S. FREUD: HOW TO DRESS ME, MYSELF, AND I

FASHION PSYCHOLOGY 101

Take a look at your closet. What is it like? Is it a chaotic mess filled with multiple personalities? Or is it a small organized capsule collection featuring only the basics? 

According to Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory of personality, balance is key in all genres of personal taste. Surprisingly, being too chaotic and instinctual with your choices is just as bad as being too organized and predictable.  

Freud theorized that personality contains 3 main elements: id, ego, and super ego.

1.) ID: impulsive, uncontrollable, and primitive. 

Like a baby, it is the unconscious element we are born with that is extremely impulsive. It has a simplistic desire to satisfy our primal instincts, without any regard to its effects on others. This is the part of you that picks clothes based on primitive needs, such as warmth, desire, pleasure, etc. 

An overly dominant id, can lead to impulsive fashion choices, uncontrollable shopping habits, and disorganized sensibility of any type of order, or logic.

2.) Ego: calculated, conservative, narrow-minded.

 Very much like a control center, the ego is the element of rationality. It is able to control one's impulses and manage it's choices with calculations and directions. 

An overly dominant ego, can cause you to be conservative, narrow-minded and predictable. Your choices follow the fashion book and your style can lack spontaneity and understanding.

3.) Super Ego: moralistic, and judgmental

The Super ego behaves as the moral compass, and suppresses all unacceptable behaviors and pushes idealistic standards. It acts to civilize our behaviors and distinguish right from wrong.

An overly dominant Super ego looks to perfect and abolish all unacceptable choices.

Each element of personality is negative, without its equal counterpart to balance them out. Be aware of our natural impulses to forget to be diverse, and embrace contrast. 

 It is easy to fall into one category of mind set, but fashion excellence is achieved though embracing all aspects of our personality.

Always remember to style with a healthy dash of spontaneity, a structure of calculation, and a sprinkle of morality. 

xo,

Maya

A Letter From Maya...

Welcome to TALKFASHION!

Inspired by nature, art, music, and culture, TALKFASHION, covers the evolving force of self discovery. 

The  inner dialogue between you and your heart is the key essence of finding yourself and your style. 

Forever looking to what inspires you, fight the gravity of normality.

Be brave enough to make  mistakes, and have courage to walk the path alone.

What you wear is equally simplistic and complex. They say, " Never judge a book by its' cover, but how introspective to create the perfect cover for a specified book!

You are a what you wear and within that equation is art.  

The greater the art the greater the message.

What do you feel, and how will you arrange your image today?

Sincerely,

Maya Horikawa

(Creator of TALKFASHION)

What is 箱入り娘 ?

箱入り娘 (hako-iri-musume), is a Japanese proverb describing a metaphorical "box" that surrounds a girl who was raised in an overprotected family, and given very little freedom. 

                                                                   
 At the heart of TALKFASHION, is a Girl in a Box (箱入り娘). For her, fashion is an inspirational  tool to discovering herself, and finding her voice. Breaking free from her mental prison, requires cutting the need to impress, and the importance of her heart. Observations of nature, art, music, color, and emotions, are all used as guides to push her senses of expression.
 What she wears is no longer just garments to keep her warm, nor are they tools to impress her peers. Clothes, are now a self discovery tool, of creating an image that reflects the person inside.

Join TALKFASHION 箱入り娘 Girl in a Box, and follow her artistic journey of introspection, inspiration, and self projection.

                                                        xo,
                                                      Maya

ARE YOU FASHION PIGEONHOLING?

What in the world is fashion pigeonholing?

Pigeonholing is any process that attempts to classify disparate entities into a small number of categories (usually, mutually exclusive ones).

Fashion Pigeonholing is when you classify yourself into a particular style group. 

A lot of how we dress, is a direct representation of who we think we are, and how we see ourselves. Factors like, social circles, work, school, hobbies, etc., can find us stuck on a limited variation of self awareness and style. 

This is your comfort zone, and it feels safe. You know it well, and chances are you've dressed that way for years. You shop at the same stores, gravitate to the same colors, and basically, buy the same outfit in slightly different shades and lengths. 

The problem is, life is an ever evolving force. You are evolving and your style should be as well. Staying fresh means trying something new. This does not mean you should make a 180 degree fashion flip and abandon everything you know. Fashion is a collection of ideas, and keeping the essence of your style aesthetic will stay relatively unharmed. The challenge lies only in your own mental stereotypes of who you think you were, are, and will be. 

"Oh no.. that's not YOU!" -(My mom) 

To this day, every time I go shopping I can still hear my mother's infamous words, "Oh no.. that's not YOU!" . Funny enough, those exact words are still preventing myself from stepping out of my little pigeon hole. 

Don't be afraid to grab a style completely different from anything you know. You may surprise yourself and actually like it.

Take care and lots of love.

xo,

Maya

BEAUTY CHAT: ARE YOU UGLY OR ARE YOU LAZY?

The truth of the matter is, laziness is ugly. YOU are not  Ugly. 

Like anything in life, "effort" does make a difference. Those extra 5 minutes of attention, will make a world of difference in your appearance, mental health, mood, and self image. 

Beauty is defined in the work you apply to take care of yourself. Just like a plant needs proper nutrients, sunlight, and water, your attractiveness depends on factors of maintenance.

This includes: skincare, hygiene, exercise, personal maintenance and wisdom. I hate to break it to you, but you are not just born beautiful. No one is. 

It is a daily effort that fluctuates based on will power. I personally,  struggle with my skin and weight  during stressful or hard moments in my life. This is a result of poor food choices, lack of sleep, and exercise. 

Just like any skill, you must learn the techniques to maneuver your actions for the desired reactions. Learning from your mistakes, looking for solutions and striving to be better on a consistent basis, is not an easy task. It is okay to fail, we all do; but,  personal beauty can only be achieved with humility and acceptance of those mistakes, and the commitment to try again. 

The way you live your life, and the effort you put into yourself, is your personal canvas. 

The clothes you wear, match your personal aesthetic. The books you read, represent the shape and directions of your thoughts. The food you eat, symbolizes your desire to live.  The art you love represents your soul.

Just like the furniture in your home, your efforts should bring you joy, and comfort. 

A sense of home.

Live Beautifully!

xo,

Maya

4 WEIRD THINGS I DO ON INSTAGRAM: @mayahorikawa

Hi Guys!

It has been awhile since I have updated TALKFASHION, and from today all that will change. 

Look forward to new layouts, fashion articles, ootd, and much much more!! 

Join me on a whole new journey with TALKFASHION Blog.

Life Update: Where have I been? 

Lately, my new obsession has been INSTAGRAM @mayahorikawa, and I have adopted rather weird social habits, and thought I 'd share them with you. DO you have any weird social habits on IG? Please follow me on IG and lets be friends! #talkfashionfam

4 Weird things I do on IG:

1.) EMOJI Memory Game. 

🍕

As a child, I loved playing the memory card game. It was a game where you have to remember where the matching pairs are, and collect them. Anyways, I seem to have carried on this weird obsession of collecting like pairs on IG. I scroll through photos daily, commenting emojis that match photographs.  Weird. 

2.) STALKING CATS

I always thought I was a dog person, but lately I have grown a love for cute adorable cats. Scrolling through countless funny, cute, beautiful cats is undeniably therapeutic. Weird.

My most favorite cat is a british shorthair @mammisej , that lives in Sweden. 

3.) SENDING VIRTUAL GIFTS

I'm not sure if any of my followers realize I do this, but whenever someone comments on my photos, I will respond with a message and send them virtual gifts ( usually food emojis) , as a token of my appreciation. Yes, I am very weird.

4.) MAKING FRIENDS ALL OVER THE WORLD

To be honest, I am rather anti-social, and I never thought I could make so many friends from all over the world. It is a whole new concept of social interaction and a constant system of support and inspiration. 

Please follow me on IG @mayahorikawa  and lets get to know each other. #talkfashionfam

xo,

Maya

HOW TO MAKE YOUR FASHION STYLE REFLECT THE PERSON YOU ARE?

The process of dressing ourselves is the direct link between our mind, body, and heart. If all 3 parts work harmoniously, your fashion style will give an accurate portrayal of the person you are.

How do you strengthen your fashion mind, body, and heart?

Mind: 
The mind/brain is like the headquarters of processing practical matters of fashion. This is the area of educating yourself on fashion knowledge, etiquette, and basic common sense. Study designers, collections, trends, history, and fill up your fashion bank with information. Know the difference between, such things as black ties, verses cocktail, and most importantly use your common sense.

Body:
Positive body image and a solid understanding of your body type is a crucial aspect of fashion style. You must feel good about your body naked or else the process of dressing will always be a strategic act of hiding, manipulating, or deceiving. If you have gained some extra weight then lose it, but learn what your "healthy" weight is and STAY on it.
My healthy weight is the same as when I was in High School, and I fluctuate + or - 10 pounds. Staying on this one size allows you to understand your body shape. I can look at a pair of pants, or top and know quickly whether it will fit.

Heart:
The heart is by far the hardest part for most people. If you are not naturally instinctual, you may find it difficult to form your fashion style based on what you feel. It requires emotional freedom and the ability to express it without fear of judgement or rejection. Strengthening your heart, will require surrounding your life with whatever you love.

           You will find your identity in everything and anything your heart decides to love. 

xo,

Maya

BEING ANTI-SOCIAL AND HOW FASHION TRENDS CAN HELP

Are you Anti-Social? If you said, "Yes", how do you feel about fashion trends? 

Most likely, if you are anything like my anti-social self, you will detest any inclination of following any type of "popular" idea. I value individualism and have always pushed the importance of remaining pure to your thoughts and creativity, despite the popular pull of the majority.  

However, lately I catch myself getting more and more reclusive, and deeper into my isolated ideology, and it made me think. 

How beneficial can you be, without a decent understanding of popular social instincts?

Anti-social people, often feel like they don't belong anywhere, and the natural response is to isolate. Instead of living in a comfortable cave, why not use fashion trends for a bit of help. Think of it as extending an olive branch back into society. 

Anti-Social: 

Antagonistic to sociable instincts. 

  Fashion Trends: 

   A popular social habit found in the practice of what people wear at a given time. 

The thing is, fashion trends represent the "popular" mindset of society and its reaction to the current state of the world. Just as Art is the most honest description of all historical time periods, there is no denying fashion trends are equally representative to the expressive summary of its given moment. 

This does not mean you should copy a fashion trend like a brainless zombie and start looking like everyone else.  It simply means to be "inspired" by a fashion trend and make it your  own. For example, chokers have made a huge come back as one of the biggest fashion trends of 2016. Everyone was rocking them 90's style with ripped boyfriends jean, white Tee, and Dior sunnies. Instead of picking the same fashion algorithm, keep a LOT of you while adding a bit of everyone else. 

Take care and much Love.

Maya

GOLDEN GLOBES MURDERS HAUTE COUTURE!

Janelle Monae "collaborates" with Armani for a custom Golden Globes gown?! 

2014-2015 Armani Privé Collection

Like knives to my heart, master designer of fashion art, has be transformed into a master seamstress.

As a long time lover of Armani Privé, one can immediately spot the use of identical textiles from his 2014-2015 Fall Collection, minus the haute couture.

Beyond the use of the innovative textiles, nothing else remains of "Armani ". 

Clearly this dress is more accurately a Janelle Monae.

Jessica Biel in Elie Saab minus the accessories. 

The plunging neckline minus the ornate choker  and matching cuffs, left me feeling a large chunk of Elie Saab's vision was deleted. 

The dress simply does not make sense without the accessories that mimics and flirts with embroidered flowers on the dress. 

The problem with the merger of "Hollywood" and "fashion" is the need to be relatable.

 Renowned stylists will edit or dumb-ify fashion masterpieces, in order to be like-able. 

The end result, is a display of glorified mediocrity, and rather ordinary fashion. 

xo,

Maya

TFTV: WHAT I WORE AND NEW YEARS EVE LOOKBOOK (2017)

TALKFASHION TV

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

"As far as we can discern, 
the sole purpose of human existence 
is to kindle a light 
in the darkness of mere being." 
-Carl Jung

Featuring the merger of Richard Strauss, "Blue Danube", the galaxy, and what I wore, check out how light and darkness inspired my New Year's eve style!

xo,
Maya