 Scenes From The Movie, The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby will open in theaters on May 10th. The film is a modern adaptation from the popular F. Scott Fitzgerald novel. The story depicts the glamorous glitz of the wealthy in a fictional town who lives are filled with disenchantment and despair. It is a beautifully tragic story made more heart-wrenching due to the magnificent setting and elegant attire in which, for the most part, we find our protagonists. A beautiful and facile setting teeming with disillusionment, selfishness, and deceit. It is both a modern day Romeo and Juliet and a cautionary tale of moral decay and its effects on the modern woman of the time popularly known as, The Flapper. "I felt a haunting loneliness sometimes, and felt it in others--young clerks in the dusk, wasting the most poignant moments of night and life." 
Scenes From The Movie, The Great Gatsby
Les Garconnes, The Modern Woman and 1920s Fashion
 The Modern Woman, 1920s So who exactly was this modern day temptress, modern society's Desdemona? These young women who during WWI had, many for the first time, entered the workforce outside of the home and discovered not only that they could have earning power, but political and social freedoms were also theirs for the taking. The traditional societal rules and mores know longer could hold sway for these women who were now faced, due to the heavy casualty toll taken during the war, with having to continue working outside the home as well as the imminent possibility of spinsterhood. The expectations of staying home to care for the household and be taken care of by their husbands know longer applied for these young women. After WWI, not only had the world changed, but also, for the first time in history, gender rules were turned upside down. The old set of values no longer did apply. These young women and young men, many of which were war survivors, were now going to play hard and enjoy life to the fullest. “(…) the New Woman of the 1920s boldly asserted her right to dance, drink, smoke, and date—to work her own property, to live free of the strictures that governed her mother’s generation. (…) She flouted Victorian-era conventions and scandalized her parents. In many ways, she controlled her own destiny.” 
1920s Flapper
1920s Flapper
 Art Deco Fashions-1920s The term, Flapper, first appeared in Great Britain and was coined as a derogatory term to describe a young woman out of the nest "flapping" her wings, yet still not having learned to fly. American authors, like F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Held Jr., brought the term, Flapper, to the United States. Instead of a floundering and lost girl, Fitzgerald reinvented the ideal flapper to be "lovely, expensive, and about nineteen." Of course, when we consider the Flapper image today, we imagine wild, independent women who mocked the values of traditional society by cutting their hair to a short bob-length, raising their skirts to reveal long, slender legs, wearing heavy make-up, dancing the Charleston, staying out late to enjoy Prohibition gin in seedy, smoky speakeasies, and freely enjoying the attention of many male suitors. Instead of listening to the advice of their mothers, these women were not afraid to think for themselves and make their own decisions (good or bad). 
French designer, Coco Chanel, credited for popularizing the look of the 1920s modern woman, The Flapper
 Louise Brooks, popular 1920s film star Coco Chanel is credited as the designer who popularized the Flapper look which was characterized by a slim, boyish silhouette, called garconne (little boy). Gone were the tight, constricting corsets, heavy skirts, and pantaloons, of prior fashion periods, instead women would tightly wrap bandages around their chest in order to appear more slim and boyish. Dresses were typically worn to emphasize the arms with most dresses sleeveless. Bare arms allowed women to show off their tans and gave the appearance of women who were fit, healthy, active, and sporty. The waistline for a Flapper's dress was a dropped waistline, typically falling at the hips. Dresses were loose and comfortable with short, full skirts which easily flipped and twirled during movement so one could catch a glimpse of rouged knee, whether a young woman was swishing and swaying along a busy city street or shimmying and shagging to the latest jazz craze of the period. Silk or rayon stockings were worn with garters rolled over the coveted, rouged knees. Flappers would often complete their outfit with a short brimmed, bell-shaped, closely fitted cloche hat worn over their short, boyishly cut hair. The entire look of the Flapper was designed to emulate an easy, breezy woman in love with life and enjoying every carefree minute of it. 
1920s Bridesmaid Dress-Art Deco Details
1920s Evening Dress
1920s Evening Dress
 Carrie Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, The Great Gatsby The 1920s was not only a gay time filled with parties, but also a very prosperous economic time with a new breed of self-made, nouveau riche milionaires who wanted to flaunt their newly found wealth. The men would purchase extravagant mansions and cars while the women lavished themselves with expensive jewelry and furs. Parties provided a perfect opportunity to display and flaunt all the beautiful things the newly rich were now able to afford. Everyone wanted to glitter and shine like the popular movie stars on the silver screens. Sequins, lame, furs, exotic feathers, pearls, and art deco influenced costume jewelry were the standards for evening wear. In addition to art deco, the discovery of King Tut's tomb in 1922 led to Egyptian influences in dress and popular culture, such as the wearing of heavy kohl eyeliner, the color 'nile' green, and jewelry in gold and lapis lazuli. The ancient Egyptian culture, like the 1920s, was known for its opulence and decadent display of wealth and luxury. During the 1920s, the nouveau riche lived a lifestyle that celebrated their newly hard-earned money and the women wanted to show their riches off to the world, sparkling and glittering in gold lame, expensive cars, covered in rhinestone jewelry and heavy make-up. These women, with their swaying, fringed dresses, were the early bloom of the modern woman. Although oftentimes misguided, many sought to break away from restricting societal beliefs about women and wanted not only to flap their wings, but to soar above the limitations of life and take flight, like Icarus, fearlessly and gracefully following the never-ending, luminescent glow of the sun towards a new age. An age that would deliver on its promise to have the freedom to choose...who to love and how to live, . 
Gucci, Spring/Summer 2012
Ralph Lauren, Spring/Summer 2012
Etro, Spring/Summer 2012
Modern-day interpretations of 1920s fashion
 Le garconne, Louise Brooks Please feel free to share your thoughts and comments.
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 Kurt Cobain, grunge style leader So, yes, yet another tiresome blog post about grunge....but I think this one may be my last grunge post...at least for a while. Having "Come of Age" in the 1990s, I find myself continually drawn to "any" fashion industry "bit" that relates directly back to this time period...and now, in this very moment, the "bit" happens to be grunge. Grunge is back! Although, I question if it ever really left as it, in my opinion, is less a fashion statement or style and more of a social or cultural expression. For example, I may want to find solace and comfort in my own company, but due to basic life necessities, like groceries, I may find myself forced to leave my warm cocoon, drag on my most comfortable and comforting baggy sweater, over my well-worn band tee-shirt, and throw on my oldest, but fondest patched and ripped pair of jeans. Did I just go "grunge?" Maybe I wanted to disappear in my clothing and knew I would be the least bothered and the most comfortable in these old, raggedly, but familiar clothing. Just a thought...just saying.... Kurt Cobain, whom many consider the style leader in the grunge movement, was definitely not a follower of fashion. He was a sensitive, creative, lost soul who wanted to create music, but found, as the front man of one of the most popular bands of the century, he was also expected to chase after fame and money. Now, anyone who has done even a cursory study of Kurt Cobain and his many different dress attire would be quick to raise an eyebrow at the faintest idea the Kurt Cobain was a trend-setter, a fashionista, or a poster boy for a fashion movement. Now...a poster boy for a socio-cultural movement...then yes, no raised eyebrows and a lot of strong head-nodding at this point. I still remember running across Kurt Cobain, with his wife and daughter, in a coffee shop sharing ideas with Michael Stipe, REM. He was dressed in his usual grunge attire and pretty much looked like everyone else in Espresso Royale. I nearly fainted when I realized who I was sitting next to while studying for the next endless round of tests, working on my thesis, and hanging out with my friends. College is truly where we all learn to be great multi-taskers. He wasn't flashing fancy designer labels or a big entourage, but was truly a musician of the people who wanted to just blend in the crowd and enjoy the solace or comfort of "not" being recognized by rabid fans or hounded by the media. Athens, at that time, was a place where a lot of actors, creatives, and musicians discovered they could just throw up their hands and go grunge (lol) and "not" be disturbed. 
Grunge, circa 1990s
 So what did grunge really look like...well, I guess it looked and smelled a lot...like teen spirit. {Sorry, couldn't resist this one;)} The music and the energy of this particular decade, like any decade I guess, was an outlet to resist conformity and promote self-expression while at the same time "finding" yourself. The youth, Generation X, was bored with mainstream music as it had become overly-commercialized and synthesized...now, this may feel very familiar as we are experiencing much of the same in today's "popular" music. So, young people during the early 1990s sought alternative music much of which was being played by college radio stations and produced by small record labels. The music itself was a combination of hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock. The music had a hard, grinding sound and sound this type of music produced was described as grunge. Hence grunge was "born." Bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and SoundGarden popularized grunge music which was music that largely addressed issues of social alienation, confinement, apathy, discomfort with social prejudices, and a general theme of social disenchantment with the state of society. It was depressive and angst-filled which young, college-age listeners connected as ,in many respects, this music represented their feelings of powerlessness, frustration, and confusion about the current state of the world and their future. 
Grunge converse, circa 1990s
 So where did all the focus on the clothing come from? Well, we all know the fashion industry's tendency to jump on any and all "new" trends that surface on the mainstream. This is how we make money, right? By giving the people what they want....or at least what "we" think they want. In 1992 Marc Jacobs was working for Perry Ellis and was also heavily into grunge as well as coke, heroin, and alcohol, decided he wanted to show a collection inspired by grunge clothing. The press loved it...Perry Ellis, not so much. The collection was actually never produced or sold in retail stores. Jacobs was fired, but not defeated. His 2013 resort line, Marc by Marc Jacobs Resort 2013 is considered a reinvention of his love and obsession with all things grunge. The paradox with the grunge fashion trend was that grunge with its emphasis on cheap and worn thrift clothing, outdoor clothing, and a general unkempt appearance was completely an anti-fashion statement. The clothing worn was definitely not a conscious attempt to create fashion as one musician journalist is known to have quoted "Kurt Cobain was just too lazy to shampoo." 
 Grunge looks 2013 So, today's youth has "rediscovered" grunge and there is, like with all things fashion, a subculture that is earnestly involved in grunge fashion. Today's grunge wearers are, of course, very different from the grunge wearer of the 90s. Primarily in that these followers are very conscious that they are recreating an "anti-fashion" fashion statement as opposed to being just too lazy or disinterested to care if their hair is clean, their jeans are ripped and torn (in all the wrong places, and if their general attire fits the social occasion. There are now articles and blogs explaining how you can look "edgy and cool" by dressing grunge. And yes, grunge is a great buzzword to throw around to grab the attention of the press who are looking for ways to convince their younger and more fickle target audience that they are still cool and relevant...yeah, "with it" by tossing around phrases like, "grunge glam" or "luxe grunge." I'm, like, huh? Grunge and glamour in the same sentence is simply laughable and puts those who accept these terms as very close in the box of "fashion victim." 
Grunge 2013
Grunge 2013
Grunge 2013
 Grunge, 2013 It's always great to see the youth embrace a past fashion movement and to see styles "refashioned." This is how fashion moves; it is a cyclical turning and returning of self-expression and popular culture. Grunge dress is for the young, disenchanted, and decidedly tired of being just another Justin Bieber or Selena Gomez look-alike...aside from the popular culture icons, not much has changed. So, keep thrifting...great for the environment and the pocketbook, keep doing you and deciding it's ok to mix plaid flannels with ripped jeans and combat boots (all easily and cheaply found in your local thrift store) and remember, grunge is less of a fashion statement and more of an attitude that looks and smells a whole lot like "teen" spirit;).  Fashion Snoops S/S 2014 Tradeshow Report-Grunge Fashion Freelance Works! Find out how I can work for you by submitting your contact information on this website.
 Biyan S/S 2013, Biyan.com Biyan Wanaatmadja is Indonesia's most successful fashion designer to date. He was born in Surabaya, Indonesia and studied fashion design in Germany and England where he graduated from the prestigious London College of Fashion. Biyan's designs are characterized by elegant tailoring, luxurious fabrications, intricate embroidery, and expressive prints. His collections consistently create a statement of feminine beauty and movement that is both timeless and transcendent...spanning cultural, social, and philosophical definitions of yin. Click on the video link and learn more about Biyan's design philosophy and see his designs in action, in movement, on the catwalk.  Biyan S/S 2013, Biyan.com  Biyan S/S 2013, Biyan.com So admittedly, Biyan's S/S 2013 collection is beautiful in its own right. The collection is a wispy dream of gentle pastel colors, impassioned florals, exquisite, sparkling hand-beading that twinkles and winks, catching the light with every slight movement from the wearer...truly a vision of beauty that walks in the night and emerges in the midst of daydreams. The collection's Edwardian homage is apparent in every element used to describe its loveliness...light, flowy silk fabrics, intricate hand-beading, floral embroideries, and soft pastels.  Photo still, Downton Abbey I was instantly struck by the luxe romanticism of Biyan's S/S 2013 collection and my mind stopped...as I had an intermingled moment of excitement and "deja vu". Biyan's collection felt new to me due to its blatant and unapologetic homage to the romantic, demure female of a time lost and its fearless belief that this female still could and "should" exist in today's liberated, but maybe not sooo free, cultural and political society. And yet, it did indeed remind me of time gone by; a time when high society took leisurely strolls along the promenade, long summer afternoons spent enjoying croquet or lawn tennis, or mingling, parasol in hand, at garden parties. Although, the femininity of women is emphasized during this time period, it is also the dawning of the women's suffrage movement, moving on the cusp of the Flapper era of the 1920s.  Edwardian Tea Gown, hand-embroidered, beaded, circa 1910, http://www.vintagetextile.com/gallery_edwardian.htm  Velvet evening dress, circa 1910, http://pinterest.com/gaia58/elegance-extremity-the-edwardian-age-1901-1913/  1907 Emerald green silk satin evening gown with jet beading by San Fransisco designer McGrath, circa 1907, http://pinterest.com/gaia58/elegance-extremity-the-edwardian-age-1901-1913/ During the Edwardian period, the popular women's silhouette was the hour-glass figure (can I get a shout-out to the curvy girls:)?). As women became more involved in sports, clothing became lighter in construction and materials, hence the popular lingerie and tea dresses. Same as seen in Biyan's S/S 2013 collection, women's fashions were heavily influenced by the Art Nouveau movement which emphasized the use of natural forms and structures, incorporating flowers, plants, and curved lines in designs.  Detail of Art Nouveau influences in Edwardian dress.  Black cotton velvet and silk Chantilly Lace gown, circa 1910, http://pinterest.com/gaia58/elegance-extremity-the-edwardian-age-1901-1913/  Biyan, S/S 2013, Biyan.com  Three poses of the Gibson Girl, Charles Dana Gibson I think it's interesting to note that although the feminine was emphasized in shape and form during the Edwardian time period, this is the same era where women gained more confidence to enter the workforce and push for women's rights reforms. Dubbed the New Woman and popularized as The Gibson Girl, these women sought their independence by pursuing education and careers...so, maybe Biyan's exquisite vision of the beautiful, romantic, womanly butterfly cannot just exist, but thrive in today's society. A woman's strength can be ephemeral, soft, light as well as exude boldness, energy, and grace. What do you think? Please share your thoughts as I would love to hear your thoughts about the Biyan S/S 2013 collection and/or my interpretation of the collection. So, now I'm a huge fan of Pinterest...great resource for visual images, inspiration, and trends...if you haven't already...JOIN! Wikipedia rules too...just be sure to read multiple sources and books are still great for information:).
Fashion Freelance Works! Find out how I can work for you by submitting your contact information on this website. Rodarte’s Spring 09 line sought to create a tenuous link between the ancient Greek Gods and renowned Earth artist, Robert Smithson.  Enantiomorphic Chambers  Four-sided Vortex  Heap of Language  Displacement   Spiral Jetty  The ancient Greek's had a preoccupation with the human form and thus, clothing was draped and pinned to accentuate the body. As well as white, popular colors included violet, green, and grey.  replications of ancient Greek pins known as fibulas.     Rodarte Spring 09     a.) 1960s orange chiffon dress b.) i. magnin dress and coat c.) 1950s satin gown d.) 1950s floral dress One of the more prevailing fashion trends for Spring 09 involves combining nostalgia with a modern twist. This mismash of styles has evolved into a type of eccentric dressing up with classic styles married to quirky colors and clashing prints.  The style has a Jackie-O meets Phyllis Diller, but with more classy "O" touches and less "Ditzy Dill" appeal.  It is both fun and irreverant, while also evoking a sense of the classic lady who would lunch and meet the girls for tea or breakfast at Tiffany's.  The overall fashion is a bit of a throwback to a time that involved niceties and a more personal touch, such as Sunday visits to the in-laws or writing (by hand) letters to long-lost friends. The prim and proper with a dash of whimsy trend is recreated with the use of boxy silhouettes, pencil or A-line skirts, Chanel-inspired box jackets, pretty florals, and sherbert pastels.  As well as giant bows, the collection was also punctuated with full ruffles and roses with dominant colors in black, white, a dusky violet and teal. On paper, it all sounds very girly and sweet, but the pictures tell another story...one that involves a sweet girl who has gone more than a little madcap, think Betty Davis in "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane" and then you will begin to recognize the story behind the Moschino Spring 09 collection.      Looking to recapture the glory days of being a lady, be "That Girl," or just have a little fun dressing up to meet your friends for Saturday brunch, then here are a few vintage options to start with:   1980s vintage|nasty gal   1960s vintage|woodland farms vintage   1980s vintage|vagabond nyc One of the prevailing themes for the Spring 09 season saw designers exploring form and function. This concept focused on the shape of garments as well as the reinterpretion of familiar silhouettes. The idea of allowing shapes to dominate in the design process is not new as many designers, especially from the 1960s, such as Rudi Gernreich, Mary Quant and Andre Courreges, took their inspirations from architecture and space age exploration.  Vogue|Vintage spotlights André Courrèges who was a French fashion designer known for his ultra-modern designs. He initially began his career designing for Balenciaga, but eventually opened his own house in 1961. His approach to design was heavily influenced by his civil engineer background. He was described as building rather than designing his clothes as many of his clothes were geometric in shape: squares, trapezoids, and triangles.  Courreges was also one of the most copied dress-designer of his era, but this is to be understood as mass production of clothing had really begun to take off during this time period due to the high demand from the teenaged Baby Boomer population. In 1964, Courrege introduced a new space age collection designed around a boxy silhouette. Shortly after, retailers were stocking their stores with plastic skirts and jackets, crash helmets, white boots, and goggles in order to meet the high demand.    Ferre S09  70s Kimono Dress|Vagabond NYC  Architectural Panel Dress|Nasty Gal  80s Ruffle Dress|Nasty Gal Vogue|Vintage Remembers Stephen Sprouse With Diane Von Furstenberg\'s Spring 09 Collection4/12/2009  Stephen Sprouse was a prolific and talented designer who defined punk rock glamour during the 1980s. His designs were hallmarked by sixties-inspired neon graffiti prints and silk satin mini-skirts. His style was fashioned from the streets and evolved as the underground art and music scenes began to surface in New York.  Sprouse revisioned the concepts of prints and colors; his magic marker scrawl and day-glo pop colors conveyed the same type of hyper and frenetic energy MTV was broadcasting from the streets and into our homes in the forms of punk rock, hip hop, new wave, and synthpop.  Taking much of his inspiration from popular music and art, Stephen Sprouse was a visionary in his approach to fashion. He was also strongly influenced by the space-age designs associated with the 1960s, using satellite photos from NASA as the backdrop and conception for many of his designs, which he described as "cyberpunk."   Diane Von Furstenberg's Spring 09 Collection, Rock Goddess, also channelled the free-flowing, artistic energy of Sprouse's colors and patterns. The collection was more rooted in the "hippie" era of the sixties which was part of Sprouse's inital inspiration, as well as, featured fabrics and silhouettes that were softer and less structured than Sprouse's more tailored, yet deconstructed pieces.    Vintage shopping offers many options to travel "back" in time and pay homage to Stephen Sprouse's vision and to celebrate the playful, hard-edge energy that defined the music and fashion of the eighties, while staying current with the bright optimism showcased in Von Furstenberg's Spring 09 collection.     Vintage Pieces Courtesy of Nasty Gal The 80s era is synonymous with big hair, shoulder pads, and girls wanting to have fun. If we’d heeded Nancy Reagan’s warning call to “Just Say No”…to greed, corruption, and apathy, it is possible, not certain, that we may not be faced with picking up the pieces of a shattered economy…maybe.  vintage tunic dress--tko atlanta  rachel roy--spring 09  1980s vintage black jumpsuit--nasty gal  rachel roy--spring 09  The ancient Japanese samurai culture developed amongst a strict code of honor, loyalty, frugality and obedience. The samurai led an existence couched between the violence required in their service to the emperor and the wisdom and serenity of Zen and Buddhist teachings. Shintoism, a great love and reverence for nature, also played a role in their daily lives.  Fashion also follows this same pattern of renewal, as its movement reveals a cycle of trends and designs, which are reborn season to season or decade to decade. In this sense, fashion is both grounded and revolutionary. This unique quality is what continues to capture our attention as we not only wait to see the next new trend presented on the runways, but also to be inspired by the reinvention of the familiar.  And so it is in this spirit of the Japanese samurai, the Great Warrior, and in partnership with AvantFab, this new post category is introduced. Please join us each week for a review of current fashion designer trends and vintage designs that are available in the market. Our primary goal is to encourage responsible shopping and designing by giving you a view of vintage styles that are in vogue, as well as celebrate the sustainability of fashion…think of it as a reminder that trends come and go, but fashion is forever:).  Marc Jacob’s RTW Spring 09 line reached back and across with its influences a blend of turn of the century Gibson Girl (cute straw boater hats, prairie style bustle skirts) and ancient Japanese culture(technicolor, metallic, obi belts and sashes). The patchwork leather satchels w/ obi tie trims created a strange, but transformational marriage of these divergent times and cultures…but it is possible to imagine that although divided by oceans, during this time period, both Japanese geishas and Gibson girls prepared for work dressed in their respective obi belts and straw boaters. Our early prototypes of the female warrior. |
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