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Its comical that you have made a choice you think has exempted you from the fashion industry, when in fact youre wearing a sweater that was selected for you by the very people in this room from a pile of stuff, Miranda Priestly says in the movie The Devil Wears Prada while referring to Andys hideous cerulean sweater. This statement moves my head up then down as I take in my reflection. I am questioning whether my straight-leg Gap pants paired with layered tops and adorable silver buckle atop soft-leather BCBG flats were really a choice of my own or the choice of fashion designers and fashion editors.
As an OU student, I walk across campus daily and see a plethora of fashion choices. Girls wear skinny jeans, long patterned tops, leggings, and wedges. And they carry oversized bags in cotton, canvas and leather with accessories like aviator sunglasses, turquoise bauble bracelets, gold classic chains and pearl stud earrings. Clothes are worn to cover our backs, assume a certain identity, or to reflect the way we feel or want to feel about ourselves. Designer Ralph Lauren said, I dont design clothes. I design dreams. To someone a pink taffeta skirt in size four is a dream turned into a reality, while to someone else that same skirt is a Pepto-Bismol disaster.
The subjectivity and opportunity of choice that fashion brings us should be appreciated during the monotonous routine of getting dressed and ready for the day. Designer Coco Chanel said, Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street; fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.
This past week, fashion has been whats happening in Bryant Park, New York. White tents synonymous with Fashion Week were up the night before September 5 th and werent taken down until the last model walked the runway September 12 th . America s center of fashion, New York , brings designers, models, editors, and buyers together once every year to premiere spring fashion collections. This week of flamboyant creativity and stilettos began in 1943 as Press Week when Eleanor Lambert, a well-known publicist, organized the affair. But it wasnt until 1994 that Bryant Park became the location, and modern Fashion Week arrived on the scene.
This year Mercedes-Benz was the sponsor of Fashion Week and 75 collections were displayed. Collections included Bill Bass, L.A.M.B., Badgley Mischka, Vera Wang, DKNY, Michael Kors, Betsey Johnson, Carolina Herrera and Tommy Hilfiger to name only a few. Two of these 75 designers stand out in my mind from the blur of pants and dresses, not just because of their interesting pieces, but because of the attitude within the design.
L.A.M.B., a clothing line by Gwen Stefani, took to the runway opening night of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. L.A.M.B. featured tailored pieces that had masculine details like thin ties, suspenders, zippers and plaid. Black and white was the color theme that appeared in almost every single look and gave short dresses a mod twist. Bright pops of blue, green, red and yellow appeared in shoes, belts and the plaid fabric. Not all of the collection had a masculine feel however, and high-waist skirts with thick belts and cropped jackets brought a needed feminine touch. A majority of the outfits were paired with bags recalling a high society out to walk the dog feel. Overall, this collection can be seen as a reflection of designer Gwen Stefanis own personal style with some 60s characteristics displayed through color choice and cut of the pieces.
Betsey Johnson, designer of the Betsey Johnson collection, lived up to her girlie design flair with a clothing line that expresses the prom queen in every woman. Over-the-top poof was the key to Johnsons collection. Dresses were full with layer upon layer of tulle laced with glitter and sequins. All the colors of the rainbow appeared in the collection with the emphasis on bright: pink, purple, green, yellow and turquoise. Bows and polka dots could not be left out either. Cropped jackets in leopard print and pink fur were another key to keeping Johnsons line fresh. The style of the clothing line projected a sexy 50s pin-up vibe.
Both L.A.M.B. and Betsey Johnson presented fashion lines that speak for very diverse personalities and show only a glimpse of the other possibilities Mercedes-Benz Fashion week brought to the public. Located in Bryant Park until 2010, Fashion Week will continue to display clothes not just for your back but clothes for every faade that allows you to be a brunch dining girl one day and a night club girl the next. And if youve worn that pink taffeta dress, but now feel, What the hell was I thinking? consider the words of Oscar Wilde. F ashion is merely a form of ugliness so unbearable that we are compelled to alter it every six months. So, just slip into something new then walk out the door feeling the way you want to feel.
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