Running With Quills: Jayne Confesses her Secret Fashion Passion

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Sunday, February 18, 2007

Jayne Confesses her Secret Fashion Passion

So Frank and I are in our most favorite place on earth, Hawaii, and I’m supposed to be working on my next Amanda Quick Arcane Society novel. Which I am. Honest. In between walks on the beach and kicking back on the lanai to read. (Hey, this is Hawaii). Anyway, we just returned from lunch -- a delicious Thai vegetable and tofu curry -- and I managed to pick up another Aloha shirt on the way back to the room. What can I say? I love Aloha shirts. They are my secret fashion passion even though for years I could not wear them because they were made only for men.

I bought numerous Aloha shirts for Frank. For a long time I had to be content watching him wear them. I yearned for the day when someone would design them for women. When the feminine version started appearing, I was thrilled and began collecting madly for myself. There is nothing else like an Aloha shirt, as far as I’m concerned. With their gorgeous designs and vivid hues, they satisfy the part of me that has always responded to exotic patterns and intense color. But they do something more for me.

Many accounts trace the history of the classic Aloha shirt to a Honolulu merchant named Ellery Chun who created the first one out of scraps of kimono silk sometime during the 1920s. I ask you, how could any designer go wrong starting with beautiful kimono silk? The surfers and beach boys and male tourists went crazy for the shirts. Lots of men wore them over the years, including Elvis.

For some reason, Aloha shirts – both the masculine and feminine version -- have to be short sleeved. I’m not sure why this is so, but I’ve seen long-sleeved Aloha shirts and they just don’t work.

Aloha shirts send a message that says I’m enjoying life and I don’t let the little stuff faze me. When you put one on you immediately feel more cheerful; more relaxed. When you see one, you smile, even if you're not the one wearing it. You’ve got to love any garment that can make you happier.

I have this theory that if more people wore Aloha shirts the world would be a happier, more peaceful place.

What’s your secret fashion passion?

25 Comments:

karende said...: My fashion passions have changed radically over the years. When I was a kid, I just wanted to look like everyone else - or at least, not different.

Once I moved to Alaska, it was Frisco jeans and halibut shirts. And Sorels. Gotta have Sorels.

After I got still older and didn't live in the woods any more - I could [gasp!] actually DRIVE home - I aimed more for comfort. Rayon skirts with lots of flowers, t-shirts, shoes. I actually was able to wear shoes most of the winter instead of Sorels. I went from shoes to sandals, and now if there's any one thing I lust after, it's Birks and Tevas. Comfort above all else.

As for Aloha shirts, I never worried about whether or not they were for men or women. If I liked what I saw [usually at a thrift shop, since they aren't big sellers in Alaska] I got it. All that extra room to move around in just made them more comfy. Form fitting anything sucks, my form is subject to frequent changes anyway.

karibear; 8:51 PM
Ranurgis said...: Learned something new today, though I should have noticed it myself. I'm just not that observant. I knew that most of the Aloha shirts I saw were worn by men but I didn't know that they weren't available for women.

I can't say that I've liked all the Aloha shirts that I've seen over the years but the ones you showed here are definitely something I could go for. I guess I just don't have access to them since I've never been farther west than Victoria, BC. I can see why women might not need Aloha shirts as such because they've always been able to wear flowered blouses and the like. This was therefore uniquely male to distinguish them from those who'd never been to Hawaii.

My secret fashion passion is that I wear colors that most women probably wouldn't be caught dead in. I love dark browns, all sorts of dark green, vivid reds, oranges, rusts and purples--strong colors--nothing pastel and certainly no black, grey or navy. I look dead in them. And let me tell you, over the years it's been very difficult to find brown anything. My winter coat is 24 years old but it's a classic style. Since I have a weird figure too, I have a terrible time finding dresses and sometimes even blouses. For a petite figure I'm just a little top-heavy. With all these problems, I just decided to wear what was comfortable for me and tant pis what the fashion mavens say.

And I've got one set of clothing (short-sleeved blouse, skirt, sleeve-less top, skort and long-sleeved see-through blouse) that could easily be an Aloha design.

Hmm. I'm just wondering if any of the guys in my family will actually show up in a real shirt and tie for the memorial service of my one brother's mother-in-law. Somehow I doubt it.

Yup, if the colors of Aloha shirts are this vivid, I can definitely wear them though no fuchsias please.; 1:02 AM
DFender said...: Jayne,
I have a few Aloha shirts meself... and love 'em. My secret fashion foible? Toe socks. Love 'em. How 70's of me. LOL
Deb

Happy Monday!; 3:32 AM
Lori Foster said...: Hey Jayne, in my younger days I had an aloha shirt and I wrote it with white draw-string pants, hurachi (sp?) sandles, and big white earrings, with white sunglasses. I was such a fasion-disaster! LOL. Most of my life I've been a jeans, sneakers and t-shirt or sweat shirt person, depending on the weather. My husband and sons joke about my numerous white shirts. Nearly everything in my closet is either denim, black or white. I have a few tan things, and a few red things.
Stella tried to take me shopping once, but it didn't work out. LOL (Stella, remember Columbus?) I had a TV thing coming up and she desperatedly wanted me to wear something bright and printed. But I shied away.
Thank God I didn't still have the aloha shirt, huh? LOL

HUGS!

Lori - who soooo wishes she was in Hawaii, too!; 6:05 AM
Lori Foster said...: Uh, that is, I WORE it. And I was a fasHion disaster, not a fasion... Geeze, I'm typing too fast.
Lori - the one with too many typos!; 6:06 AM
Anonymous said...: Lori, I think I had that outfit! And all my earrings at that time were the size of small plates.

I actually had to find Aloha shirts for my husband and daughter last spring for a dance. It was still cold out but there were lots at the thrift store! And both my husband and daughter loved them. My husband still has his.

Carolyn; 8:10 AM
Kat said...: I've never thought of myself as a fashion passion kind of person. I mean we're talking most of my clothes could be found at any Good Will...We're not talking high class clothes here.

But as I read what people have written here, I've noticed that most all my clothes are either black, red or white.

That's it....

OH, I DO wear flip flops ALL YEAR round. I do not believe in closed toe shoes....; 8:42 AM
elizabeth said...: Fashion passion? Long-sleeved, colorful, loose, cotton, shirts with Alaskan designs painted on the front. (If you've seen me, you've seen them!) Stretchy black workout pants/leggings. Birkenstocks.

Yeah, fashion disaster. But oohhh so comfy!; 8:52 AM
elizabeth said...: Forgot to add--Evan loves, and wears year 'round, Reyn Spooner aloha shirts. We both love them on him. :-); 8:54 AM
Ladytink_534 said...: Flip-flops. I love shoes in general but I LOVE flip flops. In all colors and three different sizes (5,6,7)(They make them all different nowadays). I love my pretty pink flower ones, my soft dark blue ones, my solid white ones, and even my brown Tootsie Roll ones. I think I have 15 pairs in all... and that's just from last year!; 9:31 AM
Lynn said...: Shoes, purses, earrings, coats and shoes, make up (what a hog) and .... well you all get the idea. Kind of fits it with my previous mention of qvc shopping.

Waiting for lunch and looking outside at remaining snow drifts I'm becoming more envious of Hawaii as the day drags on and on. Thanks for the Tom Selleck photo - LUV Magnum (for the shorts as much as the shirts).; 9:41 AM
Anonymous said...: My secret passion is shoes--love those shoes, although I never go anywhere to wear them. I do have three Aloha shirts, though, but I never wear them anywhere except on cruises. The problem is that I live in Portland OR, and I'm usually wearing a rain jacket, so it doesn't matter what I'm wearing on top.; 9:48 AM
Suzanne Simmons said...: Love the blog, Jayne!

Fashion passion? A few years ago three of the Quills (you know who you are) took me in hand, sartorially speaking, and now I wear a lot of vivid colors. I have a whole wardrobe of beautiful and colorful silk.

My at-home fashion passion: I always go barefoot inside no matter what season it is outside.

~Suzanne; 12:41 PM
Jayne Ann Krentz said...: Well, this is getting to be very interesting. I'm detecting a couple of trends here -- flip-flops and comfortable stuff. Hmm.

--back to the beach to think about this data....

Jayne; 1:20 PM
Anonymous said...: For the past few years I have developed (and nutured) a Passion for bedjackets and I have quite the collection to prove it! Imagine - propped up with pillows, looking demure but nonetheless coquettish in a bedjacket, and sipping a cup of hot chocolate. What a way to escape!; 4:16 PM
Anonymous said...: There are a couple of things, that I guess, I might say are my fashion passion.

1. earrings made by "Silver Forest" (handcrafted in Vermont). These are made with various natural stones, and usually have some nature designs. You can find these at Macy's. I love them and have quite a few pairs, in many colors and various stones.

2. wooden sandals by Dr. Scholl's. They use to be popular way back in the 1970's or so, but I had not thought of them for a long time; but a few years ago, I saw some again, and I got them. I love them - the wooden inner soles have the right contours to massage the bottom of your feet. I now have several pairs, and I wear them around indoors at home every day. It's a nice foot massage!; 10:00 PM
Anonymous said...: I think aloha shirts are neat looking. My husband needed one for work a little over a year ago. I had to really search for one. We live in the midwest. If I was around them a lot, I would have bought the men's shirt, but then, I'm a big girl, 5'8". I wore men's jeans alot until the fashion changed for women to start wearing high heals with their jeans, then I could wear women's jeans (fit better around the waist) and wear them with flats.

I like to wear jeans and feminine t-shirts and go barefoot year round. I sometimes have trouble running out to the mail box to get the mail in the winter. Do I really need shoes on to run 20 feet through the snow to get the mail? I'm originally from Southern California. Now you know why I like to go barefoot!

Evie; 3:33 PM
crankyshopper said...: Sag Harbor used to make separates in bright jungle and floral prints in rayon, sort of like Aloha shirts or Hoffman cotton prints. I would buy a couple a year, but then they discontinued them. (And went to making polyester separates, which I will never, ever wear.)

So now I'm looking at the stash of Hoffmans in the quilting room and wondering if I have enough for a blouse...

My current fashion obsession is brightly colored jackets from Coldwater Creek. I wear solid-colored knit cotton tops and skirts underneath, for comfort, and top them off with the jackets to cheer me up at the office.; 6:49 PM
kim said...: I have an Aloha shirt. A boss brought me one back from Hawaii many years ago. I still wear it every once in a while, too.

Kim; 8:57 PM
Stella said...: Ah yes, A
Aloha Shirts. Sea, sand and........WARMTH. Not that most of us remember what warmth is.

I have a collection of those lovely items. Wear 'em to work in all summer (that would be the last week in July and the first week in August) but I'm picky. An Aloha Shirt does not have plastic buttons--only coconut ones qualify. And the fabric repeat matches perfectly on the pocket, or the garment doesn't qualify.

Vintage numbers can be very expensive and are now only collectors' items. I thought I'd found a steal once, in yellow with luverly green palm fronds all over. There was a big hole in the back which, the seller said, was a small point since the shirt was under $100 and the "real deal."

Fashion passion. Pleated fabrics that don't crease and now washable crepe for the same reason. And the crepe is so comfortable.

What am I most likely to be wearing in the office where I spend seven nights and a good deal of my days each week--a sweatsuit, very probably a ten or fifteen-year-old sweatshirt with pants shruk about three inches above the ankles. These lovelies come out on good days. When I first go to work--currently at midnight--I just wander in here with coffee and get going in my bathrobe. This morning it's my blue chenille, a cutting edge garment.

Stella
Telling you much more than you want to know; 4:26 AM
Stella said...: Okay, so I repeated words and forgot question marks--it's still early. SC; 4:29 AM
Lori Foster said...: Stella, I'm getting such a visual... :-)
You know, when I'm writing, I don't answer the door. Because usually when I'm writing it means the hair is a ratty mess and no makeup (which can scare innocent people) and clothes that the homeless wouldn't use. LOL

Jayne, thanks a lot! Now I sooooo want to be somewhere warm! Today we're dealing with a "freezing fog." I'd never heard of such a thing, but man, it's SOUP outside. Like living in icy clouds. Very eerie.

HUGS to all!

Lori; 7:00 AM
Lori Foster said...: Carolyn, my earrings back then were the size of small plates too. LOL.
How funny to think about it now!

Ladytink, if by flipflops you mean those kind that go between your toes... I've NEVER been able to wear them. I feel molested all day along. I mean, there's _something between your toes!_ Makes my skin crawl just thinking about it.
I can't do it. :-D
But I love slide on mules that flap behind me. LOL

HUGS!

Lori; 7:04 AM
Anonymous said...: Jane!

If you go to Kauaui, go to the little sewing/needlepoint locally owned shop out near the water fall trail area...near one of the places where they shot Jurassic Park.

Great needlepoint...BUT they make custom Hawaiian shirts! You pick the fabric, and..boy do they have a great selection. Lots of hand dyed silks...although my dh went with a gorgeous cotton.

It's still beautiful seven years later.

And I didn't spell check Kauai or Hawaii so ....

Rebecca; 11:36 AM
Anonymous said...: Gosh, I feel so lucky. I live in Hawaii so get to wear Aloha shirts, dresses, shorts, rubber slippers (flip flops), and get to go barefoot all the time. It's nice to hear that everyone seems to like of have a fond memory of a favorite Aloha shirt.

Lori, don't feel bad. Even though everyone here has rubber slippers, all the ladies & girls have slip on mules. Theye are the latest fashion craze!

Aloha all,
Kathy; 4:53 PM

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Sunday, February 18, 2007

Jayne Confesses her Secret Fashion Passion

25 Comments: