Reclaiming the Bow Tie

Bows are nice. Bows are also girly. Little girls and grown up girls alike have been adorning their hair, shoes, bags and clothes with bows for yonks. Gentlemen on the other hand typically only adorn their necks with bows, on formal occasions (and, depending on their dandyness, not-so-formal occasions too). The bow tie, however, is a male orientated accessory, despite being girly in form. So why let the boys have all the fun?! They look good on girls too! Above, we see Ruby Keeler, Ginger Rogers and Bebe Daniels incorporating a bow tie into their outfits, damn they look cute! The screen shots are all from 42nd Street, a film worth seeing for the costumes alone. Below are examples of bow ties in womens fashion, from the Armani Privé a/w couture show. Here the bow is exaggerated into extreme proportions. It's a bit too much for me, so I'll stick to the more traditional size...

Above images from style.com

I layered a sheer shirt over my stripy shirt, as I wanted some colour in the outfit and like the effect it creates over the stripes. I also added a double breasted waistcoat, despite my concerns about looking like a Las Vegas waitress or too costumey. I thought about wearing some brogues, but it seemed a bit too obvious to me, the masculine influences in my outfit can only go so far. So I opted for my buckled shoes instead, which I love, as they remind of something a New Romantic or Siouxsie Sioux would have worn in the 80's. Finally, I added a fun handbag, cause thats what wearing bows is all about, a bit of fun!

Black coat (Mango), leather gloves (Oasis), handbag (Lulu Guinness), shoes (Office), blazer (John Lewis), waistcoat (New Look), striped shirt (Zara), blue sheer shirt (charity shop), skirt (Topshop), bow tie (ask my dad).