I was excited to attend a sneak preview of Justin LeBlanc’s Spring/Summer 2015 collection recently. Mr. LeBlanc is a fashion designer, a professor at my alma mater, NC State, and he nearly won Season 12 of Project Runway. A link to his site is here: http://www.jleblancdesign.com. He is a joyous person with an inspiring backstory. He said he was inspired by the sounds that are made underwater, and his clothes were beautiful. | They were exquisitely draped, white, wind-swept ethereal creations. I swooned over sequined pants and coordinated blouse. Mr. LeBlanc’s collection included embellishments made from a 3D Printer. If you’ve read any of my other posts, you know that I’m fascinated by 3D printing and its potential to be revolutionary. Raleigh's Contemporary Art Museum (CAM) was a perfect complement to Mr. LeBlanc’s designs. I’m a proud member and supporter of CAM. Go visit visit. http://camraleigh.org |
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I came across an App recently that got me to thinking that I am sure glad that I no longer have teenagers living at home. In a review of a forensic examination of a properly subpoenaed mobile phone, I discovered an app loaded into the iPhone called “Wickr.” I promptly loaded it on mine so I could give it a test ride and I sent a XXX text to my husband (who also had to load the app on his mobile so it wasn’t secretively sexy). I set up the self-destruct feature and *poof* it vanished in front of my eyes. I’m familiar with SnapChat, of course, but I also know that SnapChat got busted when it was discovered that the supposedly vanishing snaps were sitting on a server somewhere. Since that time, other genuinely “invisible” apps have been developed where the user’s personal information is not known (aka, no account with name or email), nothing
sits on a server, the message is encrypted, and the message vanishes after some set amount of time. Here comes Wickr. That set me thinking. I thought about the difficulty in parenting a teenager with these “tools” readily available. In my day it was instant messaging cryptic abbreviations; remember “POS,” parents over shoulder? At least I could check a history. I thought that if my children were out way beyond their curfew there would be digital traces showing their plan for the evening that I could find. The advent of Wickr and other privacy apps scares me. Even the app store description of Black SMS is frightening. See image above. Then I thought about the practical, business uses of apps like Wickr or TigerText (not so much Black SMS). I text my co-workers, and some messages contain confidential information. We will be switching to a secure platform such as Wickr for any communications that are sensitive client-related matters. I have debated whether to confess the backstory for this post. I think I just need to own it and admit that I’m not sure how to avoid fast fashion, or whether I can. I shopped this weekend for game day attire. It’s going to be 9000 degrees and there will probably be a mimosa spill or two. It’s going to be a one-and-done outfit. So, I don’t want to spend much money.
Digress--- for my friends outside of the South; yes, we dress up for college football games. Never jean shorts and T-shirts – blasphemy!! I’ll sport a short dress in team colors, nicely styled with jewelry, handbag, and appropriate footwear (for me, Rag& Bone booties). College Football chic. With my serious limitations (color-specific budget-price) I headed to the boutiques that thrive in an urban college town. As I was perusing, I was acutely aware that the garments that I slid through the rack were pieced together by workers in third-world countries earning near-slave wages. I’ve posted about fast fashion before so I have an awareness of the underside of the industry and I was uncomfortable. I was also struck by another fact. Fashion is impossibly paced these days. “Fast” is an understatement. I went into a store on Saturday. I went back to the same store on Sunday. There was new inventory! New colors, new styles, new choices. It made me think how fast fashion has impacted contemporary brands, even luxury brands. There is such pressure to put out a new line. To me, the direct evidence of that is the blur in the fashion calendar. At Fordham, my teacher asked the class, “how many fashion seasons are there?” Hands went up and answers ranged from 2,4,5,6,8,12 to “who knows anymore?” The “who knows” answer is probably right. This is what I know. One, there is a collection of Fall apparel. Ready-to-wear shows are held in February and Couture shows in July. Two, there is a collection of Spring apparel. Ready-to-wear shows are in September and Couture in January. Add, Pre-Fall, ready-to-wear showing in the winter, usually January (fall-weather type styles). And, Resort (aka, cruise or pre-spring) showing in summer, usually June. That’s at least four ready-to-wear collections. Some luxury brands have 4 ready-to-wear collections and 2 couture collections. Add, diffusion lines and collaboration lines, and who knows anymore! The CFDA just announced it will take over management of the fashion calendar. Read more here: http://cfda.com/the-latest/cfda-fashion-calendar. The fact that there are full-time employees to manage and streamline the global fashion calendar crystalizes the point. It makes my head spin, all these collections. It also means that new styles are regularly being produced, making their way into the market place. That must put a huge burden on a brand’s creative staff. I don’t see how fast fashion can’t have had a direct link to a contemporary (or luxury) line’s pressure to put out quarterly (or monthly) collections. I confess that my desire to have something new (when, truth be told, I have things already in my closet that have withstood trends and would be perfectly acceptable, except for the commercialistic, materialistic, impulsive ‘I want something new and fresh’ desire of mine) goes hand in glove with the pressures of a brand to put out a fresh new inventory on a regular basis. When I was in NYC, I toured Nanette Lepore’s garment district studio. She puts out a new line every month. So does Kate Spade New York and Tory Burch. With a near constant infusion of new garments into the marketplace, it feeds the desires of consumers to sport a new look every week which peer pressures us to keep up and the cycle keeps spinning. For me, commercialism and capitalism won out. I wanted a one-wear, inexpensive new outfit, and I got one. It was easy; I had multiple options and I had to make “hard” choices. Although I’m riding the cycle, I never forget the importance of staple pieces which will be around in my closet long after the game day outfit has been recycled for dust rags. |