V-neck sweaters are back with a bang this winter. I’m seeing lots of ladies around me wearing v-necks with formal shirts of the same color tone.  Pairing them up with a nice smart scarf also really sends the fashion metres soaring.

Another thing that has been in vogue all this year is the dress. Whether loose buttoned up short dresses with prints or elegant fitting ones everyone has been wearing the dress. The little black cocktail dress never goes out of fashion but it is one of those things that is so hard to find that most women spent an entire lifetime making do with other things.

One of the biggest things this year has been skinny jeans. From the huge designer brands to regular ones and even non-branded manufacturers this is the latest rage. Almost everyone I’ve seen in the past six month is wearing skinny jeans. The ones that are fitting and taper down to the ankles. Although they are really smart and very flattering, they do not look good on ladies who are a little overweight. The jeans draw attention to the fact that the person’s thighs are much thicker than their calves and make the person look very funny and does not flatter the figure at all. For such people it is best to stick to straight fit jeans which give you the appearance of having longer and thinner legs.

Another huge fad this year was the ballerina shoes in a myriad colors. All across the globe people were wearing them and in almost every color. There were ones in black, silver and gold to wear with every outfit and then there were those who favored them in pink, blue and other bright colors. These shoes are so pretty and dainty that they really add that something to your entire outfit.

When you are travelling the most important thing is comfort and functionality. When on a long trip it is important that the clothes you wear are comfortable rather than fashionable. What may be ideal for a day at the mall or a visit to the art gallery isn’t necessarily right for when you are travelling.

If you are travelling in the summer your clothes should make you feel cool and light. So dressing in a t-shirt or blouse and shorts or thin pants would be ideal. You could also wear sneakers or sandals and flip-flops. However wearing jeans while travelling in summer could become problematic as the day goes on and the fabric tends to stick to your body with the heat.

Travelling in the winter requires you to travel with a few extra pairs of warm clothing in case the place where you’re headed has a storm or rains. It would be excessively uncomfortable if you travel only with light clothing and are then stuck in a blizzard or storm. It is always better to be adequately protected and to be on the safe side.

In case you are going camping or hiking it is necessary to wear boots so that you do not have any problems while climbing mountains or cliffs. In case you are going to the beach be sure to carry extra pairs of clothing because you will often swim in the sea and you do not want to run out of dry clothes to wear. If you are going to a place where the weather is unpredictable it is advisable to carry a few extra clothes and a pullover or cardigan just in case it starts raining or becomes chilly.

If you are stuck with uncomfortable and unsuited clothes or footwear it can make a holiday rather an unpleasant experience. So remember to dress for comfort and functionality rather than fashion.

While being a style icon may take a lot of work which you’re not prepared to put in, it’s reasonably easy to not look like a disaster. The key is to not try to be too fashionable, fashion is not about aping styles without knowing whether they suit you or not, it is more about wearing things that you’re comfortable and not making a absolute cake out of yourself 

The DONTS of dressing are as follows:

For both the sexes in general the most important thing is to not try too hard. Don’t try to team everything up with something else of the same colour. For example it is not necessary to wear a pair of orange shoes with an orange t-shirt. Also if you’re a guy try avoiding the orange altogether.

Next try not to wear ripped jeans, jeans with motifs or anything like that, because to be very honest it’s only rock stars that can get away with that. So if you’re a regular Joe or Jane then its best to stick to your basic Levis or any other basic pair of blue denims. Nothing is as classy as plain denims. Also if you’re a guy its best if you’re jeans allow you a little breathing space, because unless you are Brad Pitt or Antonio Banderas, tight jeans probably do not suit you. Of course for the ladies, the more fitting they are the better. Unless of course you have a behind the size of a room.

Shoes are another thing that talk a lot about an individual’s personality. So ladies who wear bright pink or leopard print platforms, please stop. Get yourself a pair of sexy black heels or converse sneakers. Also guys if you really want to wear pointed shoes please get black ones or maybe brown.

There is nothing more tragic than a guy who wears white pointed shoes with stuff written on it. Just stick to sneakers or flip flops.So the mantra of the week, is don’t ape what the celebrities are doing. Just be yourself and wear what complements you.

Fashion is a phrase and an idea that predominantly applies to an existing channel of expression, but equally often applies to a personal mode of expression that may or may not apply to every individual. The basic underlying idea is that the mode of this expression will vary and change faster than the culture itself.

Hence, the terms “fashionable” and “unfashionable” are used to describe whether someone or something fits in with this obsessively popular mode of expressing oneself. The word “fashion” is frequently used in a positive sense, very often as a synonym for positive adjectives like glamour, beauty and style. And in that sense, fashion has been recognized as a sort of communal art, through which a culture examines its notions of beauty and goodness.

On the other hand, the term “fashion” is also seen to be used in a negative sense, as a synonym for fads, trends, and materialism.

The current global fashion centers are London, Milan, Paris and New York, but other cities like Rome and Tokyo are also becoming well known.

The tendency of human beings to continually change the style of their clothing, which is now a worldwide phenomenon, at least among urban populations, is by origin, distinctively Western one. Not that there weren’t signs from more historical origins. In the 8th century Cordoba (Spain), Ziryab, a famous musician and stylist hailing from Baghdad, introduced the first trend of fashion in Europe.

Not only that, Ziryab went on to develop a sophisticated clothing fashion based on seasonal and daily timings. For instance, in winter, costumes were made essentially from warm cotton or wool items usually in dark colours and summer garments were made of cool and light costumes involving materials such as cotton, silk and flax in light and bright colours. These became an instant hit with the local gentry. Brilliant colours for these clothes were produced in tanneries and dye works which the Muslim world perfected its production, for example, in 12th century Fez, there were more than 86 tanneries and 116 dye works.