Fash·ion [fash-uhn] Pronunciation Key –noun
1. a prevailing custom or style of dress, etiquette, socializing, etc.: the latest fashion in dresses.
2. conventional usage in dress, manners, etc., esp. of polite society, or conformity to it: the dictates of fashion; to be out of fashion.
–verb (used with object)

Having worked in and around the world of Haute Couture (High Fashion) for a good 6 years now,I consider myself acquainted.

Alas, the more I learn, the less I wish I knew.

Yes, folks I do believe the Honeymoon is over and that if a few changes are not made soon…
divorce papers may be signed.

First off, take the fact that most of the clothing brands your average American has access to and can afford are sewn in sweat shops by tiny children in third world countries.

YES! Guess, Abercrombie and Fitch, Calvin Kline, Forever 21, Victoria’s Secret, Target, Old Navy and Banana Republic are a mere handful of names on the long list.

for more info on such dreadful matters visit www.sweatshopwatch.org

Now, multiply that by idea that there is no true middle ground between the cheaply sweat shop made ‘Ready to Wear’ garments (1.clothing made in standard sizes; ready-made clothing ) and pocket book emptying one of a kind ‘Couture’ pieces (1.high fashion; the most fashionable and influential dressmaking and designing ).

that’s right, except for a very select few exceptions to the rule (which i am currently working on compiling a list of) the fashion forward young person of today must make one of two choices when purchasing a brand new garment.

1. Buy a moderately cute but horribly sewn inexpensive garment at say Forever 21 (I like to call this “disposable clothing” the garment equivalent to a tampon due to the fact that it will most likely fall apart after one wear and wash) and support the mistreatment of fellow humans at the same time.

or

2. Take out a loan and skip eating out and other social outings like movies and bowling for a few years in order to purchase an exquisite hand made dress by Christian Lacroix but chances are you may be accused of looking like an escapee from the its a small world Disneyland ride if you are caught wearing it out.

You also have the problem of how shallow and competitive this industry is.
Jobs in fashion are all who you know and not how talented you are and even if by chance you do get your foot in the door of one of the major companies most of the fun and creative side has been taken out and replaced with pure business and many a rule and regulation. How can we create a product for as cheep as we possibly can and mark it up as much as possible?
Not fun. Not interesting. Not ethical.

I am not going to even get into the horrible stereotypes fueled by the greedy fashion industry that start even in grade school.
comments like “Did you see her shoes?” or “Is that a faux Chanel bag she is carrying?”
are yet another hurdle our youth have to overcome to feel “accepted” or “normal”.

DISCLAIMER-

I am by no means telling you to avoid trying to look “cool” or shopping at the normal places you go to find that last minute dress you really need for the office Christmas party. I myself on occasion do darken the doors of several of the clothing chains that I previously mentioned. I personally believe that one must feel 100% conviction about something in order to properly boycott it and boycotting is not convenient in the busy fast paced country we live in.

We can do a whole lot more good in this world by finding and creating alternatives for the things we disagree with rather than standing outside businesses with signs and yelling at all who pass by.

That being said, here are a few positive things you can do to counteract all of the horrible things that go on behind the scenes of the world of fashion

• Be Creative Enough To Re-Invent The Clothes You Already Own

instead of reading to cheesy shopping magazines like Lucky that just make you want to BUY BUY BUY I would rather refer to The sartorialist and see what REAL people all over the globe are actually wearing on the streets. It is always visually inspiring, never boring and I usually come away with ideas of how to put pieces together that have been sitting in my closet forever in a whole new way.

• Buy Vintage and Thrift

It takes a little more time and yes your hands usually smell a little funny after sorting through chaotic racks of old clothes for a few hours but you are doing amazing things for the environment and mankind and chances are you will NEVER run into another girl with the same crazy floral print dress. You will be random, fashionable relevant, avant garde and one of a kind all wrapped up in one.

• Support Your Local Designers

Look into who the local designers are in your city. When starting out, young up and coming designers often have a hard time charging the money they want to get for their pieces due to the fact that no one has heard of them. Help them get their name out there by wearing their pieces and in turn you get great deals on exclusive clothing and a chance to be a little different. There are also scores of designers with merchandise available on the Internet take Jared Gold’s Black Chandelier line for example. Both inexpensive and interesting.

• Give Clothes That You Don’t Wear to Charities

Why throw things away when you can help others.
If you do not know of any local trustworthy charities to give to visit www.justgive.org

• Take a Sewing Class

If you have the spare time and the interest you should take the basic sewing class at your local fabric store even if all you desire to do is alter the fabulous things you find at the salvation army or take those old boot cut jeans that still fit and make them skinny jeans in just a few minutes.
If this is a little over your head, i suggest getting in touch with the college nearest you that has a design program. Fashion students need both experience and cash and will take in or let out things for much less than any alterations shop.

• Barter and Trade

So you are an amazing cook and your friend Erica can sew
Erica’s boyfriends parents are coming over for dinner and she is petrified. She always burns everything! You can cook a fabulous meal for her and in turn she will make that adorable high-wasted skirt with all the buttons you’ve been talking about for a month now.
bring back the bartering system. It is artsy and cool.
-

check out this London based designer’s fabulous fingerwear

My least favorite part of biking everywhere is the lack of anonymity.  I’ve been getting phone calls and texts everyday from people who “saw me biking around.”  I’m  not sure what the purpose of telling me that is, but it seems to really press on people to let me know.

I mean, I don’t think I look that cool with my bangs blowing straight back in the wind and my nose running (it’s allergy season).  On the really good days, I sport the latest of my accessories, “sweat,” as well.

Yesterday as I was biking home with a bunch of toilet paper under my arm, I couldn’t help but wonder what sort of social response to expect.  As I turned the corner onto my street, I was met by a torrent of bikers- all of which looked way more serious than I did in my ruffled taffeta shirt and slippery black flats.  They were all decked out in sportswear and helmets and spandex and their bikes probably even came from a recent decade.  I tried not to feel like a tool, but it was tough.  They were all staring at me, biking along at a good clip, holding my bath tissue.

This stuff isn’t for the hipster.

I’m in love.

I’ve always had a passion for all things periodic.  Thanks to uncrate.com, my heart has been stirred up yet again.  These rings are made of the element their anything-but-gaudy face displays.  They’re pretty expensive, but nerdy never looked so good.  ItsNoName sells these elemental bombshells if you’ve got 6 grand to spare.

This felt necklace is the perfect unique, yet simple, project for the avant-garde jewelry making novice.

To begin this project, you will need:

• 12-36 in of jewelry chain (gold, silver, bronze… whatever your little heart desires)
• 1, 12mm split jump ring (the color of your chain) - you can find this in the jewelry section of any craft store
• 1 findings clasp set for the ends of your chain
• Sharp X-acto knife
• Gem tac glue
• Rhinestones of your choice, plastic or crystal (crystal is expensive but sparkles 100 times more)
• Wire cutters
• Long nose pliersOption A
• A pre cut felt shapeOption B
• A sheet of felt (the thickest you can find in the color of your choice)
• A picture of your desired shape

You can do this two ways…

The Way Easy Way- Option A

• Cut a small hole in your felt shape, about half an inch from the top. You can find shapes like at your local craft store. I picked up some incredibly cool ones designed by Sharyn Sowell at Michael’s.

The Slightly More Difficult Way- Option B

• Use your picture or print out a fairly simple pattern (a skull or a flower, something with the least amount of line work possible)
• Get out your X-acto knife and cut out pieces of your thick sheet of felt, using the pattern as a stencil
• Don’t forget a small hole towards the top of the felt piece for the jump ring and chain

Now that you have your felt design ready…

• Select a 12 mm split jump ring
• Slide ring through the small hold you made in the felt
• Use your wire cutters to cut the chain to your desired length
• Place the clasp sets at the end of each side of the chain, tightening the rings as much as possible with your long nose pliers
• String chain onto jump ring (you should now be able to wear it as a necklace)
• Get out your rhinestones and plot out where you are going to place them on the felt design
• Use your gem tac glue (follow directions on bottle) and very carefully glue stones on one at a time

Final step…

Look FABULOUS