Image Isn't Everything

In response to Huffington Post's: Toronto Ad Attacks Fashion Industry In Best Way Possible

This has been a major topic in the media and fashion industry for an incredibly long time, but it seems like this generation is even more affected by it.

I'm talking about body image in the media, specifically magazines. 

For me, this is one of those things where I feel like i'm the only one in the world like this, but i can honestly say the models in Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, Fashion never distorted my perception of physical beauty, or what i needed to be. 

It seems crazy, like i should be affected in some way. And i was. My first taste of fashion was watching RAW on FashionTv. I never noticed how skinny the girls were, i was so captivated by the way the clothes floated down the runway and how happy the designer looked when it was all over. 

And it was the same when i eventually started reading magazines, I never ever was taken aback or appalled by how thin models are. I vaguely remember a quote from an interview, i have no idea who said it, but it's stuck with me ever since. "Models are just hangers for a designers clothes, they're there to sell a product and a lifestyle." The work that they do is for the fantasy of a brand, obviously they're real people with lives and emotions, maybe they work really hard to have the body that they do or they're naturally thin- it's annoyed me how everyone says that the fashion industry is the reason why girls have eating disorders, they fat shame both genders, they need to put a disclaimer on ads when a photo's been photoshopped, and those same people are the ones who shame thin people for being too thin, automatically assuming they don't eat. 

I don't focus on the external beauty of people, I've only ever focused on the art of tailoring, colour and textile selection that creates a beautiful garment. I can understand how being bombarded with images of one kind of beauty causes some people to have an unhealthy view of the way they should be, but I don't understand why they would want to imitate anthers persons body. 

Throughout elementary school, role models were a reoccurring theme, that really instilled the idea of looking up to someone who has qualities I admire, a situation i can relate to, and has achieved a great deal of meaningful things through their life. Teachers never told us to find the person with the hottest body and be them. I took a lot from that lesson as a child, I still have role models to this day. I want Naomi Campbell's long sleek hair but I want her sense of strength and discipline even more than that. Cara Delevingne has been every teen girls girl crush because she has a personality. It's not the fashion industry's job to find a girl whose thin and has a killer personality so that more girls can look up to models. Girls these days have Miley Cyrus and Kim Kardashian to look up to, i don't even need to explain how that influences young people. 

The racism and sexism i've faced (you need to have curves to be a real women) has affected me more than seeing thin girls in beautiful clothes. Everyone needs a role model and they don't need to be a size 2.

The Alexander McQueen Effect

The first time I truly became aware of the influential power fashion has over society, I was watching an Alexander McQueen show online when I was 15 The elaborate prints and extravagant fabrics used to create an over the top, theatrical production was beyond overwhelming. Needless to say, after watching your first McQueen show, you cant stop until you've seen every seasons runway show from the beginning. After multiple hours, I sat, thinking for a long while about the designer, the inspiration and the process of producing the final peices. What intrigued me even more was wondering about the production crew, or who all of these people were who made the show come together seamlessly. I wasn't so much concerned with the people sitting in the front rows, I was aware that they were industry insiders. But I wanted to know everything I could about what it takes to have a massive team of people, specializing in different areas to make one designers collection come alive. 

'The McQueen effect' isn't real, but it should be. It would be used to explain the psychological shift after one watches a McQueen show for the first time. The dust collected in the corners of your imagination would evaporate and you would be left with a sense of creative purpose in the world. As if someone has told you that it's essential for you to contribute to the creative world in your lifetime even if it's just once in a small way. I can't count how many times I've watched or listened to interviews of designers and their inspiration is a McQueen collection, a single outfit or the man himself.  

Like so many others in the industry, Alexander McQueen is the person who inspired me to explore my creativity beyond reasonable measures. It's always a pleasure looking back at his previous work and looking forward to the new designs. 

Over sized is over done

"Your clothes should be tight enough to show your a woman but loose enough to show your a lady".

I'm not entirely sure of who said this quote, so I'll just write it in a bold text over an imaginary Marilyn Monroe picture with a sienna filter and call it a day. 

I can't even count how many items of clothing I have bought over the past two years that have been labeled small or medium and in fact are actually a ten-person-tent sized garment. I suppose the blame can be placed on my shoulders occasionally because I have a habit of not looking at the size or not bothering to trudge through change rooms. But when I'm buying a chambray shirt- a basic in any wardrobe- I should not have to tailor it because of a misleading size label. 

When the trend started it seemed like a good idea, everyone needs some over sized pieces for "casual looks" (lazy days). I just personally don't enjoy looking sloppy all year round in public, maybe just January 2nd. 

Finally, I don't enjoy the cashier judging my extra small sized purchases. Clearly she doesn't understand that extra small is the new medium. Medium is the new extra large. It's a tough time to go shopping, and I will not be adopting the bohemian look anytime soon. Point blank- I don't want to be trendy if I have to look like a circus tent with skinny jeans on.