IFC Films
The classic pencil skirt worn by Greta Gerwig’s Frances, the lovable 27-year-old gal-in-transition heroine in the new movie Frances Ha, is an aspirational one for this character. Her life is sprawling out of control, as she experiences unstable housing arrangements, a modern-dance career that’s spiraling ever out of reach, and the potential loss of her joined-at-the-hip BFF (Mickey Sumner). Frances’s out-sized, clumsy and messy bomber jacket is a much more accurate depiction of her inner state.
But that momentary glimpse of a streamlined Frances, in her pencil skirt and doing her choreography, is like a shaft of light that suggests her redemption.
Everything about pencil skirts speaks to minimalism. There’s no excess fabric. This is a skirt with core values and, simply by wearing one, you’re suddenly focused. You know where you’re going because you’ve eliminated everything that’s unessential. This is a skirt that pays homage to Saturn.
The hallmarks of Saturn – planning, organization, discipline and having an eye on a successful and prosperous life – are not Frances’s strong points. She flits from one miserable situation to another. But, in that skirt, she radiates single-mindedness and self-mastery, also Saturnine traits.
Introduced by Dior after WWII, the skirt is associated with the term H-line, which describes its shape. Now, thanks to Greta Gerwig and Frances, we can also refer to it as the Ha-line.
Astrology Fashion Rating: ♄ (Saturn)
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