Lifestyle With J

Queen Serena

Serena Van Der Woodsen: Blonde Bombshell

A breakdown of our blond it girl.. Whether you love her or hate her, you have to admit Serena is a force to be reckoned with. She is a woman who from a young age is not afraid to go after what she wants and always stays true to herself while encouraging others to do the same. A little bit of a heart breaker, she deserves so much more than she gets in terms of her relationships. 

Lights, Camera, Fashion!

Lets start by breaking down her style. Inspired by Kate Moss, Serena’s personal style is bohemian, free flowing, and perfectly encapsulates her devil may care attitude. In earlier seasons, we can observe the way she styles her St. Jude’s school uniform; leaving her button up untucked, playfully wearing a tie, her windswept hair, and always experimenting with different accessories. This is a stark contrast to Blair’s prim and proper styling of her uniform, complete with tights, and  never a hair out of place. 

When she is seen on the streets after school she often opts for jeans, sweaters, and in the cooler months loves her layers. When she wears dresses during the day, she manages to still keep it wearable by opting for a flowing frame and casual accessories. When she is seen in gowns, she often embraces her iconic gold, and is able to be both glamorous and effortless. Her style is so important to conveying her overall persona: your everyday it girl. She looks amazing without trying. 

Soul Searching

Now lets get under the hood of the car. Serena’s positive character traits are at first glance, her warmth, her charisma, and her openness to others. She prides herself on her inclusivity, as demonstrated by befriending and dating Dan Humphrey, who is considered out of her original friend group of four (Serena, Blair, Chuck, Nate). While this can certainly lend itself to trouble when taken to extreme, Serena never shies away from a risk, and follows her heart wherever it leads. While this can get her into trouble, it also enables her to take advantage of positive opportunities that come her way, such as when she took a chance at a job in movie marketing while visiting her grandmother in California. 

What’s love got to do with it?

**This paragraph is a spoiler for Serena’s love life.** Now what could one argue is Serena’s fatal flaw? Choosing the wrong men. Some critics of Serena’s free flowing life stye may presume her biggest sin is  simply blowing in whichever direction the wind takes her, however, I can not consider an area of her life where this does her a worse disservice then in her love life. For a young woman with Serena’s privilege, it only makes sense to explore your creative interests before settling into a career.  I can only imagine how much further she could have gone in life if she could have lead with her head as much as her heart in the romance department. While being open to a new date can be beneficial in getting out of a rut, Serena struggles with knowing when to call it quits. For instance, continuing to stick by the politician’s (aka NATE’S BROTHER) side, when he was clearly never going to leave his wife? What good did any of this serve. Spending a whole summer hung up on Dan, a completely subpar option, when she could have been spending carefree days on the beach, or maybe using her sadness as fuel for her next creative project? With a girl for as many high-quality prospects as Serena, she could have used some more direction in choosing the right one, (which will always, in every conceivable universe, be Nate!). 

No before we get too hard on sweet Serena, let us consider her upbringing,  All the money in the world cannot make up for a stable and loving upbringing. While Lilly Rhodes Bass Humphrey Van Der Woodsen is a fab momma in her own right, I can only imagine what the early childhood years looked like for Serena and Eric… Lilly jumping from man to man, and retreating to the spa when it all got to be too much? I only hope they had an excellent nanny. I think that Lilly made up for what I imagine was an off hands childhood by becoming her friend and confidant later in life, this leaves us to discuss her father, William Van Der Woodsen. This is an aspect of the show I still struggle to make sense of. His whole story of needing to leave the family for work, and it tearing a part him and Lilly, which somehow translated into not even trying to continue to develop a relationship with his children after? Make it make sense. What really gets me is him continually giving Serena the cold shoulder when she is doing all she can to have a relationship with him. Clearly, Serena didn’t receive the loving stability she needed in childhood, which translates to her questionable choice in men as an adult. 

One could argue our strengths are our weaknesses, and this seems to be the perfect segway to Serena’s naivete/sunny outlook on life, (Your Strength Is Your Weakness — Developing Complementary Virtues). Serena never seems to be slowed down (except for when she’s mourning Dan, again!). In her pursuit to find her Father, her search for love, and maintaining her social status through her education, creative projects and friendship dynamics. She always seems to come out unscathed. When Blair calls her out for this in the first season, Serena says she gets out of situations because she is nice. To an extent, she is right. Serena’s charisma, and ability to maintain her image through discretion does go far for her in her ability to make and keep connections. Her ability to always look on the bright side helps could be seen as manifesting, she expects the best and often gets the best. However, this positive perspective of hers can make her appear naive, and, when she places her trust in the wrong people, can get her into trouble, which is why she is often seen as the damsel in distress of the group. The example that stands out the most is when she gets left at the scene of a car accident for putting her trust her love affair with a married politician…While he was certainly at fault for not protecting her, with a little foresite (aka the fact that she should clearly be with Nate instead) she could have avoided the whole fiasco. But of course, where would the show be without fearless Serena? Serena’s fearlessness, and lack of concern with how others perceive her is a double-edged sword: when it works out she is able to enjoy great social and creative successes, but when her faith is misplaced, she can find herself in danger. 

There is so much to learn from Queen Serena. Take life one day at a time, look fabulous doing it, and always embrace who you are. Just remember to take your head with you when following your heart. 

XOXO!

You know you love me,

J