letter from the editor
in every issue
SEPTEMBER 2014
The Fashion Issue
S
tanding at the kitchen window of my Dan’s
cabin, I was mesmerized by the occasional
sight of falling leaves. Granted, in the time
it took me to wash a few dishes, I saw only
a handful slowly make their descent to the
ground, twisting and spinning in slow motion, as if giving me a chance to witness
their gentle display - the first of an event I love so much.
Funny that I should find such joy in such a slight and
simple happening. Witnessing the first of the falling leaves
signals the end of one season and the beginning of another.
Eventually, the earth’s floor will be thick with thousands of
leaves in a broad spectrum of browns, oranges and purples.
The trees that once gave them life left standing bare before
the heavens.
Watching the leaves fall, I caught myself daydreaming not just about the changing of seasons with its cool days
and crisp nights, but about the changing of my wardrobe.
Caught between a simple joy of nature and the material side
of me, the one that loves pretty clothes reared her coy head.
Two days later, I stepped outside to the exhilarating breeze
of a cool morning caressing my face as if to say, “You didn’t
imagine those falling leaves, there is an end to this seemingly unrelenting heat. Fall is coming!” Though I am well aware
of how summer digs her fingers into the hot ground of the
South, refusing quite successfully to let go until late October, I
know it is coming. Surely, it is coming.
The eventual arrival of cooler weather holds promises of all sorts of covetous pleasures. For some, the lure
is football and other sports-related events. For fashion
lovers like me, fall is the most exciting season of all, and
September brings one of my favorite issues, THE ANNUAL
FALL FASHION AND MAKEOVER ISSUE. I love fall fashion
for many reasons. I adore the colors of fall - the warmth
of the hues that mimic those seen in falling leaves has the
power to make me feel like nature has her arms wrapped
around me. Some of my most treasured pieces of clothing
are welcomed back to their home in my closet after being packed away for the summer. Over the past couple
of years, I have fallen in love with wearing boots again,
something I had not done much since high school. Last
year, during the seemingly endless cold, damp days of fall
and winter, I found myself reaching for my boots most every day! Worn over leggings or the skinny jeans that I once
6
September 2014
MELIA FLOWERS | EDITOR & PUBLISHER
swore I would never-ever-under-any-circumstance wear,
they became my go-to outfit. Only days that required
dressing for a meeting or other more professional attire
did I dare part with my boots.
Reuniting with my fall clothes is sort of like reconnecting
with old friends, like my cozy, comfy cardigans that make me
feel like the female version of Mr. Rogers. One of the great yet
simple joys of my life involves dressing in a pair of soft leggings, a long cotton tee, my favorite long cardigan with deep
pockets to drop my readers and phone in (so that I’m not
continually searching for them) and, on my feet, thick, soft
socks. In fact, as much as I love clothes and can so quickly
get excited over a pretty outfit, in truth, it is the aforementioned attire that I look forward to wearing the most. Perhaps it is because the time that I am in that cozy cardigan
represents the small amount of time that I have just to “be.”
When I walk through the doors of my home, I am no longer
“Melia, the woman who runs She Magazine.” I am Melia, the
woman who loves to be comfy at home, watching the leaves
fall to the ground. Being wrapped in softness and familiarity, memories cling to the fabric of that old cardigan I love
so. I wore it to the hospital almost every evening the week
that my daddy died. Tissue that caught my tears stuffed in
its pockets and his scent, captured from my embracing him
every one last time that I could, clung to the fabric. I vowed
never to let be washed, though I did. I have a cognac sweater that my mother gave me for Christmas several years ago.
Pulling the soft fabric onto my body and folding the oversized cowl neck just so makes me remember that she loved
me enough to pick out this sweater just for me, and I imagine her hugging me every time I wear it. I will keep it forever.
It is as much a part of my fall and winter as the special blanket I add to my bed at the first sign of cold weather.
Yet, that girl in the cardigan also has much appreciation
for a well-dressed woman. In August, we said goodbye to
one of America’s most-loved fashion icons, Lauren Bacall,
whose timeless beauty graces the cover of this issue dedicated to fashion, thanks to the talented work of Angela
Loennig. Along with Lauren Bacall, fashion icons Elizabeth
Taylor and Grace Kelly were also painted by Angela, and she
was gracious enough to share those images with us in this
issue as well. The thing about those women and their era is
that v