Engaging and connected talks, full runway of upcycled clothing, $1 tacos, silent auction -- Re(dress)’s major project of 2017 was a grand success! It took an arduous four months of planning, designing, cutting, sewing, organizing, and collaborating to create such an impactful and unforgettable event. This night became not only a startling awakening for the audience to the unseen issues of fashion -- such as the slanted standard of beauty, environmental disaster, neglected women’s and children’s rights -- but also a strengthened commitment for Re(dress) to continue our fight for honesty in an industry that exploits and damages.
We raised $782 from the 22 repurposed outfits that were auctioned off by local community members, which will be donated to Labour Behind the Label, a non-profit organization based in the UK that campaigns for garment workers’ rights worldwide. This marks a small step forward in bringing to light the blood, sweat, and tears hanging from our clothes. But our fight for transparency is far from over. Continue to educate yourself and others on the untold story behind our closets by keeping up with our updates and blogs. Take responsibility and take action. Big thanks to Global Prep Academy who provided our team with their awesome space! See a 360 video of our runway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qXm04pJ2TQ&feature=youtu.be See us featured on local news: https://signalscv.com/2017/01/21/teenagers-use-old-clothes-bring-awareness-pricing/
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Diversity in terms of race, gender, and size have all served its time in the spotlight, but progress has been slow. Not to mention the most ignored and obvious of all -- age. We need to talk about fashion’s ageism problem. Fashion is a fantasy, but it is also a representation of cultural ideals. In this fantasy then, models are muses -- so what does it mean when the source of inspiration excludes anyone old enough to have a wrinkle? Youth is the new standard of beauty on the runway and beyond. Dior Haute Couture’s Fall 2015 opener, Sophia Mechetner, was only 14 years old at the time of her debut. Fashion’s never-ending pursuit of the newest and coolest extends into the search for models, who are usually not that much older than Mechetner. Pricey designer wares are modeled by girls between the narrow window of 16 to 26, despite the fact that most female luxury wear consumers are nearly twice their age. The issue extends beyond catwalks. Models in their 20s serve as spokeswomen for anti-aging creams. Magazines ignore the existence of older women in their editorials, besides the occasional features of the age-defying celebrity -- Julianne Moore or Cate Blanchett. It seems as if time has stopped at 26 in the fashion world. On one hand, fashion constantly caters to the youth; on the other, it remains firmly in the power of the mature. Designers like Karl Lagerfeld and Giorgio Armani, each in his early 80s, Ralph Lauren (75), and Donna Karan (66) still hold immense influence in the fashion world. Even for an industry that has made something of an art form of contradiction (loving both pelts and pets, for example), this is hard to reconcile. Fashion presents its ideals in one way or another, and if those don’t include the women representative of the ones who are buying the clothes, it’s a real problem. Why not show women inspiration that they can believe in? Aging gracefully and stylishly is definitely something to aspire to. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/08/style/fashions-two-faced-relationship-with-age.html?_r=0 Just yesterday, Shay Neary was hailed as the first plus-size transgender model to land a fashion campaign. In 2016 more than ever, trans people are visible in the fashion world, gracing magazine covers, runways, and podiums as leaders in fashion and activism. Just yesterday, Shay Neary was hailed as the first plus-size transgender model to land a fashion campaign. In 2016 more than ever, trans people are visible in the fashion world, gracing magazine covers, runways, and podiums as leaders in fashion and activism.
Here are 9 times (in no particular order) the fashion industry put transgender people in the spotlight in 2016:
This is a major win for diversity in fashion, but we obviously still have a lot more work to do. Neary still says it is difficult for her to get casted in fashion shoots, as she “ticks off too many diversity boxes.” Body diversity is trailing far behind racial diversity in fashion -- the media indisputably reinforces the idealization of thinness and the concept of a “perfect body.” Plus-size models account for .1 percent of the total. A handful of New York-based brands that offer plus-size collections, like Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Michael Kors, repeatedly choose not to represent this portion of their client base in shows or in print campaigns.
It’s then no wonder that girls and boys are constantly feeling insecure about themselves, their bodies, and who they are when the surrounding message is that they must change in order to just feel like they’re part of this human race. It’s hard to wake up feeling good about ourselves, and it’s getting harder with the idealized version of beauty compounded by the industry. The fashion industry doesn’t just sell clothes but a whole look and style, and people buy into it. This narrow representation of bodies is incredibly dangerous. These images perpetuated by the business do make a difference, and the disturbing statistics of eating disorders in our culture showcase that. Claire Mysko, COO of the National Eating Disorders Association says, “30 million Americans will struggle with an eating disorder at some point in their lives. While images of thin models don't cause eating disorders, we do know that the lack of body diversity on runways reinforces the idea that thinness is equated with happiness, success and beauty. For those who might be in a vulnerable place, that is a potent and dangerous message." In the 60s and 70s, models were sizes 6 and 7. Marilyn Monroe was not a size 0. It’s only the 21st century that is fueling the widespread assumption that if you’re not a size 2, you’re not healthy. This is not just a vanity issue nor a passing fad, it’s a serious public health issue. Fashion doesn’t need to be one size. Men and women come in all different shapes and sizes and it’s all about embracing the different standards of beauty. A lot of progress has been made, but it's far from enough. I want to see a day when girls are saying “I want to be as confident as her,” not “I want to be as skinny as her.” I love how our Barbies have diversified with different body shapes, I don’t understand why mannequins that display our very clothes haven’t followed. Have different things on different people of different sizes -- is that so hard? Everyone’s open to seeing a new normal. We’re all different, and we should be. http://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/fashion-week/news/a18288/spring-2017-fashion-shows-most-diverse/ In 2008, the fashion industry faced a reckoning over the startling lack of diversity among the models on major design runways. That same year Franca Sozzani, the editor of Italian Vogue, published a provocative issue featuring only black models; Diane von Furstenberg, the president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, urged members to be more aware of diversity in casting; Vogue published a substantial article in its July 2008 issue that asked, in the headlines, “Is fashion racist?”
Since then, almost nothing has changed. Paradoxically, fashion is always looking for what’s new, but the industry’s principles are deeply outdated. Last October, Business of Fashion reported that, of the 3,875 models used over the course of September’s Fashion Month, only 797 were models of color. That means that about 79.4 percent of models used were white. Asian, Black, and Middle Eastern models all saw a minor bump in castings from previous seasons while the number of nonwhite Latina models decreased from 2.9 percent for fall to 2.6 percent for spring. This is hardly the first time a reputable industry source has published such a report, and every time it happens, all of the guilty parties point to each other in a circle of blame. Designers say that casting directors only pick thin white models, casting directors say the agencies only send them thin white models, and the agencies say that designers only want thin white models. Everyone assumes the prejudice lies somewhere else. Casting agents, modeling agencies, and major design brands staunchly believe that there is no race problem because they “already have their black girl.” Time and time again, runways return to the same models of color, so few in the history of modern fashion who were able to break through that it’s easy to name them: Tyra Banks, Naomi Campbell, Beverly Johnson, and Pat Cleveland in the past, and Cindy Bruna, Lineisy Montero, Imaan Hammam, and Jourdan Dunn now. This almost feels like an insult when I see the standard two models of color in succession at shows -- as if the designer is checking off a box marked “inclusiveness.” People think in cliches and they find a few people safe; designers rotate between only the select few because they’re continually safe, which lowers the opportunity for others. Jourdan Dunn and Imaan Hammam might be safe for designers, but safety is bad for fashion and for diversity. Luxury fashion customers are more diverse than ever, but on catwalks and magazine covers, white models still dominate. Why doesn’t the industry reflect its consumer base? Achieving a fair and attainable market for our chosen skin from its roots on the runway can only happen if the whole industry works together. The industry is driven by artistic expression, but also by a bigger force that looms over all called profit. Once designers realize that they’re missing out on a market and not serving that clientele, and that other companies have an advantage because they’re addressing that market, then we will start to see correction. http://www.vogue.com/13263763/bethann-hardison-interview-diversity-on-the-runways/ It's Black Friday, the biggest shopping date in the year. This year, the USA is expected to spend over $3 billion, an 11.5% increase over last year.
Want to beat the queues and make huge savings? Stay in bed and enjoy that lie-in, or try a haulternative, a fun way to refresh your wardrobe without buying new clothes. Whatever you do, don’t let Black Friday control you, you take control to use the biggest shopping date to your own advantage, like Patagonia is. Patagonia, an outdoor clothing retailer, is using Black Friday to advance their cause. This year, Patagonia is donating 100% of its profits -- estimated to be about $2 million -- made from Black Friday to grassroots environmental groups. The donations will come from sales at both its 80 global stores and online. This strategic move isn’t entirely out of character for Patagonia. The company already donates 1% of its sales to environmental organizations. This year, I’m making my mark as well by abstaining from Black Friday this year. What are you doing to make yours? http://money.cnn.com/2016/11/21/news/patagonia-black-friday/index.html?iid=surge-story-summary President-elect Donald Trump has quite a history with the controversial topic of climate change. From trivializing this pressing issue down to a mere can of hairspray to blaming China for making it up, Trump has made it clear that he thinks global warming is all just a big scam.
Now with the possibility of moving backwards from all the progress we have made in reducing our carbon footprint, American businesses are joining together to tell Trump that they are committed to fighting global warming. Nike, Gap, L’Oreal, and Starbucks are just a few of the 300 brands who signed an opened letter to urge the future president to maintain the current low-carbon policies championed by Obama. "We want the US economy to be energy efficient and powered by low-carbon energy," the letter states, adding "failure to build a low-carbon economy puts American prosperity at risk." Trump’s climate change stance cannot and will not interfere with the healing that has long been due for our planet. Let’s continue to be conscious and aware of our choices, keeping in mind that our environmental footprints are present even in the most commonplace of our lives. http://money.cnn.com/2016/11/16/news/businesses-trump-climate-change/index.html?sr=fbCNN111816businesses-trump-climate-change0155PMVODtopLink&linkId=31310029 Opposing fast fashion and making conscious choices of what you put in your closet are only snippets of a minimal and sustainable LIFESTYLE. As our members pledged to wear only six items of their clothings two weeks ago in the Six Items Challenge, we experienced firsthand how difficult it can be to resist the urge to automatically resort to the new.
But NYU graduate Lauren Singer takes it one step further from downsizing her wardrobe to revolving her entire lifestyle on a zero-waste commitment. The amount of trash she has produced over the past three years can fit inside a 16 oz. jar. She really gets to the core of a sustainable lifestyle -- if she runs out of toothpaste, she makes her own. If she runs out of deodorant, she makes it. She buys food from the farmer’s market to limit her use of packaged foods, or more specifically, plastic. “The best ideas are often the most simple.” Lauren demonstrates this through her simple lifestyle that communicates sustainability, an idea that we very much need to be in close contact with now more than ever. With the 2016 presidential election just a couple of days away, there's probably no better of a time than now to talk politics and fashion. When Hillary Clinton became the first woman to be nominated for president, she strutted along the Democratic national convention wearing a suit impeccably tailored to convey her message: she was the embodiment of the women's movement. The suit's snowy whiteness connected Clinton to the suffragette movement of the 1900s, and unnamed, it belonged to every woman.
But there was one tiny but significant omission -- the suit had no pockets, the greatest gender divide in clothing. Behind the pocket is an entire sexist and political history. The video shows how as women's clothing evolved to accommodate beauty over efficiency, pockets were exempt from the tight corsets and long skirts that they wore. At the turn of the 20th century, dresses with pockets made their comeback. Whether or not voters are aware of this long history behind a piece of fashion, Hillary's pocketless suit is "the answer to what women can wear to convey relatable power." We communicate who we are to a certain extent through what we wear. And our Democratic presidential candidate seems to be reminding us of the struggle behind the progress of women, both explicitly through her words and discreetly through her clothes. Meet Joanne Goddard. As the name suggests, no, she is not a garment worker in Bangladesh nor is she a sex trafficker forced into the labor force in Cambodia. Goddard has lived in Barnsley, New England her whole life. In 2016, she took a job as an agency worker at English online retailer ASOS, which gave her a 3pm-11pm flexible working schedule that allowed her to still be able to care for her two children. It was easy money -- she would sit on her terrace and take phone calls while her children were playing at her foot.
This easy money soon became hard. Assigned to work at the warehouse now, Goddard faced immense stress and pressure to meet the target of scanning 160 items an hour. Workers are divided into two categories: the pickers and packers. Pickers run around the three floors of the warehouse, scavenging, scanning, and collecting items to be packed into an order. From here, the packers package the items to be delivered at your doorsteps in just 48 hours. For the past 3 months, Buzzfeed investigated ASOS’s warehouse conditions, revealing exploitative contracts, an intense security regime, and stressed workers. Upon entering the building, she is subject to security checks at any time during her shift. Employees are not allowed to have jewelry, cosmetics, electronic devices -- cell phones included -- on them until their shifts end. They wear wristbands that keep track of how many items they scan, and tell them where to go and find the specific orders among the tons (literally tons) of clothes in the warehouse. Sounds very familiar, doesn’t it? To meet our insatiable demand for fast fashion, the warehouse runs 24/7. Day shift workers leave the building only to be replaced by a flood of nighttime workers. These are workers like Joanne who package the clothes, shoes, and accessories to be delivered to us in just two days, no matter where we are. As a result of this overwhelming pressure and high demand, Goddard recently lost her job to a panic attack. This is a pure case of the ugliness behind the frills and fancies. ASOS is among the most popular online shopping sites. However, behind the glamour and energy ASOS seems to portray on their websites with their smiling models and flashing “SALE” signs, look at what’s happening behind the scenes. The damages done by the fashion industry is not just in distant countries like India or Vietnam. The scars are hidden in less prevalent places, like at the heart of a retail store that could be where you bought that shirt on the floor of your room. Think twice -- fast fashion isn’t a distant issue that you can detach yourself from; it’s a persistent and uncomfortable presence looming over what we decide to be our chosen skin. http://www.vocativ.com/363935/asos-investigation-reveals-the-dark-future-of-online-retail/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=CPC&utm_campaign=CK-VOC-TRF-000-FB-FBLP-FKW-ENG.W-MED-BO-15a-T07 |
Our Goal:To inform on the ongoing crises that the clothing industry poses on our community and applaud any acts that rise over the conventional ways of consumption.
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