CRS 231-Fashion: Art or Usability?

Many people have always seen high fashion as more of an art form then actual clothing that is wearable. When looking at the designer’s collections from New York, Paris, and Milan, we see clothing that one couldn’t imagine wearing on an everyday basis. For example, how many people are we going to see wearing a transparent dress on the street? My guess is not very many at all. However, when comparing the fashion weeks in these three cities, Milan takes the credit for designing clothing not to be worn, but more to be recognized as art. Although the clothing we saw at New York fashion week may not all be extremely wearable, it certainly possess more usability for the fashion conscious person.
When I think of art, I think of beautiful and complex paintings, structures, or drawings that are meant to be admired by the human eye. Milan fashion week was remarkably similar to how one would feel when stepping into an art museum. In the beginning of the Milan fashion week video on Style.com, Tim Blanks comments that this kind of fashion fell “somewhere between technology and transparency.” The clothing that we saw in Milan was nothing less than complex and I felt it had much more emotion and meaning behind it than the fashion we witnessed in New York and Paris. I believe that it is important for apparel to provoke a certain feeling from the viewer or wearer, giving the clothing a “soul,” as if it were an entity that was live in its own form. Many of the pieces we saw in Milan were airy and soft but, to counter act that, the shoes were undeniably geometric and structured. I thought that we really got to see the amount of craft a designer has in the outcome of the shoes they created. One “fashionista” on the Style.com video stated that buyers and designers are really questioning, “How high can you go? (regarding the heels)” and much like art, the sky’s the limit.
Milan really stood apart from New York and Paris simply because the designers really captured the essence of what true high fashion is about, art. New York, especially, displayed amazing clothing that people here in American might connect with more because it is more wearable and possesses usability. For example, Vera Wang and Calvin Klein both created a line that many women can look at and say “I could see myself wearing that.” I personally enjoyed watching and analyzing Milan fashion week the most due to the fact that it really pushed the envelope, was extremely edgy, but was still ground down here on earth at the same time.

RCS 362-Outdoor Advertising

Everyday we are bombarded with outdoor advertising, on the way to work, school, out to dinner, etc. The most common form that I come in contact with are billboard advertisements, some more effective than others. Food billboards seem to be pretty effective on me, they always make me hungry even if I don't necessarily like what is being advertised.
The most clever outdoor advertisement that I have seen recently is the one that we studied in class, the law firm that posted on it's billboard, "Life's short, Get a divorce." Obviously the ad wasn't meant to be taken literally, nevertheless, there probably were a lot of people that found it to be offensive. However, I believe this particular law firm was banking on people getting upset over the ad because it then stick's out in one's mind, it certainly is not forgettable. It also got people talking, circulating the name of this law firm. In my opinion, it was a pretty smart (and funny) way of grasping people's attention.
There is a new Rush that opened up on Battleground recently. The Rush is a well-known chain gym. Almost everyone knows about the gym due to the bright colors they use outside their gyms. Every time I drive by one, I cannot miss it because it is that bright, it sticks out amongst the surrounding stores. If the flashy appearance isn't enough advertisement itself, the newly opened gym distributed coasters to close by restaurants and bars. I recently went to Ham's at Battleground to grab a drink with a friend. When the bartender brought me my drink, he set it on the bright colored coaster, advertising the new Rush. The bartender even said we could take them home with us, I'm not sure if he was instructed to tell us that or not. Although this might not necessarily be an "outdoors" ad, it is definitely different from the traditional billboard or TV advertisement. I thought it was a pretty creative idea, however, I already belong to a gym.

CRS 231-Inspirations for my dream dress

I have never been good at drawing or sketching, hence the reason why I went with the retailing side of the CARS program. I have, however, been pretty imaginative. I created a dress in my mind a couple years ago and deemed it my dream dress. It has not changed since I thought of it years ago (I believe it was around prom time), which means to me that it is really something special.
Every woman dreams of attending a sort of event that where they could wear such a dress that would make them look and feel more beautiful. I don't think that I have any specific inspiration for this dress, it seems to be a combination of things in the fashion world that inspire me and also styles that would be flattering on my body. My personal favorite color to wear is black, needless to say the dress is black. I have always thought that it looks best on blondes, really off-setting the hair color. The dress is cut out in the back, revealing a large portion of it, dipping all the way down to my lower back. I did this for two reasons, one being that an open back has always been a sexy, yet classy, way to show skin, and secondly because I like the look of my back. The top of the dress wraps around my dress, opposite of how a halter top would, embellished with intricate beading. This would draw the eye to the top of the dress, drawing closer attention to my shoulders and neck, another part of a woman's body that has always been more feminine and sexy. From there down, the dress is simple, flowing black chiffon all the way to the floor. I recognize that this kind of dress would be not only difficult to make but also difficult to wear, especially considering the cut out back. The sides of the dress would have to be taped down to the sides of me, to ensure that no one could see inside the dress.
I have recently been trying on bridesmaids dresses for my sister's wedding and I found a dress that is similar to the dress I have created in my mind. It is made out of the same material and has the open back that I love so much. It was almost as if I was wearing the dress I had imagined for so long. Perhaps, by trying on more dresses over the next couple months, I will become inspired to change my dream dress, or maybe even create a new one.

CRS 362- Ethnic influences on apparel design

It's no secret that different ethnicity's have a major impact on our apparel design today. I believe that it brings a unique style to the traditional American design. You can look at designers such as Free People and see that it is indirectly influenced by a different culture. Free People consists of a lot of bohemian designs, something you maybe seen wore in the Caribbean. Also, after researching the most recent New York Fashion week, much of the style I saw was European.
The most common ethnic design that I see is the large bangles and "junky" jewelery. This fad came about a couple years ago and has really stuck. I see girls wearing this almost everyday. It reminds me of a more Indian style, however, it is quickly losing its ethnic feel due to the fact that is has become so "Americanized."
I would really like to see more ethnic designs make its way to everyday fashion here. It would be interesting to see the American take on Chinese or Japanese style.

RCS 362- "When Pigs Fly"

I heard about Flat Earth chips when I was at Subway one day for lunch. The chips were offered as a side to one’s sandwich. I automatically knew that the product had to have some sort nutritional value if they were accessible there but I didn’t get a chance to read the label. I most certainly agree with the positioning of Flat Earth. I think the name of the brand is quite clever as well. It does seems impossible for a half a serving of fruits or vegetables to be baked into every ounce of a chip and it still taste good, hence the name Flat Earth. To insure the validity of their claim I would have to try the product and I will the next chance I get. I believe they have done a great job in intriguing potential consumers.

The commercial for Flat Earth chips was excellent, even down to the music. It was an upbeat tune (feeling of being happy) and pictured a well manicured female following a pink pig around her home. I liked that they used the saying “when pigs fly.” Much like the name of the brand we all know that it is impossible for pigs to fly. It really drives home the message for the viewers that even though this concept may seem ridiculous, its not.

If the brand was to position itself to a younger audience such as college women I would suggest they make a point to advertise how much the product cost, something on the mind of every college student. When I saw the ad, the thought that the chips would be expensive ran through my mind. My idea for a commercial, if they were advertising to a college age crowd, would be women at a study session munching on a bowl of Flat Earth chips. This would say to me, not only are these girls smart because they are studying but also because they are eating these chips. However, I think that the existing commercial speaks to, obviously women, but to a wide age range. Every woman, young or old, is going to think that the pink pig in the commercial is adorable. It’s like if there are puppies in an advertisement, almost all women are going to connect with that.

CRS 231-New York Fashion Week

New York Fashion Week is known for being the premier fashion show in the world. People that aren’t even interested in fashion have heard of this event. This is the week where top designers get to unveil their collections to other designers and wealthy clients. The people that attend New York Fashion Week are of the finest in the fashion industry and many celebrities. While scrolling through the list of designers, I came across many names that I didn’t know. Some of the names that I did recognize and admire were BCBG Maxazria, Betsey Johnson, Calvin Klein, and Miss Sixty.
I went through and watched many of the videos from designers that I knew and didn’t know, looking for a common link to connect them all. However, I came to the realization that each designer was so different from the next, whether it was the material used or color palette chosen. One of my favorites to watch was Miss Sixty. Although the clothes may not be wearable for the average person like me, it was edgy and unique, more so than the other designers I looked at. The collection was extremely sexy, consisting of long flowing dresses (with matching bags) to tight short shorts. A wide assortment of material was used, each piece unlike the next. It definitely kept my attention. The one consistency I found was the knee high, striped stockings on almost every model, almost as if was a trade mark of Miss Sixty. I could absolutely see high fashion women in Europe wearing this line.
Calvin Klein was another designer that presented a terrific collection (no surprise there). Unlike Miss Sixty, this line was very structured but still extremely feminine. The majority of the pieces were a nude color; occasionally I saw a pop of blue of silver in one of the dresses. In my opinion, this collection is certainly wearable for women in America that are interested in fashion. I think this line was targeted to professional women. The dresses were amazing, and the material used looked really comfortable as well. The entire line was very appealing to the eye.

Bibliography:
IMG Fashion. (2008). Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Retrieved September 18,2008 from http://www.mbfashionweek.com/newyork/spring2009/home.html.

CRS 231-Organic and Environmental Friendly Clothing

I was very unfamiliar with organic clothing. I haven't heard much about it, usually I hear about organic food or environmental friendly cars. I did a little research on it and I've come to the conclusion that I have mixed feelings regarding the issue. Recently it seems that American is all about "going green," which I certainly support. However, I do not believe I would wear organic clothing even if it is environmental friendly. I have never been in a organic clothing store but from what I can gather from the Internet and textbook, the color of the apparel isn't as bright as what we may be used to wearing. Moreover, it seems to be extremely expensive. I have been guilty of spending more on clothes and accessories probably more than necessary, however, I would not spend the same amount of money on something that isn't as bright or look the way I wanted it to. I know that I can support the green effort in other ways such as driving a hybrid car. I would be interested to visit a store that solely carries organic clothing, maybe I would feel differently on the issue.