Ethnic Influences in American Dress

I think that it is only natural for their to be a wide variety of Ethnic influences here in America, due to the fact that we as a nation are comprised of many different cultures. America has become quite the melting pot of nationalities. With these varying cultures comes their influence on aspects of the American society. Not only is there an enrichment of culture in art, music, food, and so on and so forth but there is also and enrichment in fashion that comes from this diversity. For example wraps became popular not to long ago, such as seen in a wrap shirt or blouse or even in a wrap fashioned dress. This wrap effect came westward from the more Asian countries. All that has been done is that American dress has modified the traditional fashion into a more suitable one for our living and society. As seen here:

Another area in which I think that there is allot of ethnic influence not only in clothes, but also in accessories. There is all kinds of influences from various cultures, it's almost limitless the different kinds. For example allot of turquoise is being used in jewelry and other articles of fashion. Turquoise has always been used for numerous years by Native Americans in their crafts, clothes and simply their culture.

Another example of dress that has become a staple in the American wardrobe is the scarf. Just about everyone you can possibly think of has a scarf. Not just for spring and summer as a cute addition splash of color, but especially for the wintry seasons. While you may not think twice about grabbing your scarf of choice and just throwing it on as you walk out the door, but that scarf actually has allot of ethnic influence to its creation. For example the lightweight, airy and multi-colored scarves that have become quite popular lately are actually very reminiscent of those worn by women in the Middle East. Muslim women of the Islamic religion are required to be completely covered when going out, only their eyes are shown. So, essentially their heads and faces are wrapped by lightweight fabrics, similar to the scarf. The scarf that we as Americans throw on by choice.

These are just a few examples of how we can see ethnic influences in our society's style of dress. So, next time you are getting ready and throw on a wrap inspired top or dress or maybe its chilly and you grab a scarf for warmth just think about how someone somewhere else was inspired by one culture. Maybe then you can go and be an inspiration, from one culture to another, in an never ending cycle of fashion inspiration!

New York: Fashion Week Trend

With the conclusion of this years New York fashion week, you could definitely say that many designers came to impress and to wow. Anything and everything was laid out on the table, they definitely did not hold their creative expression down! The major fashion trends of the week were, first off, a more structured look such as: women's jackets, suit pieces, and dresses. The second trend was a revert back to a softer more feminine look, but with a modern twist. Personally my favorite of the two is the second being a very feminine and timeless look. One of the designers that stood out to me who demonstrated this second trend was Zac Posen. He used a combination of delicate and sheer fabrics along with more tailored looks. He more so took the feminine trend and married it to the structured trend, making a balanced collection. Another designer who had a very womanly collection was Badgley Mishchika.

Again the collection was full of light and sheer fabrics, which created a flowing effect that looked so graceful. Adding to this touch of grace was the soft color palette. The collection also played with the use of ruffles, and more so layered ruffles. The next designer that I found used this feminine look was Betsey Johnson, who even embraced her very own teal ruffles.

Like the other designers I have mentioned she used pretty and vibrant colors mixed with a combination of light and slightly heavier fabrics, and draped tiers of ruffles into her garments. The next designer following the flow trend was Carolina Herrera, having more vibrant a color palette and well executed ruffles, also tiers, along with some structure women's wear.

Erin Featherston really made an impression with her uber big, and almost over the top sized ruffles. She down played their impact by creating them in delicate colors.

The last designer that I would like to point out would be Venexiana whose collection following the trend was comprised of soft flowing pieces with subtle color and an overall feminine appeal.

Any woman would want to wear any of these pieces. They are all bold in statement and femininity, yet modern in design!

Environmentally friendly clothing

Up til this point I had not really looked too much into environmentally friendly clothing, so I was naturally surprised when I discovered so many different companies and brands, which do just that-make eco-friendly products. One of the companies that I discovered was Quail. Quail was founded just in 2006, in the UK, by a couple who were curious about not only organic foods, but organic clothes(without the oh so "natural" and "organic" look). So, far they only have a womens line, which looks great. Not only are they trying to help out by making organic clothes, but they also do as much as they can to see that every step of the producing of the clothes is done so in an eco-friendly manner. For example they even use recycled packaging materials for the shipping to and fro of their goods to the naturally found shells that are then made into buttons that they use on alot of their garments. All information about Quail was gathered from(http://www.quailbymail.co.uk/).

There are so many different designers that are currently working with organic products and various green goods in their garments.

The following video takes you on a tour in an eco-friendly clothing company, and shows the processes of making their clothes. One of the coolest things, in the video is that you, the customer can accutally specialize your garments! It is a little lengthy(about 9mins) but its a great little video that provides an inside look at the manufacturing processes.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=7vvwkG_OR1c&feature=related

Favorite Designer: Lilly Pulitzer

Hello,

My name is Magen Lambeth and I am a freshman in the CARS Program. It is hard to narrow down and pin-point just who my favorite designer is, due to the fact that my taste changes very frequently. It is simply an ever evolving thing! However, at the current moment in time, one of my favorite designers is Lilly Pulitzer. From her clothes to her accessories and footwear, I love it all! Her style is a little golf, meets classic, meets feminine.

From her Summer 08' collection of womens wear it was all about bold colors and prints. The majority of the collection was dresses, most being of the casual nature, while others could have easily been dressed up for a special occasion or a night out. Alot of her dresses have a 70's vibe to their shapes, especially the necklines. Her use of feminine florals in bold colors add a touch of play to the overall nature of the garment. Her womens style is always fresh, clean, and simply pretty no matter the season.

Not only does she make a line of womens wear, but she also does menswear. Her menswear is an equal match to her womens attire, by utalizing the bold prints and colors in a playful way, yet still maitaining a masculine design. However, not every man is so bold with his choices in garment. Her young girls wear is nothing far from utterly adorable! Its just like the womens wear only smaller in size. My favorites would have to fall under her accessories. Her handbags are colorful and unique, as well as her footwear and jewelry. You could also mix and match any of her acessories and you would always be able to pair it with any of her other clothing pieces. She creates wearable pieces that are suitable for almost any occasion and for the everyday woman, even man, and child!