Since we had so much fun talking about the Peek-a-Boob dress, I thought we'd have some fun on this dreary Monday and talk about another style that tends to periodically rear it's (ugly?) head:
the mullet.
What I mean by this is, of course, not the haircut, but the high-low hem that seems to have popped up on runways last fall, more recently on
red carpets and into stores in the last few months. I remember this trend mostly as it played out in 80's prom dresses and
haircuts. But my own prom was in the 90's and there was nary a mullet dress in sight - by my teen years, the look was O-U-T out!
But, since everything 80's is new again, there seems to be a resurgence in the mullet and it is playing out in sundresses and tops. And pattern companies have gotten in on the act, with both dresses and tops that have a high-low hem.
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| Vogue 8809 - Is it me or does this dress NOT FIT this girl well? |
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| Butterick 5786 - the mullet top |
Could it be that the mullet is the next evolution of the maxi-dress that's been popular for the last several summers?
Express and
loads of others seem to think so.
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| Burda - 03-2012-120 mullet dress with random vest |
Wow, Burda really embraced the mullet top in April...
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| Burda 04-2012-117 |
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| Burda 04-2012-129 - a more refined mullet? |
Proponents applaud the "business in the front, party in the back" versatility of the look. But I've been watching this trend with distinct distaste. Really, once was quite enough thank-you-very-much, and clothing styles should not be named after Billy Rae Cyrus' haircut, no matter how achy-breaky. And did I mention that I made fun of this style when I was in high school? It was simply not cool by then. So, you're probably wondering why I'm putting this look to a yea or nay vote, when it seems my opinion is set.
Well, let's just say that everyone is a hypocrite at times, even muses. On Friday afternoon, I wandered over to JC Penney on my lunch hour to pick up a few cheap basics ($8 seamless cami's - can't beat the price). And somehow I ended up with this AWESOME top as an impulse buy.
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| Nicole by Nicole Miller top from JC Penney |
First off,the print is really eye-catching and the top has some great details for cheap RTW - like the double straps, the topstitching and the trim at the neckline.
And for $20 it looks and feels incredibly lux, even if it is poly.
But wait! My top has a dirtly little secret. Despite it's pedigree and lux details, it is a red neck at heart.
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| My top has a mullet! |
And there it is. Faced with the reality of my shopping, I'm forced to ask myself whether there might be something to like about the mullet, after all.
So ladies and gentlemen, yea or nay on the mullet? And does it matter whether it is a dress or top or an upscale or casual look? What do you say: are you all for business in the front and party in the back? or would you call the fashion police on me?
PS - There was sewing this weekend! Updates to come during the week!
30 comments:
Confession: round about 1990 I thought the mullet was just about the cutest haircut a boy could possibly have. Like you, I reversed my opinion shortly thereafter... but I must admit I still kind of enjoy the mullet hem. It doesn't always work---of your examples, the only one I'd go for (other than your fab top) is the Burda shirt, and that might just be the photography---but when it does work, it evokes a train or bustled look, without being over-the-top costumey, that I really like. And at least it's not coffin clothes. ;)
In other words---great score. :)
ha ha ha - for me it was boys with spiked hair. ;-)
Not really a fan of the mullet (hair or hem) but I don't mind so much the ones where the front blends into the back. Really not a fan of that first Vogue, the party part of the hem is just too abrupt for my taste. I don't mind the business part though.
With hair, it's business in front, party in the back. But with these hems it's party in the front, business in the back. Especially that Burda maxi dress.
I have to say that, in general, I am not a fan of the mullet look (hair or hems). The square hems are the worst though - it looks like you cut out the pieces wrong and just got lazy about doing them hem properly. The Burda ruffle shirt isn't too bad because the hem length flows around the body as a continuous line, and the ruffle make the intent more obvious. I think with the mullet-ness it depends on the subtlety and how it is executed. On your shirt it is subtle, and the eye-catching thing is the print, not the shape of the hem, so I don't have a strong reaction to the mullet shape (and I like the print a lot!). I mean, there are some things I think should be longer in the back than in the front (skating costume skirts, fancy gowns with trains and wedding dresses) but in general I think the mullet look contributes to a look of bagginess and poor fit. Overall not a fan.
I have to say that, in general, I am not a fan of the mullet look (hair or hems). The square hems are the worst though - it looks like you cut out the pieces wrong and just got lazy about doing them hem properly. The Burda ruffle shirt isn't too bad because the hem length flows around the body as a continuous line, and the ruffle make the intent more obvious. I think with the mullet-ness it depends on the subtlety and how it is executed. On your shirt it is subtle, and the eye-catching thing is the print, not the shape of the hem, so I don't have a strong reaction to the mullet shape (and I like the print a lot!). I mean, there are some things I think should be longer in the back than in the front (skating costume skirts, fancy gowns with trains and wedding dresses) but in general I think the mullet look contributes to a look of bagginess and poor fit. Overall not a fan.
BTW... can you delete the previous comment of the same content? Let's just say an odd issue with Chrome autofill screwed up the google account profile name and then Disqus seems to have latched onto that as being the name I want brandied about the internet, which I do not. And I can't self-delete comments now...
Argh! I hate technology. And I still haven't fixed the issue... can you please delete all of my comments until I figure out what is wrong with the stupid google account?
Love the shirt! I think that this style has been re-branded as high/low. It is very hot right now especially for maxi dresses.
Agreed!
I've seen a few retailers call that straight across the back mullet a "shirt tail hem". I don't care for it either.
The again, that Burda white shirt is definitely party in the back.
I agree with Cindy in that i don't like the drastic hem drops like that Vogue or Burda, but I like when they make a gradual transition.
I have to say that, in general, I am not a fan of the mullet look (hair or hems). The square hems are the worst though - it looks like you cut out the pieces wrong and just got lazy about doing them hem properly. The Burda ruffle shirt isn't too bad because the hem length flows around the body as a continuous line, and the ruffle make the intent more obvious. I think with the mullet-ness it depends on the subtlety and how it is executed. On your shirt it is subtle, and the eye-catching thing is the print, not the shape of the hem, so I don't have a strong reaction to the mullet shape (and I like the print a lot!). I mean, there are some things I think should be longer in the back than in the front (skating costume skirts, fancy gowns with trains and wedding dresses) but in general I think the mullet look contributes to a look of bagginess and poor fit. Overall not a fan.
*And thanks for fixing all the comment issues from before!
I like the subtle asymmetric hemline (sorry, I can't even type the word mullet I dislike it so much), but the more drastic length and the severe straight lines, I do not like at all.
So maybe it's a problem with the word "mullet" and what it implies?
If I found the right thing (dress or top), it might be ok. Like your JCP find. But in general, it's a nay for me. Though I do love a dramatic train on a wedding dress or formal, but that's not really the same thing.
Exactly what T Sedai said, except I really have a hate on for the Vogue and the green Burda. Really hate those two.
I say if it looks good wear it, and it looks good on you. I just purchased the Simplicity maxi dress with this hemline last week, and I was looking at the green top in the Burda Magazine the other day. Who knows, I just might try it out.
I agree with Sara...the Burda dress is party in the front, business in the back. Way too severe. However, I do like the top you bought...very cute...and I do like maxi dresses that have a 'mullet' that isn't severe.
The blouse looks great on you and like the subtle hemline I don't like the severe high- lows.
So, it seems like most people are ok with subtle, but not severe high-low hems.
Thanks!
Thanks, Andrea! Oooh, I would love to see you work up the maxi. For some reason the Burda one really ticks me off, but the Simplicity one is ok, I think.
I really despise the Vogue too! LOL
Agreed! Just not the same thing. Thanks! It was too fun a top to pass up at $20.
I think your top works because it is subtle and the print mostly does the talking. However, I see these girls walking around with the high/low dress and the sandals with ankle spats and the boyfriend jacket and it is all too Fashion Victimy for me. I don't have many categorical rules against anything and there is a BMV pattern with a plain peplum top and a high/low peplum top that I kinda like, but I don't see a large future for high/low hems in my wardrobe.
Fashion Victimy - LOL - YES! That's kind of how I feel about it. I wonder if anyone really likes this look or if people wear it because it's in.
I have deliberately mulleted my shirts, tunics and blouses for decades, whether in or out of style, as a coping mechanism to accommodate my increasingly-wide derrière. Somewhere along the line, I read that this was a good look for Women of a Certain Age; and that for those of us with plenty of padding, the (slightly) longer blouse back would read as even-all-around once it had skimmed over the extra territory back there. I took that tip to heart, and adopted it as part of my personal style of dress. Even if it is a lie, it seems to me that the little bit of extra fabric makes my tops look a bit more luxe than they deserve. Of course, my eyesight has also faded over the decades ... .
the mullet look could fix all manner of wonky cutting. WHAT. I MEANT TO HAVE AN UNEVEN HEM. i like it.
i really love the extended mullet, which surprised me... it's like a backdrop for your gams.
i love your chic redneck top!
Lin, you do have a point! I definitely could see the mullet as strategic bum camoflage!
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