Every magazine talk about.... !!!

Last week we spoke about who is more influential - magazines or blogs. This week everyone talking about it, not just magazines....
 

  “The great thing about London is that it lives and breathes fashion. The street is still the best way to get a snapshot of London style.” (Todd Lynn 2012).



London fashion week took place in London (in Summer House) from 17 - 22th February 2012.

Exhibition 

Situated over 2 floors instead of 4, the AW12 Exhibition saw a newly curated style with a focus on creating a more tailored and visually merchandised feel to the showcase.

New exhibitors for AW12 included footwear designers, Alain Quilici; New York based Alejandro Ingelmo; Julian Hakes London and Kat Maconie. Other newcomers included NEWGEN designers Huishan Zhang and Lucas Nascimento. The Terrace Space at Somerset House hosted a selection of accessories; new designers showing in this space included accessory designer Emma J Shipley and milliner Bernstock Speirs.

The Exhibition had merchandised feature areas for each of the returning BFC showcasing initiatives; NEWGEN, sponsored by Topshop featured some of London’s most innovative designers; Estethica, sponsored by Monsoon, gave a platform for eco-sustainable design; Headonism, showcased new British milliners supported by Ascot Racecourse; the BFC/Elle Talent Launch Pad and The Navy Board Room Collective, comprising of NEWGEN alumni, were located on the first floor (London fashion week 2012).

Going to fashion weeks is fun and exciting but why do we have it????

The answer is simply. Because of economy. Designers make designes, high street retailers copy it and you can buy similar clothes for much cheaper, often for prices in sale. This money from shopping goes to economy of country in form of tax. This support words of Belgian-American fashion designer Diane von Fürstenberg:

“The consumer has been trained to buy on sale. Why should she go out and spend money early in the season, when in fact come March and April and she can buy it in sale.” (WWD 2009).

The schedule of the week you can find on the link below:
http://voicesoffashion.co.uk/london-fashion-week-2012-schedule-2/


You can find more about London fashion week here: http://voicesoffashion.co.uk/london-fashion-week-2012/

Who's more influential

My last post was about the fashion magazines of last century. When we move forward we meet more and more often with the term ''bloggs''.  A blog is a personal journal published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete entries ("posts") typically displayed in reverse chronological order so the most recent post appears first. Blogs are usually the work of a single individual (blogger), occasionally of a small group, and often are themed on a single subject, (Blood, R. 2000).

So who's more influential nowadays? Magazines or blogs?  

 

 





            VS.

 Granted it’s the power blogs that consistently take the top spots in our raking of influential fashion blogs, but using the exact same ranking criteria, bloggers are edging out magazines who (often) have larger staffs and larger budgets when it comes to influencing readers online.

 The reason why we spend so much time on an objective ranking of fashion blogs, however, is precisely because there are people who still do ignore bloggers and independent publishers and try to write off the significant audience shift in fashion media as a passing fad. Print isn’t dead –advertisers will keep it alive; but digital is the future, and it’s a future where a multitude of strong individual voices can rival the influence of a more prominent, institutional few. That said, the structure of influential blogs is increasingly similar to that of print publications, and probably not so different from their online departments. While there are more than a few solo acts topping the rankings, increasingly it’s blogs with multiple editors, writers and support staff competing with and pushing the magazines out of the top spots.

Visit online granted blog at: http://www.grantedclothing.com/news/ 

The influence of fashion magazines

By the 1860s, stylish American women could see original designs by Charles Frederick Worth, the first true fashion designer, in the popular publication Harper’s Bazaar. As other designers appeared on the scene, their creations could also be seen in new fashion magazines. By the turn of the twentieth century, this was the primary method of spreading news of fashion trends from Paris, the seat of fashion.

At first, the gowns were illustrated with drawings, but as photography became more sophisticated in the early twentieth century, the fashion press used more and more photographs of new designs. At the same time, fashion and art were merging in the eyes of the artists, who dabbled in many of the arts. These artists not only painted, but also created textile designs and fashion illustrations. Some journals of the day printed both fashion illustrations and photographs, along with short articles on fashion by modern writers. Until the Second World War, even mainstream fashion journals like Vogue and Vanity Fair continued to publish fashion illustration by modern artists, encouraging the connections between fashion designers and visual artists.

Vogue functioned in America not only to provide sketches and patterns of fashions derived from Paris models, but also to promote French couture. One of France’s premier designers, Paul Poiret, wrote in a special thirtieth-anniversary edition of Vogue that the magazine "is today one of the best methods of communication with a distinguished clientele," revealing the importance for him of reaching the American clientele (Global conference, 2009.)

Have a look at early 1950s fashion magazines on the link below:

http://www.100megspop3.com/adira/1950s2.html 

World War II

How was fashion in World War II? 

When 1942 came along all clothes and furniture had the familiar CC41 mark. It stood for "Civilian Clothing" and the 41 represents the year it first came in to being. This was a ruling by the government to keep the materials for both clothes and furniture to the barest minimum. At the same time keeping a smartness which most could afford as well as quality for the amount of coupons they had. The above double breasted coat would be about 16 coupons and cost 12 guineas. The coupon allowance was 66 to start off with but as time went on so the allowance for coupons went down to 60 in 1942, 40 in 1943 48 in 1944. A man's suit was 26 coupons, one hanky 1 coupon, a ladies woollen dress 14 coupons a blouse 5 coupons. Supplementary clothing coupons could be applied for if you were getting married or having a baby or if you had been bombed out. It was a bonus if anyone was lucky enough to get some parachute silk to make a dress. Plus making underwear from it too, (Olds, L. 2001)

If you are interested about this topic have a look at link below: ''World War II and Fashion: The Birth of the New Look''

http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1062&context=constructing

Fashion in 19th century

  Let's look back at 19th century and fashion in this century 

The influence of national features in dress in Europe had been declining since about 1675 and by 1800, fashionable dress design had become international. The character of the feminine wardrobe stemmed from Paris, the masculine from London.

Until about 1820 women's dress continued to reflect styles initiated by the French. These fashions, were supposedly based upon the classical dress of ancient Greece. Ladies wore loose, draped, high-waisted gowns in white colors. Women wore a minimum of thin garments with little underwear which made it an unsuitable mode of dress during the winters. To attempt to combat the chill, women adopted a threequarter-length overdress made from a warmer material and a variety of shawls, pelisses, and redingotes. The 1830s brought back more color, a tighter waistline at a more natural level. Fuller, shorter skirts, leg-of-mutton sleeves, large-brimmed hats or bonnets also became a norm.

The second half of the century was a time of prosperity in Europe. Despite wars, the upper classes dressed fashionably and women would prance about in their walking-dresses. Men's styles remained sombre, dignified, and slowly changing. The ladies fashions were changing ever faster. The technical advances and the capability for mass manufacturing were making fashionable dress available to a rapidly expanding middle class. The invention of the sewing machine and the development of the ready-to-wear trade, new marketing techniques, and the establishment of department stores were revolutionizing the fashion industry.

Dress from 1840 onward was dominated by a restrictive corset and framework underskirt. The fullness of the skirt was at first achieved by adding more layers of petticoats, leading to the crinoline petticoat of 1850. Named after the materials from which it was originally made, this petticoat was made of the farthingale and the hoop, a heavy underskirt reinforced by circular hoops. By 1856 the weight of the crinoline and the petticoats became unbearable, and the cage crinoline was invented. This was a flexible steel framework joined by tapes or string and having no covering fabric. 

In the 1860s, the shape of the crinoline changed into that of the rear bustle, which was fashionable in the 1870s and '80s. Only in the 1890s did the skirt return to a relatively slender shape, but there was no letup in the constrictive corset. In general, the styles of the late 19th century were elegant but not easy to wear. They restricted movement with their multiple layers, intricate decoration, and sheer quantity of material. 

19th Century Austrian Fashion

 

 

The fashion return all the time and Christian Dior is an example. 

This ball dress „Maria Louisa” from collection haute couture of „Christian Dior” fro the season spring-summer 1998. It is made of silk, synthetic wool and metal threads. The dress is a gift to the Metropolitan museum from fashion house „Christian Dior” - Paris. The dress is made from John Galliano for „Dior”. It is with loose crinoline silhouette, characteristic for the middle of 19th century.

If you are interested in fashion of 19th century, have a look at other blogges and links: 

Here is some example. I like this link a lot. It shows different underwear typical for this century, with lovely pics :)

http://www.angelfire.com/ar3/townevictorian/victorianfashion.html