A young man reveals his thoughts on why girls and women need to dress modestly. I thought this was very good and something you can share with the young ladies in your life. Thanks to this young man for taking the time out to share with others and spread the good news about modesty!
The following link goes to a blog that your girls may like to look at. She is not Catholic but I think she does a good job in promoting modesty in a vibrant and enthusiastic way. Her outfits are fun to look at and you can get some good ideas. It is called Fresh Modesty and you can click here to find it. She also has a sewing blog and you can find it here.
We need support in going against the flow so it’s good to have the girls (and ladies) get inspired by different outfits and to see that you can be pretty and modest at the same time. Modesty doesn’t mean frumpy or dressing in another time era. 🙂 So…for anyone new perusing this site you may want to take a look at our recent Spring Fashion Show and also Fashion Show 2013 which features Virginia’s sewing skills. We did a Fall Fashion Show last year, too.
I love this quote and thought I would post it here:
Pope Pius XII: “The trend of fashions is not in itself evil. It flows spontaneously from the social nature of man, in accordance with an impulse which inclines him to keep in harmony with his fellow men, and with the way of acting of those amongst whom he lives. God does not ask you to live outside your times, so careless of the exigencies of fashion as to render yourselves ridiculous, by dressing in a way opposed to the common tastes and practices of your contemporaries. In following fashion, virtue lies in the middle course. What God asks of you is to remember always that fashion is not, and cannot be, the ultimate rule of conduct for you, that beyond fashion and its demands, there are higher and more pressing laws, principles superior to fashion, and unchangeable, which under no circumstances can be sacrificed to the whim of pleasure or fancy, and before which must bow the fleeting omnipotence of the idol of fashion.”
A very nice young man saying it very sweetie and kindly! 🙂
Fresh Modesty is vibrant and the colors are very lovely, but I don’t think they beat many of Virginia’s colors! 😉
Modesty overrides “eras” and the corrupted designers will use it to their advantage; so most emphatically, we should too. 🙂 The 1860s, the teens, the 40s, 50s,(just to say a few) all of these have phenomenal ideas to incorporate. And if they are modest and you like it – use it. We should not avoid a modest “look” just because someone else may think it is “out-of-date.” This will stifle creativity and train young girls to look down on designs, modest outfits, and people they may have enjoyed otherwise.
Also, many sites that represent “new” ideas are already using the past(for many like Fresh Modesty, the late 60s and 70s tend to be their inspiration, which is not the best era except for maybe color). In my experience, many others tend to use some of the problems of any era and then call them “classic.” That can also be a big trap for true Christian womanhood. A lady fashion historian, P. Glynn, said it very well, “showing a scantily clad woman in a ‘classical’ role has been a typical trick of Society to dodge conventional or authoritarian ruling.” And Lurie on The Language of Clothes found in her research what the Church has always warned, “clothes that simultaneously conceal and reveal, and – like a half-opened gift – invite us to imagine what lies beneath, are traditionally erotic(sexually arousing) in their affect.
And PPXII, “As long as certain audacious modes of dress remain the sad privilege of women of dubious reputation and almost a sign by which they may be known, no one else would dare to wear that same dress herself: but the moment that it appears upon persons beyond all reproach, she will hesitate no longer to follow the current, a current which will drag her perhaps to the worst falls.”
But again, very nice message from this young man! 😀
Thank you for sharing!
Very well put. Thank you Mary and I agree completely.
For us, who live in a more traditional world, we can find an extreme going the other way and making it the ideal. I think it is fine, too, but not to pressure others to have to fit into the same mold. Modesty is the key. 🙂
As far as the blog Fresh Modesty goes, we tend to be more simple but it can be an inspiration to those who are struggling with their girls on how they can incorporate modesty with a vibrancy.
Virginia got some great ideas from her site. I put it out there for those who may benefit from it. We are all on the journey towards modesty and sometimes it takes different methods to get there.
We love the 50’s style. There are many cute outfits and my girls get excited about getting a pattern and making a dress that looks like something Hayley Mills would wear in “Summer Magic”.
So please excuse me if it was not worded well. 🙂
Summer Magic…… :), “You must walk feminine, dress feminine, you’re at your best feminine!, utilize your femininty, that’s what every girl should know………” :D:D:D:D
Love this quote: Pope Pius XII: “The trend of fashions is not in itself evil. It flows spontaneously from the social nature of man, in accordance with an impulse which inclines him to keep in harmony with his fellow men, and with the way of acting of those amongst whom he lives. God does not ask you to live outside your times, so careless of the exigencies of fashion as to render yourselves ridiculous, by dressing in a way opposed to the common tastes and practices of your contemporaries. In following fashion, virtue lies in the middle course. What God asks of you is to remember always that fashion is not, and cannot be, the ultimate rule of conduct for you, that beyond fashion and its demands, there are higher and more pressing laws, principles superior to fashion, and unchangeable, which under no circumstances can be sacrificed to the whim of pleasure or fancy, and before which must bow the fleeting omnipotence of the idol of fashion.”
Yes, indeed! I love how he acknowledges that fashion is a viable art and those who possess this talent should use it well. 😀 And also that he says like all arts that form culture, they do not have carte blanche…..there are rules that the artist must submit himself/herself towards. And at the time he said this there was at least ~50 years of designs used and being used, which also shows that the ones that worked should be kept and those that did not, should have been eradicated. Yeah for true artists! 😀
This is a really great post. I liked reading about St Gianna Molla and how she loved fashion (40’s/50’s) but in a ladylike sort of way.