Accessories – Witness to Our Evolution and Decline

Accessories, items of fashion, utensils or implements, once made with great craftsmanship to last a lifetime have been replaced by disposable plastic. Beautifully made showpieces that brought ritual and civility to our customs, vanity and habits are on the verge of extinction.

With the knife and fork, eating became more refined. Heavy silverware, engraved with one’s initials would be passed down through generations. The goblet or glass designed to honor the liquid it held has given way to paper, plastic and styrofoam cups! How one handled these utensils while eating would speak volumes (and still does) about one’s home education and level of social refinement. People are back to eating with their hands as they scarf down wraps on the run.

The hand fan, parasol and veil – ultimate weapons of coquettishness – are now as rare as the art of flirtation itself. The jeweled powder compact and lipstick case are now antiques, upstaged by plastic tubes of lipstick bought at department stores or pharmacies. Our consumer society is such that instead of a signature shade, the average woman has more lipsticks than she wears.

Ladies, up until about the mid 1960’s we wore white cotton gloves in the summer. Now, gloves worn other than to protect hands from the cold are rare.

The fountain pen in lacquer, silver or gold is becoming as antiquated as those of us with brains that developed pre-internet. Now we use and lose disposable, retractable ballpoints. The elegant fountain pen still exists but it’s expensive, usually given as a gift to adorn our desk and left unused or as a collector’s item. We might use it to sign contracts or important documents, but it’s not the same as having once learned good penmanship and wielding it to express our thoughts with a flourish. A fountain pen has a weight to it that inspires writing, the permanence of its ink demanding careful thought. Who even needs a pen when our phones can take dictation with the sound of our voice?

Smoking paraphernalia: we don’t smoke any more. We know better now. However, there used to be an art to carving pipes of wood or ivory. Pipe racks of carved wood were made to display a man’s pipe collection. Cigarette cases were often in ornate silver. Cigarette holders were made in ivory, (poor elephants!) or lacquer. Hookahs were opulent furnishings; even ashtrays could be objects of art in semi precious stone, silver or other fine material. Now we have plastic e-cigarettes; you smoke them and throw them away. People manhandle traditional cigarettes, smoking them in a hurry and flicking the butts on the street! Disgusting!

Luggage – steamer trunks and armoires made from wood and leather would help us bring our belongings with us unwrinkled. Brands such as Louis Vuitton made luxurious cases the world traveler used to transport their belonging in style. Traveling has lost much of its glamour and we have downgraded to portable, tiny suitcases made in lightweight, high-tech materials with wheels for self service maneuvering.

The global population, now bursting at the seams, its economy, along with our fast-paced life require us to live in a world of disposable everything. I imagine it would have been better for our state of mind and the environment if things were still artfully made to last a lifetime. Ultimately, it would be cheaper to buy it once and pass it down to future generations than to live in a world of the fifteen-minute fast-food, plastic “spork” accompanied lunch break.

Indeed, accessories are witnesses to our evolution as well as our decline.