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Saturday, October 23, 2010

Fashionably musing

1. Is ignorance fashionable?
"At least, unlike Paris Hilton and her ilk, the Dumb Blonde of ’50s cinema had a firm grasp on one thing: It was cool to be smart. She aspired to read good books and be friends with intellectuals, even going so far as to marry one. But now another famous beauty with glowing skin and a powerful current, Sarah Palin, has made ignorance fashionable".
(Maureen Dowd, NY Times)

If this were true, it'd be so sad. But do we really think ignorance is sexy? What about the whole trend toward looking smart - geek chic? People are geeky and proud! I've always found intelligence really attractive, but I have a tendency to be totally old school like that.
image by Nina Westervelt

2. The continued discussion of what women wear on the way to power...
"They are for the most part “still walking a tightrope,” said Ms. Jahnke, who advises female candidates to adopt a high-quality, low-key wardrobe befitting a corporate chief executive. “You have to look approachable and, at the same time, look like you can handle the job,” she said. "
(Ruth La Ferla, NYTimes)
*sigh* I'm still bothered that we discuss fashion of women seeking leadership roles. Is it too feminine, too masculine? ugh. Maybe we need to change what's valued in the leadership role to make it more available to women

3. H&M released pictures of a few dresses from its collaboration with Lanvin


I'm interested to see what these look like IRL. What do y'all think of these dresses? Those big poofy one-shouldered dresses remind me of the Leifsdottir Blooming Brilliance blouse.

Although I was pretty in love with the color and print of that blouse, these H&M Lanvin dresses might be easier for more people to wear because the black color and solid pattern tones down the one-shoulder-poof look :)

4. Glee "fashion shoot" in GQ see GQ images here. [thanks for the link Oliver!]
Wow, I did not want to see the Glee characters spread like this. Did they really need this to boost ratings? I guess, at least it wasn't Emma Pillsbury in the photos. I know I shouldn't be surprised that GQ has images completely objectifying women (and of course Finn is fully clothed). Rachel's pics are the raunchiest of the bunch, and it reminds me of another Rachel with an uncomfortable photo shoot. Remember, the over-the-topness of FHM's Rachel Ray shoot? It is forever buuuuurnnnneed in my mind for being a bit too disturbing :(. And in writing this blurb, I found that I wasn't the first to associate the Glee and Rachel Ray photo spreads. See poll for which photo shoot is worse here.

5. More on the lack of plus-size women's fashion
"By the numbers it just doesn't seem right. Nearly 65% of American women are overweight, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, and of those, more than 35% are obese. Yet most designer collections end at size 10. And on hundreds of high-fashion runways at international fashion weeks this month and last, ultra-slim models were wearing trendsetting designs that will never be manufactured in sizes to fit most American women."
(Valli Herman, LA Times)

The Cut finds that most design schools don't even teach pattern-making for plus-sizes.

WHY NOT?? I'm sorry but women large or small can be chic and sexy.


[images from google of plus-size model Crystal Renn on the runway]

Well, for those who think that fashion is only for the skinny and models, I tell them to take a look at these beautiful and stylish bloggers (e.g., Young Fat and Fabulous, Fatshionable, Corpulent). Designers should count themselves lucky to design clothes for these lovely ladies!

6. In preparation for the colder and wetter days of Fall and Winter, I've been stocking up on more new tights on ebay And I thought I'd share a couple ebay sellers I came across :)

secret-seller (DKNY and HUE stockings, like this crochet-flowered tights or this black plaid pair)
yenancy (some fun patterned stockings like these heart ones or these heart ones, ok. I guess I like hearts :))


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9 comments:

Sammie said...

I am DYING to see the h&m lanvin collabo! Sigh. I bet there will be people lining up once the merchandise hits the stores!!!

vintageglam1234 said...

Lori, this is a great post, even though there aren't any OOTD pictures of yourself!
Geek chic is a cool look, and it's good to see that intelligence is not associated with geekiness these days (or to a lesser degree). I find intelligence very attractive. Glasses used to be only for nerds,now everyone worth their weight in Marc Jacobs is wearing em.
With the Glee thing, i don'tthink it was neccessary. Why is sex such a big seller in today's world? I want to see more class and less crass.
AS for plus-sized models - Good for them. Bigger girls DO look as good as thin girls. Renn looks like a goddess and she has curves in all the right places. I see more and more magazines in Australia use "healthy" models, which is refreshing!
Oh those stockings are lovely. I love hearts too!!
Jen

SRP said...

In an effort to find the perfect shade of "berry" for my southward stop dress I bought 3 pairs of tights yesterday with mere slight variance in color. I have a hearty collection myself. I keep them in a boot box and feel like I'm picking my tea every time I pull the back the top of the box.

Mandy said...

Awesome post!! I enjoyed every word, especially about the plus sized models. I used to waft between sizes 10-16 until age 22, and there is definitely a lack of recognition in the fashion industry for ladies who are considered plus sized.

Matt said...

Thanks for this post! I really enjoyed reading it and agree with so much of what you had to say! :)

Anonymous said...

Great post. I'm not a fan of geek chic. The big black glasses are just a bit too much.

Enter to win a $35 gift certificate to CSN stores now through October 31st!

Melanie@UnravelledThreads

Laura said...

Lori,

When you think about it, most high fashion does not translate well to the average woman, large or small.

And most clothing styles don't translate to all sizes either. Designers, like most of us, work with what they know, including body size. So in conclusion, there are less designers for larger sizes.

Many designers were once Models themselves. Take Tracey Porter for example. Who now designs and models her own clothing line. I can't wear a thing she makes.

Don't get me started on Leifsdottir. I was once a fan. But that has changed of late. The only items I have purchased this year are two skirts on sale.

Since all the Glee stars are 20 somethings acting in teen roles, this is just an attempt to break out of their teen roles, and bring attention to the fact that they can act their age. Which seems to include trashy. I only watch Glee for the fun of spotting the Anthro.

I am concluding my week long Reader's Challenge that Styles the Yellow Cloud for Fall. I think you will like what I did for Style #5. Please help me wrap up by putting my outfits to the Vote.

Vote for your Favorite Yellow Cloud Style

Laura

Jamie - Thrifty Threads said...

I think geek chic is making a comeback. At least, I hope so. Once I am finished with the BBCA challenge, I think I'll do a "Too School for Cool" post, with a plaid skirt and school girl blazer (but toally unsexy, because there's enough of that happening already).

The Rachel Ray photo shoot from a few years back totally floored me. I actually thought it was a hoax with a lookalike!

Frances said...

Thank you for linking to me - it's a pretty big compliment to be included with Gabi from YFF and Jay from Fatshionable!

Re: geek chic - it annoys me only because I wear thick rimmed glasses in order to see (the frames are Cutler and Gross - LABEL DROP) and people ask me whether they're 'real' or not.

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