I got there via "Dr. Deborah Birx’s Many Scarves Now Have Their Own Instagram Account" (Vogue).
The brainchild of Victoria Strout, a fashion-obsessed music marketing executive from Fort Worth... The captions are straightforward, providing the date of the scarf’s appearance and, if known, its label....
Fashion for fashion’s sake seems a trivial thing to focus on right now, but there’s no denying its influence. Perhaps we find Dr. Birx’s scarves beguiling because we’re style starved. After all, there are no runway shows and red carpets to speak of. Perhaps it’s because Dr. Birx’s affinity for scarves speaks to a collective nostalgia—we might be reminded of a scarf our grandmother knotted around her bag à la Babe Paley or, more generally, of pre-coronavirus Camelot-era America, when FLOTUS Jackie Kennedy sported her babushka-style head wrappings on weekends in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. Or maybe it’s because Dr. Birx’s style stands apart from the punchy-color pantsuit or slick sheath worn by most White House women. A typical Dr. Birx look consists of a prim dress, hosiery, and a waist-cinching belt; she ties the whole look together with a literal bow via her silken scarf....
Throughout history, variations of scarves have adorned the body... Through mythologies, symbolism, and provenance, the accessory possesses a sort of totemic allure....
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45 comments:
Women (eyeroll).
Have we moooooved beyond pantsuits?
Men like women with scarves around their neck because it's easier to imagine choking them until they finally admit that they love you.
I may have that wrong.
I am Laslo.
I bet she covers her mouth with them when people cough!! Scarves are a handy thing!
Things women care about.
I like her scarves, very stylish. Lots of older women like to wear them, or wear "high collars" because it covers their turkey neck.
The wife and I call her Scarf Woman. It makes her exciting to watch compared to Plodding Pence and Grouchy. Actually I’d subdues her high energy level pushing her crafty statistics. She has never worn the same one twice. We are waiting for a duplicate, but she stays a scarf ahead.
It's the vagina form of necktie.
“Things women care about”
Once upon a time Althouse would’ve have been all over this “objectification of the woman.”
They are the woman's answer to the man's tie.
Even the narrative about the narrative serves to accommodate women.
Watching the White House briefings, I'm struck by this woman. She reminds me of every extremely competent woman I've ever run into. She speaks softly but everyone stops to listen. She doesn't dress to impress, she dresses to express. I've been watching these people's eyes; some days they look exhausted. For good reason.
The most impressive thing she said was a couple weeks ago. Someone asked about models for the pandemic. She said that every person in her office has their favorite model, and they are only as useful as the inputs.
In other words she was stating that things were extremely uncertain.
Another thing she said was that they were depending on data coming from places where they were under extreme duress, so it wasn't timely or complete. Another reason to not trust the models.
There is another impressive woman in this mess, BC Public Health Dr Henry. This kind of stuff isn't anything but careful detail work, using the extraordinary powers that these situations grant in a way that accomplishes the goal. Smart, experienced and that same look in her eyes of exhaustion and weight of responsibility.
I didn't notice what they were wearing until I started looking, then see them nicely dressed in a way that looks quite normal. Not professional, not powerful, not impressive. Simply not drawing attention to themselves except by their competence.
I enjoy how she's made a different kind of uniform for herself. I'm not surprised there's an Instagram account for just her scarves.
Speaking of fashion, anyone seen the picture of Melania in a mask? Once a supermodel, always a supermodel.
First time seeing her.
I think they look tacky.
The most impressive thing she said was a couple weeks ago. Someone asked about models for the pandemic. She said that every person in her office has their favorite model, and they are only as useful as the inputs.
In other words she was stating that things were extremely uncertain.
In other words, these statistical models don't mean shit.
"Fashion for fashion’s sake seems a trivial thing to focus on right now, but there’s no denying its influence." No, it's just trivial crap, attracting the gadfly attention of trivial journalists.
The important thing about models is that they put in the mathematical exponential. What to do once it's in the model is up for grabs. Variable rate? Multiple different rates at once? Population response to it?
Actually a fibonacci series rather than an exponential, but they look alike mostly. The difference reflects that baby rabbits don't immediately have babies.
She reminds me of every extremely competent woman I've ever run into
Anxious and uptight?
A matronly look.
Unwhitened teeth is an unusual look for TV.
Remember when that guy on Ally McBeal used to get off on touching the “wattle” on the necks of older women?
He would’ve hated those scarfs.
Don't work around machinery when wearing a scarf.
Product of Pennsylvania!
An indication of where we are today. I'll bet nobody batted an eye at the plural. Maybe I'm the only one who even noticed.
"Or maybe it’s because Dr. Birx’s style stands apart from the punchy-color pantsuit or slick sheath worn by most White House women."
I really like her scarves!
What not good? She is smart, attractive and tasteful.
She's composed, dignified, and benign. She's knowledgeable about her subject, but sometimes I get lost in the jargon. Fauci has a punchier delivery.....At one of the pressers, she talked about her sick grandchild and how difficult it was for her, both as a doctor and as a grandmother, not to be able to visit him. She looked human and vulnerable. She's a good person. The scarves show a sense of style. I guess that's part of being human.
Someone who uses V for the plural!
Fashion-istas "guide" us older women to dress in solid colors, so adding an accent like Dr. Birx does is a way to let out our inner joy of color and pattern.
Scarf it up.
"Once upon a time Althouse would’ve have been all over this “objectification of the woman.” "
Oh, really? When did I ever use that word (other than quoting somebody or critiquing its use). Go ahead and search the entire 16-year archive of this blog. The search box is in the upper left corner of the page and you've got a specific word, so it should be easy. Maybe next time check before you make an assertion about me.
You have me confused with some stereotype in your head.
I think I've been following that account since the second post. I love scarves, try to wear them often, and love how she does it well. I find them refreshing and, depending on what is actually printed on them, occasionally subversive. Or at least funny.
Throughout the life of this blog, I have written about fashion, including the fashions worn by serious public figures. I've done that myself, and I don't think I've taken shots at anyone else simply for commenting on clothing. Why would I? I do the same thing myself.
I've done Bloggingheads dialogues with Robin Givhan — including one where we talked about Hillary Clinton showing cleavage while speaking in the Senate.
Sheesh!
Scarves can be an attractive accessory, and a sign that the "new normal" occurs within the range of normal.
If she was the lady speaking after Trump - I was bicycling into a heavy headwind at the time - she mentioned finding out from some western states how they kept the infection from going logarithmic.
That's a math mistake that no guy would make. She must have taken poets' math.
What's curious is that Ohio's lady surgeon general made the same mistake a few weeks ago. It must be the same poets' math course.
The science that women go into does not include much math, I gather.
She was pretty proud of saying that epidemiologists look at infection rates on a logarithmkic scale, so the word - correctly used here - must impress her.
Hermès scarves. The little ones are around $500. The full sized about $1200. They are all quite beautiful.
In 10 years of partaking of Althouse talents, she has never taken a cheap shot at men or women for their style. So we cheap shot artists have had no effect on her mind. She’s tough.
Only in America.
Roughcoat observes: A matronly look.
Yes, that's the adjective I should have used rather than 'tacky'. The word 'frumpy' also comes to mind. But that speaks well of her, IMO. Nancy Pelosi is almost unfailingly elegant in her dress but she still a POS. Women scientists, even those involved in the questionable type of science that is statistical analysis, shouldn't look really elegant. One wouldn't take their dedication seriously. What if Albert Einstein had been a foppish dresser with a stylish coiffure?
BTW, roughcoat, I started Lattimore's Iliad but I'm still on the intro.
traditional guy said . . . .
In 10 years of partaking of Althouse talents, she has never taken a cheap shot at men or women for their style. So we cheap shot artists have had no effect on her mind. She’s tough.
I have three words for you: Men in shorts.
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