FASHION COLUMN: From runway to real-life

“Fashion passes. Style remains.”

This is a quote I try to live by, even if I only really succeed half of the time. What does it mean? Essentially, good taste and an established personal style will always trump the “it” trends and runway shows.

Adhering strictly to what you’re “supposed” to wear is a surefire way to look like a walking advertisement. Being stylish is innate, something that embodies your point of view and looks fresh year after year.

You could call it being “classic,” though that tends to conjure up images of cable-knit sweaters and preppy plaids. It could be quirky colors or a masculine vibe. Having a distinct look and sticking with it — that’s style.

The statement above was coined by none other than Coco Chanel, the purveyor of all things stylish.

What’s more classic than a black tweed Chanel jacket? Or the Little Black Dress, which Chanel designed in the 1920s? The LBD changed women’s closets everywhere.

It wasn’t the dress itself that was revolutionary — it was the attitude behind it. Even though we first spotted the LBD on Holly Golightly in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” Chanel insisted it was appropriate for any occasion. The LBD is a staple that can solve any wardrobe crisis from a lunch meeting to a formal gala.

Ralph Lauren seemed to agree with Chanel’s philosophy when he said, “Style is very personal. It has nothing to do with fashion. Fashion is over quickly. Style is forever.”

In other words, personal style will always trump a closet full of the season’s predictable designer duds. You maintain and adjust your personal style over a lifetime, whereas fads and trends fade within a year or so.

Truth be told, few people truly understand the distinction between “fashion” and “style”—they’re certainly linked, but the biannual shows at Fashion Week aren’t really concerned with everyday wear.

The clothes on the runways tend to be more aligned with art than the mass market. Many of those pieces won’t make it to all the major stores.

Consider any Alexander McQueen runway show, albeit McQueen is an extreme example. His shows were all about shock value, splendor and art.

Kate Middleton wears tons of Alexander McQueen, but it’s not straight off the runway. It’s tweaked and adapted for her everyday life.

Similarly, many of the big trends at Fall 2013 should be taken with a grain of salt. One can’t simply dress in head-to-toe Fendi and still feel like themselves.

The shows focused on several major trends, including colorful fur jackets, a goth-punk revival and a romantic, feminine 40s vibe.

Designers across the spectrum tested out ’40s silhouettes in the hopes of finding something, anything, that felt new and fresh. With some exceptions, fashion is a constant cycle of reinventing the past.

Remember spring’s mod ’60s shift dresses? What about the Baroque embellishments at Fall 2012? Talk about a fashion flashback. Those designers were thinking about 17th-century Europe.

It’s always hard to predict how these time-period trends will translate to real life. Every time a designer references the ’70s, it just seems costume-like.

The girls at music festivals wearing huge flared jeans and peace sign earrings? A bit contrived. It’s hard to make that feel truly modern.

We were all in love with the checkerboard patterns, spare shapes and graphic stripes at the Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs spring shows, but that ’60s charm was brief.

Rewind a few decades. After seeing the dramatic ’40s-inspired looks at Celine, Prada, Christian Dior and countless others, we’re all swooning for swishy skirts, corseted jackets and mink stoles.

But will it last? Is it chic or more like a costume?

Personally, I don’t really understand the ’40s fascination. In fact, the spring ’60s moment, if not necessarily “now,” really spoke to me, and I think I’ll try it out this summer with a shift dress and pointy flats.

The takeaway here is that no matter what happens to be “on trend,” you know in your gut what will work for you. I won’t be buying a mid-calf fluted skirt anytime soon, but I’ll always be a fan of ballet flats, stripes and sharp blazers. Some things are too good to fade out.