Tag Archives: Fashion

The Cultures Behind Fashion Trends

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From gladiator sandals to skinny jeans to animal prints – one has to wonder, what influences fashion trends? Where do all of these ideas, some of them great and some downright bizarre, come from and how do they gain so much popularity, spreading like wildfire until practically everyone on the planet who can afford it is wearing a particular item? Even if you’re not particularly fond of following fashion trends, you have to admit that there’s something to be said for a particular style of clothing that can move millions of people around the world to dress in it.

So what influences fashion trends? In a nutshell, fashion trends are made by people for people and are a reflection of human nature and human activities. You wear something as an expression of who you are, what you believe in and where you come from, meaning you are representing a certain kind of fashion culture that you are either a part of or that you want to be a part of.

High Culture

The idea of high culture is synonymous with luxury and a sense of exclusivity. These involve things like painting, sculpture, photography, architecture, literature and the like. What influences fashion trends can be seen in certain famous fashion houses, not only in their clothing lines but in their advertising campaigns too. For example, Gianni Versace’s logo is that of Medusa from Greek mythology, a stylized drawing on a golden, medallion-like background, which lends an air of bold artistry to his clothing line, along with a sense of high-end sophistication and glamorous seduction.

Pop Culture

Think the sixties and it’s tie-dye and peace medallions, while the seventies was all about the bell bottoms and platform shoes. This is one of the key answers to what influences fashion trends. Pop culture is basically what the media and the press hype up every day you turn on the TV or go online. This is the culture of celebrities and famous personalities whom everyone else wants to look like, and of clothing produced for the masses. For example, if a popular celebrity is photographed wearing a specific coat, sales on that coat are sure to skyrocket as certain popular celebrities are considered global fashion icons and role models. This is why many fashion labels turn to celebrities to endorse their clothing, accessories and footwear. Pop culture sells a certain lifestyle that people want to have and qualities that people want to possess.

Subculture

This is the culture of the “streets,” of those considered out of the mainstream, such as the hip-hop, graffiti, rock and punk scenes or the surf and skateboard cultures. If classified simply, this is the more bohemian aspect of fashion, of individualistic and unique styles, like the low-slung, baggy jeans that were primarily connected with the hip-hop scene or graffiti art on sneakers associated with skateboarding. The thing about subculture however is that it tends to turn into pop culture given enough time and attention. What influences fashion trends are the same things that keep these same trends constantly changing and that is something about fashion that will never go out of style.

Fashion Necklaces Can Make or Break Your Appearance

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Somewhere deep down, everybody nurtures a secret desire for being calls as fashionable. This is even more true in case of girls or ladies or women as they love to be called as fashionistas, especially among their friend circles. There are perhaps quite a few people who like to be content with whatever they come across in shops or stores and buy them, without bothering much about what is in vogue as well as what is not. These people are the ones who can carry almost every appearance or attire or dress or outfit with a lot of elan. But this is not so with every individual, and a majority of us have to be abreast of the latest trends in fashion to be popular among our friend circles.

Along with clothes or dresses or outfits what comes next, apart from the manner we carry it, are the accessories complementing them. The accessories one chooses to put on along with one’s attire or clothes or dress or outfit speaks volumes about the person’s choice of style. This is an area of fashion where many a fashionable individual fail to come out with flying colors. We become so much obsessed with choosing what attire or clothes or dresses or outfit to put on, that this area is completely neglected.

Among the accessories complementing or rather, completing one’s appearance or look are nice, up- to- date fashion necklaces, that can either make or mar ones appearance or look with it. In choosing a fashion necklace, therefore, it is extremely important not to choose one too jazzy or eye prickly. If in case, one is not very sure regarding what all to put on as a necklace, one can choose to kept it safe by choosing one that almost complements or goes well with any attire or dress or outfit. For that, one can take advice from fashion magazines to choose fashion necklaces that are classic as well as elegant as well as complementing almost any attire or dress or outfit.

Choosing such classic pieces of fashion necklaces ensures that one does not make a fool of oneself by ruining one’s appearance by putting them on. Besides, the regular shops or stores selling these necklaces, they can also be found on the online stores where a wide variety is available, and have a spectrum to choose from.

At times, an ensemble is merely spoils as a result of the accessory accompanying it. One need to make sure that this does not happen, after all of the effort one puts in for buying it. As said before, for that, one can choose to put on fashion necklaces or other accessories that are always classy as well as never go out of fashion. However, for those who are quite sure about what is in and what is not, it is best advised to go and try out all necklaces that are available in designs, expressing the latest fashion trends, if they consider themselves glamouristas.

A Look At Some Fashion Icons

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If you study the History of American fashion, you will see a trend where in certain people have been responsible for creating and building a fashion style and consciousness and have gone on to set the trend with their own identity.

Lets look at few of the fashion icons that stood out for their different style and became famous for it.

You will recall Betty Boop of 1930 who was considered a cutie pie cartoon character. Though a fiction of imagination her dark, free flowing below hip dresses, stockings with designs, high heeled boots with thigh high stockings and short hair and with oodles of energy and charm made her one of the popular sex symbols.

Edie Sedwick was that actress who took the fashion world by surprise and rose to popularity in 1960s. Being a model and socialite, it was no wonder that she became Andy Warhol’s, the avante-garde artist’s muse. She is said to have been one of the most glamorous models with her short and straight hair, long thin legs, pointed heels, covered with fur and sporting huge dangling earrings.

The foremost picture that comes to mind of the 1990’s television scene is the role of Angela Chase played by Ms. Claire Danes in My So Called Life. Her feministic attitudes and style of dressing stood out from the rest. In fact one can say that she was responsible for popularizing chokers, floral print dresses and matching boots. She seemed to have created a trend of her own, which was soon followed by many women.

Take the modern singers turned fashion trailblazers, Lady Gaga’s name appears on top of the list. While many people think she is garish, she has managed to keep the press following her all the time and makes it a point to shock the people most of the times. Following a unconventional style of dressing, pink and platinum blonde hair with black nail polish, skin tight metallic outfits makes her style stand out as one of the futuristic trends which may be liked by many who are young and into pop or rock music scene.

Fashion is something that keeps changing all the time. Sometimes history repeats itself. Sometimes. Fashion follows its own course and trend. Today fashion trends can get started or be influenced by any thing including technology or any particular philosophy.

It is time that we give due recognition to the history of fashion. However one needs to acknowledge the fact that today fashion is free flowing, free thinking and more of individualistic expression rather than any particular trend in the industry.