Using time series analysis and systems theoy it is possible to translate Kroeber's idea of a cultural configuration and its processual consequences into a less ambiguous model. By employing a mathematical formulation certain features of stylistic change in women 's dress become evident: it is stochastic/probabilistic in nature and it is in stable equilibrium. The sequence of women's fashions through time would appear to anse from simultaneous operation of inertia, cultural continuity, a rule system of esthetic proportions, and an inherently unpredictable element. [culture process, fashion, stylistic change, systems analysis, time series analysis]