Samme Magazine

women breaking through gender labels

Samme

Samme ISSUE 1 MAR 2017 USA: $14.95

ISSN 14498244

Striped Shirt Salvation Army

The Standpoint Many things have been changing and shifting for the better or for worse. Samme hopes for the better. By exposing different types of people in this world who have been promoting breaking gender labels in society, we want to help people to shift their perspectives.

Not necessarily unifying genders; we still have our biological differences and societal walls that are going to be much difficult to break. Rather, Samme helps people to know various tips so they can maximize their spending worth in daily products. For the bigger picture, we no longer want to be victims of misleading or unnecessary gender-dividing marketing. We need to break the stereotypes because today’s society still puts FEMALES IN PINK and MALES IN BLUE. For ourselves, for our future generations, let’s make our lives simpler by taking whatever that allows us to express ourselves and satisfy our needs, instead of being trapped under gender labels.

Sincerely, MJ Kim

MAR 2017 1 Samme

v

4

Rihanna’s Choices She promotes it better than any other man.

Tape it Like a Girl?

The most useless use of gender division on a product

5

Menswear Is the Heart of My Look She challenges the idea of what it means to be a "woman" and she rocks it.

6 10

Get Ready for Real

You’ve been doing it wrong.

It’s the real effective way.

Thrift the Shift Yes, you want the change.

The change comes with a small adventure that will help your wallet.

CELEBRITIES’ BLURRED LINES

Rihanna’s Choices

Pullover $150 Shorts $85 Nasir Mazhar

TAPE GIRL? IT LIKE A

THE MONTHLY USELESS AWARD GOES TO...

GIRL’S CLEAR TAPE

MAR 2017 4 Samme

BY JAMES CRAIG

RIHANNA ROCKED baggy denim and a floor-length fringed jacket to perform two songs on Saturday Night Live’s 40th season finale. It was the 27-year-old pop diva’s fifth time appearing on the NBC sketch programme, which was hosted by comedian Louis C.K. The real eight-time Grammy winner first rapped/ sang her trap-influenced banger B**** Better Have My Money. Riri­­­­-born Robyn Fenty—pretended to drive a car being pursued by police with a female hostage in the backseat. ‘Your wife in the back seat of my brand new foreign car,’ she sang from the second single from her upcoming record. Rihanna covered her long red weave with a floral headscarf and wore black lipstick, MUNNU hoop earrings, and two belts as she performed with four back-up dancers.

Stylist Mel Ottenberg has been incorporating a lot of menswear into the Dior spokesmodel’s wardrobe since 2011. ‘I love baggy things. I wear men’s clothes, men’s shoes, oxfords, creepers,’ she told Vogue last year. ‘You can do anything with a great jacket, the bigger the better. You can have any silhouette underneath. It gives you an attitude. It makes a gown look cool.’ The Home starlet later performed her third new single, American Oxygen, while standing solo before a video screen.

Footage of the Ferguson riots, 9/11, Martin Luther King Jr.’s coffin, and the Ku Klux Klan were projected as the Bajan beauty remained silhouetted. The painfully unfunny episode began with a bizarre musical tribute to summer, which was interrupted by a campaigning.

USELESS AWARD As we all know, gender division is very common in our society; however, people are still surprised by some products because it is just so ridiculous. The funnier thing is that they go for such marketing strategy because they DO sell out. Today’s society is more manipulated by "ridiculous" marketing than we think it is.

BY KELLY SHIVOY

What kind of tape can possibly be "just for girls"?

A tape’s sole job is to tape something, not to adhere to female needs. They probably think making it pink and using the tackiest font will satisfy that.

Other Candidates Pens for Her (BiC) Girl’s Microscope (Eastcolight) Women’s Toolset (Frostbite) Beer for Women (Chick Beer)

72% 68% 50% 47%

HER STORY

Menswear Is The Heart Of My Look

BY NATHANIEL YOTA

Men’s Blazer $150 Men’s Dress Shirt $85 Tommy Hilfiger + Men’s Pants $89 Topman

M

y personal style is literally a mix of everything that has inspired me from being a child right the way up until now. It’s quite an eclectic style but a menswear aesthetic is the heart of all of my looks.

Growing up I was exposed to quite a wide variety of popular culture in terms of music, books and films. Describing my look as Spike Lee meets Saville Row probably sums it up the best.

I don’t know how and why but there is an element of my own personal style in everything I style. I like so many modes and styles of clothing its hard to not style someone in a look I sometimes do. Upon styling all of my clients, there is always an initial meeting where I can establish their goals and what they generally want to communicate to the world.

I never ever forget this when styling each client; whilst developing a style that I feel suits them I have to make sure I’m constantly communicating my clients message across about who they are and more importantly who they want to be. If I just throw on a client any old thing that I think is cool they wont wear it properly, it will look forced. The ideas have to come from what I know of their personalities.

" Dressing like a ‘girl’ is someone else’s idea of what it means to be a woman—I don’t want someone else’s idea to define who I am, I just want to feel comfortable and express who I am freely." .

I had dreams of becoming a stylist through my love of clothing and more accurately the psychology behind fashion and style- how you can transform ones perception based on the change of a shirt. This fascinated me.

I was lucky enough to meet Labrinth before he was signed; at the time I enjoyed styling my friends and experimenting with my own wardrobe. I offered Lab my services when I knew he was thinking of pursuing an artist career and I put together my very first styling pitch.

Labrinth and his manager loved my ideas and we’ve been working together ever since. It’s through my work with Labrinth that other record labels and the industry got to know of me, from this work started pouring in and Ayishat Akanbi LTD was born. I’m so glad that I decided to proudly voice my stye and standards. Everyone’s standards can be the new standard, and no one can stop them.

MAR 2017 5 Samme

MAR 2017 6 Samme

Get the fit you want with a couple of dollar bills.

NYC thrift shops have it all..

by FIONA FionaHARRISON Harrison BY PHOTOGRAPHY Kim photographyBY byMJMJ Kim

MAR 2017 7 Samme

Spend less.

Be comfortable.

You will still look fly.

WE KNOW that "oversized" fit in women’s section is not really oversized. Don’t worry though, because all you need to do is step over to the men’s section. The men’s is just ripe with amazing finds, meaning amazing finds that will not overlap with 50 other women in your neighborhood. Thrifting clothes in the men’s section is a whole new world. It is so cheap, one of a kind, and it will provide you the perfect straight fit you wanted. There are just a couple things to be mindful of, and the door to cheaper and more unique fashion will open, leading you to a whole new world.

MAR 2017 8 Samme

SPOTS TO HIT Chains: Buffalo Exchange Crossroads.Co Goodwill Salvation Army Housing Works

Independent: Men’s Plaid Furry Shirt $12 Glitter Turtle Neck $4 Buffalo Exchange + Jeans $14 Goodwill

Cure Thrift Shop Monk Vintage AuH20 Beacon’s Closet Angel Thrift Shop Junk

YOU HAVE TO LOVE IT

TRY ON EVERYTHING

If two hours spent speed-sorting through musty clothes in a garishly lit superstore while Matchbox 20 plays on the radio sounds like torture to you, then don’t do it. If you are the kind of person who goes on eBay and searches for tchotchkes with free shipping that cost under $5 on the regular (seriously — this is fun, and how I do Christmas stockings), then maybe thrifting is for you. You have to really need the deals, or really want those diamond-in-therough fancy vintage pieces, for thrifting to be worth it.

Yup, this is a pain. It is even more a pain if you are like me and fill up a cart with 30 items on the hectic 50% off days, when everyone camps out at the dressing rooms with their five children. But you must always, always try things on when you thrift. First of all, if you are a lady, you know that number sizes mean absolutely nothing. Secondly, that shirt that looked perfect on the hanger could fit you in all the wrong places and you won’t have the energy to return something that was $5. And finally, there are jerks like me who are short and get all of their pants hemmed, and forget, and then donate them (unless you are short too, in which case, I just saved you a $10 hem!).

PAY ATTENTION TO MATERIALS In general, I avoid plastic-y blends like the plague. They don’t look good on anyone, even the models, and they certainly don’t hold up well over time. Always look at the tags and work on buying good, sturdy clothing made of cotton, wool, silk, or other natural fibers. While a great piece can be made by anyone, you know the brands that you like (or wish you had more of). This can have the added bonus of helping you with sizing, if you know what you wear in that brand. I constantly find pieces that are Target brand, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, and the Gap. My favorite brown pinstriped pants are Dockers that I got for $3. And especially if you are looking for basics (jeans, black work pants, long and short sleeved tees), go with a brand that you know you like and will last for a long time.

BE PATIENT BUT PICKY When I was a young thrifter, I’d spent tons of time looking at every shirt on the rack, trying to make it work with my wardrobe. Now I speed through those hangers like a pro.

Yeah, I might miss a find or two, but the really good things always jump out at you. Know what you like and it will come to you. And if it doesn’t, you didn’t realize it was there anyway. Once those clothes have made the rounds in your wardrobe, and you’re spring cleaning, make sure you take a nice big box back to the donation center. If you’re lazy, Freecycle it! Give it a second, third, or even fourth life. Let it lead someone to have a whole new life as well.

MAR 2017 9 Samme

BY DEVI JONES ILLUSTRATION BY MJ Kim

MAR 2017 10 Samme

Choose what works for you, not your gender. Find out about some men’s grooming products that will help you get ready more efficiently.

LADIES, IT’S TIME FOR US to recognize what really works and what doesn’t. Do you want to pay ten more dollars for that pink packaging? All that matters is how satisfied you are with your products, and how fresh you can get. Exploring the men’s section can be a start.

MAR 2017 11 Samme

GROOMING PRODUCTS HAUL

NIVEA AFTERSHAVE BALM $5.82 Sensitive areas, like your armpits, could use some love post-shave to prevent irritation. So instead of using your go-to body lotion, try an aftershave (especially this one with a barely-there scent).

ANTHONY LOGISTICS FACIAL SCRUB

M

ore and more women are ditching their pink razors and using men’s bulky razors to shave their legs. Why? Some claim that men’s razors are higher quality and have sharper blades that give a smoother and less irritating shave, since they’re shaving sensitive facial skin. They’re also switching because of the pink tax. Why would anyone stick to the more expensive, but less effective product?

The pink tax isn’t a literal tax imposed on pink items, but rather the notion that products that are branded towards women are more expensive than their male counterparts. A quick Google search reveals countless articles that compare men and women’s prices for everything from razors and dry cleaning to medicine and perfume. The difference is so pronounced that in late 2014, France’s finance ministry ordered an inquiry into why female shoppers are paying more than male consumers.

We wondered just how effective men’s razors would be for women. After all, there are some minor differences, such as a larger lubricating strip on women’s razors. So we decided to do a little informal study. We gave our razors to a couple women who had never tried using a guy’s razor before. Nearly all of them found it to be a better shave. Those who didn’t had the small complaint that men’s razors left their skin a little drier, but one of the ladies who experienced this issue offered up a solution: coconut oil. According to her, applying coconut oil and then shaving gave her a better shave than she had ever had, with no dryness.

The issue of overpriced razors for women strikes close to the heart for us here at the Bearded Colonel. We’re all about tackling the problem of unfair pricing for men, and since women are being forced to pay even more, we would like to formally welcome all women to join our club. We don’t just offer a fair price for top quality razors, we also deliver them at regular intervals so that our members have one less errand to run.

MAR 2017 12 Samme

$36 This exfoliant has some awesome perks: It tames your oily face (without those junky sulfates and petrochemicals), brightens up dull skin and prevents ingrown hairs.

HEAD & SHOULDERS FOR MEN'S SHAMPOO $8.99 Dandruff is literally the WORST. And no matter how many over-thecounter or prescription shampoos we try, this drugstore staple gets all the gunk off our scalps very efficiently.

AMERICAN CREW POMADE $10.48 Short-haired gals will certainly appreciate this medium-hold pomade.

It’s super easy to mold those jagged layers then rinse out and try something new. At a quite low price, you’ll experience something that you didn’t expect.

DO YOUR SKIN A FAVOR TOO

For Men

For Women Who: have dandruff have dry scalp have oily hair have long hair have a lot of hair have hair loss ... and much more

This is the reality.

Whereas women’s products are specifically labeled depending on the specialized purpose, men’s products are simply labeled as "men’s". But how are men’s conditions any different? Just because a lot of men don’t really pay attention to specific problems they have, that doesn’t mean the ones who care should be neglected.

In fact, what good does ignoring your problems bring anyway?

LUSH OCEAN SALT $21.95 If you truly deem a splash with ice cold water decadent, it’s time you treated your skin to a more considered morning routine. From what you eat, to how you commute, to your choice of booze, can leave your skin dried-out or greasy. Which either means stubborn, bristly facial hair or oily breakouts.

NARS RADIANT CREAMY CONCEALER $30.00

WHAT HE SAID AFTER USING WOMEN’S SHAMPOO Many men are afraid to even be in the women's aisle. Most people are self-conscious of the looks that people might give; however, those looks are still given by the most irrelevant people, the ones who are ignorant.

Just think about it this way: what's more important to you, your own personal needs or the brief unpleasant moments offered by people you'll never see again? James Nobbs, an accountant from Virginia, was shopping for a shampoo. When he found the product that he wanted, which helped with dandruff problems, he realized that it was from the women's section. Although at first he was afraid of judgment, he just decided to give it a try. Ever since, he only shops at the women's section.

Your hair will be clean, soft, healthy, lucious, smooth, and smell fabulous. Female shampoos are specialized for different needs.

MAR 2017 12 Samme

We’d understand if you didn’t fancy plastering concealer on in the rugby club changing room, but with Tom Ford and Lab Series among the brands pushing male make-up, you should feel no qualms about dabbling, says Hurrell. If your other half can hide the effects of a late night, why shouldn’t you?

ANTI-AGING EAU THERMALE AVÉNE $36.00 Your eyes are where the years show first. The skin around your peepers is extremely thin, so it cracks and wrinkles more readily.The best fix is early prevention, as you’ll protect delicate skin while balancing out dark shadows and pigmentation. The right cream will also fight burst blood vessels and swelling you get from burning the candle at both ends.

MAR 2017 10 Samme

BY THOMAS GILL PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY MJ KIM

LET’S REALLY FACE IT. Most men’s grooming products such as skin and body care items fail to address different types of conditions that men actually have. Whereas in women’s, they not only vary in skin types, but also in scents, texture, packaging, and more. There is no reason why you shouldn’t use those products to address your needs. You should pay for what it’s worth.

MAR 2017 11 Samme

COLOR CONTRAST. Denim garments are #1 essentials, and when the spring hits, it’s time to pull it out and layer it with the color you want. Get the denim jacket with the right fit. If you want the perfect harmony of colorful blouse and fit jacket, you have to walk over to the women’s section in thrift shops. That’s where you can find the unique patterns (although a few flaws can be present, but that adds to the vintage look) and the color you want. Not every guy is bulky or "manly", as society puts; you have your own body type, and the men’s section fails to accomodate those issues.

Why should you conform to such generalized society?

There are actually so many options out there for you. If you have the choice to go cheap and unique, why wouldn’t you take it? Do it for yourself, not for the general public that you don’t even have personal relationships with.Study some general tips and begin your journey to the perfect wardrobe you wanted.

MAR 2017 8 Samme

TRY ON EVERYTHING

YOU HAVE TO LOVE IT

Yup, this is a pain. It is even more a pain if you are like me and fill up a cart with 30 items on the hectic 50% off days, when everyone camps out at the dressing rooms with their five children. But you must always, always try things on when you thrift. First of all, if you are a lady, you know that number sizes mean absolutely nothing.

Secondly, that shirt that looked perfect on the hanger could fit you in all the wrong places and you won’t have the energy to return something that was $5. And finally, there are jerks like me who are short and get all of their pants hemmed, and forget, and then donate them (unless you are short too, in which case, I just saved you a $10 hem!).

If spending more than two hours on speedsorting through musty clothes in a garishly lit superstore while Matchbox 20 plays on the radio sounds like torture to you, then don’t do it. If you are the kind of person who goes on eBay and searches for tchotchkes with free shipping that cost under $5 on the regular (seriously — this is fun, and how I do Christmas stockings), then maybe thrifting is for you. You have to really need the deals, or really want those diamond-in-the-rough fancy vintage pieces, for thrifting to be worth it.

PAY ATTENTION TO MATERIALS

Women Pattern Shirt $4 Jean Jacket $17 Cure Thrift Shop

When I was a young thrifter, I’d spent tons of time looking at every shirt on the rack, trying to make it work with my wardrobe. Now I speed through those hangers like a pro. Yeah, I might miss a find or two, but the really good things always jump out at you. Know what you like and it will come to you. And if it doesn’t, you didn’t realize it was there anyway. Once those clothes have made the rounds in your wardrobe, and you’re spring cleaning, make sure you take a nice big box back to the donation center. If you’re lazy, Freecycle it! Give it a second, third, or even fourth life. You can be giving another person a whole new look, and possibly, change someone’s life and perspective.

SPOTS TO HIT

BE PATIENT BUT PICKY In general, I avoid plastic-y blends like the plague. They don’t look good on anyone, even the models, and they certainly don’t hold up well over time. Always look at the tags and work on buying good, sturdy clothing made of cotton, wool, silk, or other natural fibers.

While a great piece can be made by anyone, you know the brands that you like (or wish you had more of). This can have the added bonus of helping you with sizing, if you know what you wear in that brand. I constantly find pieces that are Target brand, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, and the Gap. My favorite brown pinstriped pants are Dockers that I got for $3. And especially if you are looking for basics (jeans, black work pants, long and short sleeved tees), go with a brand that you know you like.

Shiny Bomber Jacket $20 Crossroads.Co

Chains: Buffalo Exchange Crossroads.Co Goodwill

Independent: Cure Thrift Shop Monk Vintage AuH20 MAR 2017 9 Samme

BY CHRISTINA LEE

MAR 2017 6 Samme

PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY MJ KIM

Get the fit you want with a couple of dollar bills.

NYC thrift shops have it all.

MAR 2017 7 Samme

Young Thug and Calvin Klein

CELEBRITIES’ BLURRED LINES

BY JERRY TOMMY

RAP AND HIP-HOP are breaking down a lot of barriers in the fashion world. It was previously reported Young Thug was one of many artists to represent in the new Calvin Klein Fall 2016 campaign. Following the announcement, Thugger shared an image on his Instagram of him sporting one of the looks from the 2016 women’s collection.

I disobey in mycalvins, the slogan read across the image. It is definitely a fitting catchphrase considering his attire. In the campaign photo, Young Thug is leaning off into the distance while wearing a black pinstriped dress with black pants underneath. He was also joined Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean, Fetty Wap in the campaign, but was the only one to wear items from the women’s line.

Thug’s latest look is not much of a surprise, as the rapper has blurred the lines many times before. He’s previously disobeyed gender norms by referring to other rappers as lovers and has worn women’s clothing in his music videos, such as "Best Friend." As he sees it, clothing, and anything else for that matter, has no gender restrictions. I feel like there’s no such thing as gender, he said in the video for the Calvin Klein campaign.

Thug is the second well known artist to wear a women’s line for a fashion brand. Jaden Smith first shocked many when he appeared in the SS 2016 womenswear collection for Louis Vuitton. In the campaign, he also sported dresses and skirts. While this new trend is still categorized as different, it’s starting to inspire a generation of young males, and continuing to break down gender barriers.

RULE WHAT THE MONTHLY USELESS AWARD GOES TO...

"BOYS RULE" M&M’S

MAR 2017 4 Samme

THE USELESS AWARD As we all know, gender division is very common in our society; however, people are still surprised by some products because it is just so ridiculous. The funnier thing is that they go for such marketing strategy because they DO sell out. Today’s society is more manipulated by "ridiculous" marketing than we think it is.

BY KELLY SHIVOY

"Boys Rule"? "Girls Rule"?

Sure, they rule, but why did they even bother to divide them when m&m’s taste exactly the same when it enters anyone’s mouth?

On another note, the color scheme is also terrible.

Other Candidates Men’s Tea (Yogi Tea) His Ear Plugs (Skull Screws) Men’s Tissues (Kleenex) Men’s Yogurt (Powerful Yogurt)

64% 60% 39% 35%

HIS STORY

Women’s Red Corduroy Jacket $32 Women’s Short Sleeve Blouse $17 H&M + Women’s Boyfriend Fit Jeans $49 GAP

A Dazzling Place That Was Already Known

BY AVE K. JOHNSON

PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY MJ KIM

I

t wasn’t until my first relationship with another man (long story short: I was 18, in college, in love, in some random commuter town in New Jersey, and incapable of being honest with myself about what I really wanted —oh, and it lasted for about a year and a half before I was able to see through my own romantically grandiose delusions and realize that he was essentially just a rebound) that I first blazed my shopping trail into the women’s section. I honestly still don’t know why it took me so long to come onto the idea. I mean, I had absolutely no qualms with it; I didn’t think twice about doing it once it was in my mind. I guess I had just never thought of it as a possibility because it wasn’t something that I was used to seeing. (This is why representation is such a huge topic in social activism!) In any case, my ex—who had one younger brother, five older sisters, and had been working in the fashion retail industry for a couple of years already—came into the ownership of a handful of women’s clothing items, and because we ended up moving in together and luckily had the opportunity to share.

MAR 2017 5 Samme

co ts

en

nt

table of

4

Young Thug and Calvin Klein He promotes it better than any other woman

Rule What?

The most useless use of gender division on a product

6

5

A Dazzling Place That Was Already Known We all knew it existed, but not the wonders it can do.

Thrift the Shift Yes, you want the change. The change comes with a small adventure that will help your wallet.

10

Fresher than Ever You’ve been doing it wrong.

It’s the real effective way.

Pattern Shirt Cure Thrift Shop

The Standpoint Many things have been changing and shifting for the better or for worse. Samme hopes for the better. By exposing different types of people in this world who have been promoting breaking gender labels in society, we want to help people to shift their perspectives.

Not necessarily unifying genders; we still have our biological differences and societal walls that are going to be much difficult to break. Rather, Samme helps people to know various tips so they can maximize their spending worth in daily products. For the bigger picture, we no longer want to be victims of misleading or unnecessary gender-dividing marketing. We need to break the stereotypes because today’s society still puts FEMALES IN PINK and MALES IN BLUE. For ourselves, for our future generations, let’s make our lives simpler by taking whatever that allows us to express ourselves and satisfy our needs, instead of being trapped under gender labels.

Sincerely, MJ Kim

MAR 2017 1 Samme

men breaking through gender labels

Samme

Samme ISSUE 1 MAR 2017 USA: $14.95

ISSN 14498244