Opting for a ‘New Me’ Look With Arrival of a New Year
For the past four years, Shelley Yun, manager of a Melrose Avenue boutique, has added unusual, colored highlights to her brunet locks. But that was before she ushered in the new year with a few fashion resolutions.
Yun, who plans to give up her current magenta hue for “something a little more subtle, a little more conservative,” was one of those questioned recently by Fashion86 in on-the-street interviews to determine whether people are greeting the new year with a new attitude.
For many, fresh resolve means a fresh hairdo. And as might be expected, the short-haired plan to go long, the long-haired plan to go short.
Jean Korczak, an I. Magnin employee, is typical of women who say they have grown tired of cropped tresses. In Korczak’s case, the goal is a medium-length bob that she can convert into a perky ponytail.
Then there is the opposing contingent, including college student Charmaine Guiang, who wants a short, chic style “because I think it’s classier. And it will make me look older.”
Linda Aquaro, a county employee, said she is planning on reverting from her medium brown hair color, with its blond highlights, “to very blond. That’s how my hair was before. And, yes, blondes do have more fun.”
Meryl Carr, married to television actor Paul Carr and content with her coif, said her only fashion resolution is just to buy clothes. “Anything in Saks,” she added.
But Kathleen Gordon, a visitor from Detroit, cast a glance around the streets of Beverly Hills and noted that one of her fashion resolutions would be: “To avoid the Los Angeles uniform. Everybody wears the same thing whether it looks good on them or not.”
French-born sweater designer Corinne Aleman, dressed in one current L.A. uniform of stirrup pants and a big top, noted that she planned to keep the style well into the summer. “It’s casual and sophisticated and even more flattering if you add shoulder pads.”
Nine-year-old Keysha Jenkins thinks this is the year to own a pair of high-top athletic shoes. And will she follow the youthful fad of leaving the laces loose? “I won’t do that,” Jenkins vowed. “I’ll tie my laces.”
More tidy, conservative resolutions came from college men, who say they are thinking seriously about their futures.
For premed student Chris Kondon, this means “going in more for the tie look. It’s sharper. These days, people want to be on their toes for any opportunity.”
Andrew Wilhen, a University of Colorado student who also runs a valet-parking service, will adopt a more professional image.
“I’ll try to wear suits for my business life as opposed to casual clothes. . . . I was a Mod about three years ago. When you’re a kid, you’re wild for a while to get attention. Then you realize it’s time to settle down like a baby boomer.”
But Byron Barth, a market researcher, calculates that in the months ahead his clothing preferences will turn “even more liberal.
“I used to dress on the subdued, cautious side, but now I follow the trends more.”
Marsha Moore, wearing a medium-length hair style that showed off her pretty face and a cream-colored suit that showed off her shapely legs, was on her way to the County Courthouse to be married to Andre Landrum. She had trouble thinking of any other changes she would be making now.
But Landrum quickly formulated a resolution to keep any interested males at bay: “Longer hair, longer dresses,” he quipped.
