What's The Schmatta?

This blog post is entirely frivolous. Back to the hard stuff next week.

Hillary Clinton wore this outfit to a Fire Island event, part of a tour of gay locales arranged by Cher to benefit the presidential campaign.

It's not the first time that she has chosen a sturdy-looking get-up. Some of her recent jackets have had a near-upholstery quality, reminding me of the modest cover-ups I saw on a bunch of women in Seattle one year. Their long dresses made of heavy woven fabric revealed no curves.

This is an observation, not a judgment.

Unlike Cher, who at 70 can and does dress in gossamer and bugle beads, Hillary at 68 retains what appears over the years to have been a certain disdain for fashion. I share the feeling. I may have been one of Bill Cunningham's biggest fans, but it was his blue workman's jacket I coveted, not the couture he knew and photographed so astutely.

As a girl in the 1950s, I knew a 36-26-36 figure was optimal, but I was perhaps ahead of the times in having the more straight-up-and-down shape that later became more general (before implants and waist training produced the cartoonish forms we see today).

In 1977, I was asked to be in a wedding. I made my own velveteen jacket and long skirt, but thought I needed to rein things in underneath with a corset (very popular at the time). I tried some on, but they made no discernible difference and they pinched. Here I am with the bride, being very happy without one:

Me and Linda

Now that I am well past the three-score and ten mark, I have the prudish notion that unless we are talking about Cher or Tina Turner, older women should not display their limbs (Victorian tone intentional). Mine tend to be hidden away under denim and chambray, but if Hillary wants to go for tweed and boucle, it's up to her. Think of it as Chanel without the passementerie.

--Bernice