There are a few distinct western movies that almost everyone has seen. But I’m not here to talk about the plot of our favorite western movies. I am here though to talk about the fashion from our favorite westerns, that might have even inspired your wardrobe and you haven’t even realized it yet. If they are not in your closet yet then I’m here to give them to you! You may think you know these characters front to back but do you know what their clothes said about them? One might be pleasantly surprised to know that what they wore, spoke volumes about who they were before they even said your favorite line.
“You see, life in San Francisco is still just life. If you want any one thing too badly, it’s likely to turn out to be a disappointment. The only healthy way to
live life is to learn to like all the little everyday things” – Gus
I could put this whole piece together on the characters and the outfits their wardrobe inspired from “Lonesome Dove.” But I have a few more movies picked out for us because they do each inspire their own unique looks. So I promise I will try to contain myself. Miss Lorena Wood otherwise knows as “Lorie Darlin” is arguably one of the most well known western female characters there is. A pretty young blonde stuck in Lonesome Dove Texas waiting for someone to take her to San Fransisco, where she dreams of a sophisticated life that has to be better than this one. When we first meet her she’s wearing a yellow dress, ribbons in her hair, extremely feminine. Every time we see her she is dressed as a lady. Her look stays feminine throughout the whole movie even out on the cattle drive. When she’s left at Claire’s house her wardrobe starts to change, we see her in a different dress. Even as she meets the casket of Gus she wears a dress much similar to the one she wore in the first scene ever, but it is a new updated version, she’s the lady she knew she could be and she did not have to go all the way to San Fransisco to be her. Her look is for the girly girl versus Claire another leading woman in the show. Claire’s look very much mimics a cowboy look. Darker colors, less prints, she even wears a pair of pants in a scene. Lorie, wears headbands while washing clothes, lace, small flower prints, and pastel colors. When Lorie may wear a fascinator, Claire wears a wide brimmed felt hat. Two different ladies, two different looks.
Lonesome Dove Inspiration pics
All the Pretty Horses
“What he loved in horses was what he loved in men, the blood and the heat of the blood that ran them. All his reverence and all his fondness and all the leanings of his life were for the ardenhearted and they would always be so and never be otherwise.”
― Cormac McCarthy, All the Pretty Horses
“All the Pretty Horses” inspired the title of this piece. So I could not leave it out. I really love the whole vibe of this movie myself because it takes place in Mexico. With it taking place in Mexico we receive all the beautiful colors and influences of Mexico itself, from the landscaping to the architecture and of course THE CLOTHES! Plus I am a born and raised Arizona girl, a desert babe for sure. So since I have much of the same scenery around me, I feel that Grady could also ride into my backyard one day and who doesn’t like that idea? Alejandra’s style strongly reflects her Mexican heritage.
Dances With Wolves
“Dances with Wolves! I am Wind In His Hair. Do you see that I am your friend? Can you see that you will always be my friend?”- Wind In His Hair
My last picks come from “Dances With Wolves.” I picked this particular movie because of all the Native American culture that revolves around this movie. We even see the main character go through a complete wardrobe change himself. He goes from a uniform of the government to feathers and fringe. His love interest who eventually becomes his wife by the end of the movie, Stands With Fist dresses as her adopted family has taught. In the winter we see all kinds of gor-geous furs they use as early winter coats. The turquoise, the headdresses, its a beautiful depiction of the unsettled west, and it to me it is completely told through the wardrobe. So with this movie I could not just pick one particular character, I choose to take inspiration from the whole cast for these picks.
So next time you are needing some inspiration putting something together, just pop in your favorite western and see what comes! You never know what might come from it.
xoxoxox
Sierra Rae