What does being fashionable really mean?

It is common that I find myself gawking in the Neiman Marcus shoe department; gaping at every Christian Louboutin shoe, placed prominently on the circular glass tables.  Some may call these over priced treasures ridiculous, but I call them art.  Although many people disagree (typically the people who find shopping a drag), fashion is a way of expressing oneself through color, pattern, shape, and texture.  In other words, “Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening” (Coco Chanel).  Even though fashion is whatever you make it to be, there are some guidelines you must follow in order to actually be fashionable.  To tell you the truth, until last year, I had absolutely no idea what style was.  Trying to fit in by following the current “it” looks was my motto, and to be honest, it got me nowhere.   This all changed this summer when my friend and I studied Fashion Design for a month in Florence, Italy, one of the fashion capitals of the world.  If someone were to ask me what I learned from that incredible experience, I would say I learned how to be stylish by being myself.  Now I can safely say that I steer away from the current “it” look and instead create new styles that get numerous compliments and even more glares