Monday, March 19, 2012

Ballerina Skirt for the Modern Girl

Hi everyone! Hope you had a fabulous weekend. If you went to watch the annual Melbourne Grand Prix, I hope the races were exhilarating. They certainly sounded like it from where I live. I could turn on the TV, mute the sound and the noise outside almost perfectly matched the motion on TV! Contrary to the F1 theme, I decided to "race" around the day in my ballerina skirt =)

As the name suggests, ballerina or tutu skirts are traditionally what ballerinas would wear in a ballet performance. These skirts have had an interesting evolution, starting with the romantic tutu (length falling between the knee and the ankle), first worn by Marie Taglioni in a Paris production of Les Sylphides in 1832. It showed off the ankles and the footwork of the ballerina perfectly. In the 1880s, the classical bell tutu came into being, sitting just above the knee, in multi-layered tulle confections. Today's pancake tutu is the very short, stiff and flat skirt that we can easily associate with its name. 


When I think of tutus, I immediately conjure up images of gracefulness, ballerinas en pointe, pirouetting (seemingly) effortlessly across the stage. A lot of this association is because the predominant material used to make tutus are tulle, organza, nylon and netting. Their perfect combination create that desired structure, shape, flow and "weightlessness" feel, allowing for the freedom of a dancer's movement.
Perhaps because of these qualities, the ballerina skirt became a fashion inspiration and over the years went through iterations of "modernisation" or adaptation to the "real world". In my humble opinion, the ballerina skirt is so much fun to wear, but can be difficult to pull off, especially if it is a full tutu skirt. After all, not all of us are Sarah Jessica Parker, and can get away with what she wore in that iconic, yet well-received tutu shown in the opening credits of Sex and the City.


But...if you are feeling a little girly or cheeky, why not embrace the ballerina skirt? Contrasting textures and fabrics such as leather, denim, or suede will work great together with tulle. I find the tougher fabric can often balance out an overly feminine material. I would also try and keep the rest of the outfit toned down too, and just let the skirt do all the talking. If you are still hesitant to commit to the full tulle experience, try a ballerina skirt that has less frilly layers, and in a darker colour. After all, fashion is so much more fun when you don't take it too seriously! =P
Top: H&M;
Skirt: Whitney Eve;
Earrings: Mouche;
Ring: YSL;
Shoes: Zara

Thank you so much for reading!

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