What do you think of this spring's girlie trend?

I was queuing at the tills at Zara yesterday when I overheard a mother-daughter conversation about the latest 'floral pastel madness' that seems to have 'invaded every store'. While we saw this coming some time back (see my post on LFW), the trend for pastel shades, lace, ruffles, florals and all things girlie seems to be in full bloom with this week's sunny clear skies heralding the arrival of spring. And interestingly, this ultra-girlie trend has sparked some rather opinionated debates -- not just between the mother-daughter duo I encountered, April's Elle also featured a discussion about the new trend that has set everyone abuzz. So what do you think of it? 




The opinions range the gamut. On one extreme, there are those who think that fashion should not be dressing girls but women, and preferably strong, androgynous women. Why have the powerpuff girls taken over fashion? On the other, there are those who have longed to dress as Cinderella and Tinker Bell all their lives and now embrace the chance to celebrate and bring out their inner girliness. 


Funny how fashion moves in contradictory circles. Have we not just seen a bout of extreme androgyny which must have inspired as much or even more debate? Remember the famous pixie crop that every girl (myself included) sported à la Agyness Deyn? And those structured suits with strong shoulders and female tuxedos that seemed to replace the classic gown at every red carpet event? In fact, female-sized men's brogues are still on display alongside those pastel numbers in Zara.


I am no social anthropologist, but this back-and-forth between the androgynous female and the girlie female reminds me of the debate between second and third wave feminism. Let me explain. My friends who reject this spring's girlie trend generally believe that a female has to dress and behave in a less overtly feminine fashion to be taken seriously by men, taking a literal interpretation of second-wave feminism's quest for equality of the genders. My other 'girlie-r' counterparts however argue that equality is not sought through being identical to men, rather females should not be afraid to embrace their femininity because the female form is equally powerful - a belief that characterizes third-wave feminism. 


And if fashion is still at heart an art form that is influenced by and reflects the current Zeitgest, perhaps today's pendulum-swinging womenswear designs are a reflection of the twenty-first century's confused notions of feminism. After all, the way a woman dresses has historically been used as a means of articulating her role in society. Chanel's corsetless silhouette stood for the emancipation of women, while the donning of trousers, championed by icons such as Amelia Earhart, was another landmark in feminism.  


So what do I really think of this spring's pastel trend? I'd say kudos to those who dare to embrace it in its fullest. There is nothing wrong with sugar, spice and everything nice, especially worn with a dash of "man repeller" gusto! But for me, perhaps I am too much of a classical feminist or maybe even not feminist enough to bother, I'd prefer to stick with my black and white, preferably without prints and definitely no ruffles. It's a great trend, but I think I'll sit out on this one. And in case you were wondering, I picked out a plain white shirt from a rack of pastel floral prints in Zara yesterday.