s or 50s that shows folks in public going about their day — walking down the street, shopping, riding public transportation — you always get at least one boomer gremlin who looks away from Fox News long enough to comment about how much better it was when women dressed like women and men like men, presumably with a level of uncomfortable formality that decency demanded.
But I think that by dressing up for travel, I wasn’t really performing patriarchy, I was performing individuality, creativity, style. I love vintage clothing because it represents an alternative to fast fashion, a way to build a unique style that sits outside of modern trends and is therefore trend-proof. And though I still believe that this is true (#vintagestylenotvintagevalues), it’s possible that in my own head I took it a bit further. Instead of only taking pleasure in the way I dressed and presented myself, I may have fallen into a similar trap as the boomers: I would lament how people (of all genders) used to dress up for travel and no longer do, and somehow took this to be a bad thing: a sign of disrespect rather than personal freedom; a harbinger of societal decay rather than the fact that air travel is more common and much less comfortable than it was and people deserve to grasp at every shred of self care they can, regardless of what that looks like on the outside. (If you are a gate agent or flight attendant I would love to hear your thoughts!)
So four years later, here in 2019 I relaxed a bit: no gloves or hat or lipstick or underwire, but a belt? How on earth do you sit for 3-4 hours in a tiny seat in a stiff leather and metal cage around your waist? And more importantly, why would you?
I asked my husband, who took this second photo, why he thought I dressed up for air travel and he said that the Pan Am aesthetic was too irresistible. This makes sense to me. Air travel was glamorous, and maybe by dressing up, something I loved to do, I was making the whole experience a little more fun and maybe there’s no deeper meaning than that.
Nowadays, I mostly wear elastic waist pants with pockets, layers that I can pack away, comfortable shoes and a fun accessory. I once tried wearing yoga pants and my running shoes just to see if I liked it better and reader, it felt weird. It felt like I was trying to be an athleisure person when I’m not, and that is not comfort.
A compromise between comfort and style? Sweater is babaà which is admittedly very expensive new but they have a couple good sales every year and there are always plenty of secondhand options available. Top is Not Perfect Linen which is Not Size Inclusive (I’m an XL and they only go up to XXL) but a solid ethical made-to-order option if the sizing works for you. I got this one from Dear Golden several years ago so they don’t have this pattern anymore, but you can find all kinds of options on their website or secondhand. Denim wide-leg pants are Lauren Winter, which closed down in 2022 but pops up used every now and then on Noihsaf Bazaar, where I got these. Shoes are Alohas Edie flat which are on sale right now; Alohas use a made-to-order and low stock model to avoid waste and are handmade in Spain and Portugal. Scarf is Revelle from ages ago but Lisa almost always has a cool scarf in her current collection. Bag is the Catalina Deluxe Tote from Lo & Sons in their eco-friendly canvas. I love this bag.
Tell me what you wear to travel in and why!
"Being pleasing to the eye to everyone around them, as though it was some kind of intentional display of a lack of respect that they somehow owed to a crowd of strangers", is a culturally-embedded value in many places in the world. It has to do with aesthetic contribution to the community.
Walking down a Parisian street with a local friend, I noticed someone had planted window box of gorgeous flowers outside their apartment, but it would be visible •only• to passers-by. I commented on this, and she said, "We consider it a civic duty to enhance the environment for others." My friend feels the same way about her public appearance. Before running to the corner grocery for a forgotten ingredient, she will slip into good leather shoes and tidy her hair, apply lipstick. Casual wear is fine, but looking like you were interrupted while washing windows is not. I saw the same thing in Japan.
Attire worn in public relates to this social norm, and attitudes range on a continuum from "Who cares?" to a recherché, costumey presentation in which visual impact trumps even safety. (Flying in 4-inch heels!)
This is such a great conversation. How I dress when I travel depends so much on the nature of the flight. Am I leaving home before 4 am? Am I travelling with my (young) children? Am I travelling for business? I always try to look put together and tidy, but what that means shifts.
Travelling with my kids means clean jeans, a fitted sweatshirt, basic makeup, and my hair up. Travelling for work means slacks, nice leather shoes (flat), a blouse, lipstick, etc. Both are tidy and thought out, but serve very different functions.