STITCH December 2015 by STITCH Magazine

no. 27

december 2015 perspectives

STITCHFASHION.COM • DECEMBER 2015

table of contents

03 masthead 04 contributors 05 editor’s note 06 pleasures 07 wrapped in plastic Transparent plastic has become one of fashion’s most “revealing” trends. 08 textures in transition An urban look at the season’s warmest (and hottest) trend: Textures.

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fashion & politics A look into the intersection between the worlds of fashion and politics -- what happens when they collide? 20 somewhere in between From agendered pop-up stores to fluid fashion icons like Ruby Rose, fashion could be moving beyond the

f -- the itinerary Schoolgirl style meets whimsy and glamour in this Wes Andersoninspired shoot. gender binary. 33 last word STITCH evaluates the duplicitous influence of technology in fashion and whether its fate is actually

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Erica Witte MANAGING EDITOR Luke Zhang CREATIVE DIRECTOR & RECRUITMENT CHAIR Sarah Spellings SENIOR EDITOR Lizzey Johnson DESIGN EDITOR Florence Fu DESIGN TEAM Emily Ash, Manon Blackman, Sofia Kromis, Emmanuel Rockwell, Jason Yuan, Courtney Zhu PRINT EDITOR Mackenzie Broderick ONLINE EDITOR Rachel Lefferts STAFF WRITERS Christian Welch, Shira Zilberstein, Rachel Burns, Haley Glazer, Leo Wing, Leslie Zhang PRINT PHOTO EDITOR Zack Laurence ONLINE PHOTO EDITOR Alix Kramer PHOTOSHOOT DIRECTOR Beatrice Hagney ASSISTANT PHOTOSHOOT DIRECTOR Jason Yuan STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS Christine Chang, Meghan Harshaw, Sam Schumacher, Katherine Sprengel STYLING TEAM Caroline Bell, Madison Blanchard, Danielle Cohen, Hannah Curcio, Olivia Krevoy, Christian Maness, Onyinyechi Jessica Ogwumike MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Emily Kappes MULTIMEDIA TEAM Daniela Grava, Kimberly Hill, Renée Jacoby, Brii Williams

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Lauren Meyers MARKETING TEAM Casey Doherty, Elisa Finol, Lanie Shalek SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR Carolina Diaz SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM Catherine Kang, Wren Hagge DIRECTOR OF EVENTS Amber Cline DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL PROJECTS Steffanee Wang

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contributors Leslie Zhang Editorial Team Oakland, CA Favorite trend? The fashion industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s homoerotic twist on post-USSR skinhead culture. Funniest tailgate memory? That one time I went.

Amber Cline Director of Events Dallas, TX Favorite Trend? Mock necks. Funniest tailgate memory? Putting cat stickers all over ourselves one tailgate and finding them stuck to random surfaces ever since.

Melissa Cagan Photo Team Pittsburg, PA Favorite Trend? Turtlenecks for maximum coziness! Funniest tailgate memory? Trying to throw a football and failing cause sports...

Sarah Spellings Creative Director Dallas, TX Favorite Trend? Over-the-knee socks Funniest tailgate memory? Leaving the Michigan game confident that I could not, in fact, hang.

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editor’s note

When asked the mundane question, “If you could time-travel, when and where would you go?,” many millennials are quick to answer with “Woodstock” or “1920’s New York!” While those destinations would make for undeniably cool visits, I’d prefer to stay right here, right now. Our generation is lucky to grow up in a period where acceptance and equality are finally being prioritized in the public sphere. Having witnessed monumental events such as Obama’s election and the national legalization of same-sex marriage, I wouldn’t be surprised if our grandchildren requested Doc from “Back to the Future” to set the time machine to 2015. With these social advances come a variety of newly adopted perspectives, which are especially prevalent in fashion. The industry is constantly evolving to represent and reflect innovations in society. While we may not all be wearing Nike self-lacing sneakers like Marty McFly, I’d say we’ve reached the future. From a global perspective, we may have a long way to go, but fashion shows us just how far we’ve come. Selfridges, the Bergdorf Goodman of London, made headlines with their gender-neutral designer clothing section (see page 20). Kanye West has imbued his collection with political and social undertones (see page 17) to substantiate his impending presidential candidacy. These fresh, exciting perspectives are gaining momentum in fashion, prompting several designers and retailers to approach their work through fresh lenses. In this issue, STITCH celebrates the steps taken toward a more inclusive and creative future. But with all due respect for Kanye, we’re probably writing in Anna Wintour for 2020.

SIGNATURE HERE

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pleasures

1. Andy Warhol Philosophy Pencils $8.95, Barnes & Noble. 2. Pins + Needles Cory Bralette $34, Urban Outfitters.

3. Garance Doré Beauté Pocket Notebook $10, Rifle Paper Co. 4. The Stage Highway Curling Mascara $5, Korea Depart. Essie Nail Polish in Smokin’ Hot $9, CVS. 5. Fossil Watch $125, Fossil.com.

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wrapped in plastic

ILLUSTRATIONS BY LESLIE ZHANG

BY ISABEL SEIDEL

Plastic has never been known for its luxurious properties in fashion. However, this once tacky material—reminiscent of your pink jellies from middle school or your childhood clutch from Libby’s—has now made a name for itself. Transparent plastic had a surprising presence on the Spring 2016 runways: Chanel open-toed lace up clogs, Simone Rocha chandelier earrings and kitten heel strappy sandals, Mary Katrantzou chunky heels and a Maison Margiela floppy sunhat were all crafted with clear intentions, using our favorite faux childhood fabric. But one thing’s for sure: this unblemished material has graduated from childhood. Whether stud-trimmed or chunky, wearable plastic is not for the faint of heart. But what makes this barely-there material so cutting edge? Transparency, the epitome of no-frills in an embel-

lished fashion industry, has become chic. Our perspective on aesthetics changes when a statement piece becomes an understatement—barely there, yet ever-present. Couture collections may not be in your own reach, but imitations of the trend are easy to emulate. Christopher Kane Spring 2016 models sported zip-tie bracelets, which are easy to recreate with hardware store finds. Chunky shades with clear plastic rims can be found far and wide, while still easy on the wallet. Underlying transparency and clarity has always been an intention throughout runway collections, yet literal transparent polymers seem to be the ultimate antithesis of couture. Plastic, however, offers a modern change of pace on the runways and in readyto-wear collections that the fashion industry has yet to explore.

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TEXTURES in transition

An urban look at the seasonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s warmest (and hottest) trends. Photographer: Melissa Cagan Makeup: Madison Blanchard Hair: Hannah Curcio Set assistants: Dani Cohen, Olivia Krevoy Models: Russell Marriott, Fathma Rahman

Sweater: Madewell Scarf: Rag & Bone Jacket: Ted Baker 10

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Leggings: Forever 21 Shoes: Circus by Sam Edelman

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Vest: Jolt 16 STITCHFASHION.COM • DECEMBER 2015

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From the negligées of the French Revolution, to Pussy Riot’s neon balaclavas, to 1960’s anti-authoritarian grunge and even to the 21st-century man-bun, fashion flirts with shaking up the socio-political arena. Fashion and politics have a long history of intermingling. As a highly visible reflection of contemporary ideas, resources, values and outlooks, fashion holds immense power in the public sphere to uphold or challenge social norms, ideologies and institutions. The dynamic between fashion and politics complicates the role of both designers and consumers. Embracing new and creative technologies, identities, cultures and modes of expression can make fashion inherently political. Then, the work of fashion designers becomes a potential obligation to express progressive or popular political outlooks, rather than their own vision. Some consumers support or reject designers based on their political statements, not the merits of their designs. So the question arises, should fashion and politics intersect—and if so, how can this union be productive and positive?

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FASHION HAS THE POWER TO GENERATE IDEAS AND EMOTIONS FROM SOCIETY, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME INFLUENCING IT WITH NEW TRENDS, NEW PERSPECTIVES ON FASHION AND NEW CREATIVE THOUGHTS. 18

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It is difficult to discern if contemporary fashion designers are always intentionally making political statements, or if the fanatically, socially-conscious public imposes and projects a political agenda onto fashion pieces. Kanye West’s Fall 2015 show started with a group of blonde models dressed in beige tones and built up to a final group of black models dressed in all dark tones. Critics claimed Kanye’s design and show composition contained political undertones, but Kanye himself stated that the show “had nothing to do with race. It was only colors of human beings and the way these palettes of people work together and really just stressing the importance of color, the importance of that to our sanity, these Zen, monochrome palettes.” For fashion designers, colors and models can no longer be separated from their societal contexts to become simply modes of expression. Thus, designers must be constantly conscious of social and political atmospheres as the backdrop of their work. Olivier Rousteing of Balmain believes the separation of fashion and poli-

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tics is impossible. ”Everything can be political. It doesn’t matter what you do…If you have a point of view and a vision, it always becomes political.” Similarly, Dean and Dan Caten from DSquared2 state that fashion inevitably concerns public life. “Fashion has much more power than most people think… it carries great weight within our social landscape. It has the power to generate ideas and emotions from society, while at the same time influencing it with new trends, new perspectives on fashion and new creative thoughts. Even if people believe that fashion does not concern their lives, it definitely does!” However, the tangled relationship between fashion and politics then convolutes the ability to evaluate designers and brands based on the merits of their designs and appraise clothes as just art. Politics negatively affects designers who back unpopular social positions. In the Spring of 2015, consumers campaigned to boycott Dolce & Gabbana after the designers spoke out against gay adoption, “nontraditional families” and children of “chemistry” and “synthetic” origins. Even as an Italian

brand, from a country that does not allow gay marriage, Dolce & Gabbana are still under scrutiny based on imposed values and standards. These verbal statements obviously do not alter the quality or content of the brand’s clothes or the designers’ visions as artists. Consumers sought assurance that their money and the items they sported would support a business that upheld their social and political views. Therefore, consumers hold social capital and Dolce & Gabbana’s political statements mattered more to the brand’s success and popularity than the genius, luxe or creativity of their work. Other brands specifically use their public presence to make more “acceptable” political statements. In Chanel’s show for Spring 2015, models donned feminist placards, chanted slogans and used the street as their runway to show support for contemporary feminism and anti-war rhetoric. Similarly, designer Carrie Hammer has produced numerous shows entitled “Role Models not Runway Models”, featuring female CEOs, writers, actresses, entrepreneurs, olympians and handicapped women, to showcase an egalitarian concept of beauty, rights and opportunities. In 2014, Jamie Brewer from American Horror Story became the first model with Down syndrome to walk the runway at New York Fashion Week. This paved the way for Madeline Stuart, a teen with down syndrome, to walk in FTL Moda with the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation and at the Global Disability Inclusion initiative in New York Fashion Week in 2015. It showed the fashion world’s support for equal rights and opportunities for disabled individuals. Kerry Jean-Raymond showed scenes from the film “Fruitvale Station” and videos of police brutality before his 2015 show at New York Fashion Week. His clothes also contained slogans bringing attention to the unjust treatment of African-Americans in the United States. It is clear that many designers are intentionally using fashion as an outlet to promote political opinions. Some designers are going so far as to manipulate fashion for their own political

agendas. Kanye’s alleged bid for presidency in 2020 exemplifies an extreme instance of the purposeful melding of fashion and politics. Kanye highlights values in the fashion world that can be powerful and useful in the political arena, such as fostering innovation and promoting collaboration. He claims, “the world can be helped through design…It’s very important that I continue to design, to be in practice of trying to make the best decisions possible. I hate politics. I’m not a politician at all. I care about the truth and I just care about human beings.” He capitalizes on the problem-solving mentality of fashion designers. “We don’t just sit up there and read the fucking [look] board. We look at it and we ask hours and hours and hours of questions, and the better people that you have in the room and the more information you have, the better opportunity you have of making a great decision and of creating a great proposal that people will connect to. I want everyone to win.” In a political climate where Americans seem disillusioned by traditional players, fashion designers can offer alternative modes of thought, expression and communication, and new, un conventional platforms for activism. Fashion exists as a dynamic public influence. In both ideology and execution, designers and their products contribute to promoting or combating social and political issues. The junction between these two spheres both empowers the fashion world, as well as imposes limitations. Fashion cannot be evaluated as “pure art,” non-holistically and out of historical and social context. Additionally, garments cannot be separated from their creators and wearers. It is invigorating and empowering that fashion provides more than just aesthetic pleasure. The fashion world is about teamwork, engagement, novelty and embracing new and multiple perspectives, ideas, technologies and values—qualities that extend beyond simply the clothes people don. Fashion can be a tool for social and political change. STITCHFASHION.COM • DECEMBER 2015

Somewhere in Between

Androgynous fashion in today’s society

BY CHRISTIAN WELCH

As I walk through the wire cage enclosing the store, I can’t help but feel a little confused. I’ve never seen a Selfridges like this, or any department store for that matter. All of the clothes are in white canvas bags and there are no signs or labels. I pull out a black tulle-overlaid hoodie, and I see the guy next to me eyeing it, but he already took the last pair of sweatpants I wanted so I pretend not to notice him (although, if I’m being honest, this hoodie would look pretty killer on him). I’m on a treasure hunt through the store to find what I came for but the bags add a layer of complexity to my usually hurried shopping trips. When everything looks the same from the outside, you have to pull back the layers to see what’s truly there. Metaphorically on-par, the clothes themselves are meant to give their wearers a blank slate too. Selfridges, an influential department store based in London (the British equivalent of Bergdorf Goodman), is creating Agendered pop-up stores to test public interest in gender-neutral shopping. The stores are caged in by mess wire and the visual merchandising purposefully lacks mannequins in order to establish transparency and prevent any gender association. The merchandise is comprised of gender-neutral items pulled from 40 reputable designers as well as five entirely unisex collections. They are bagged in stiff white canvas with a slit down the middle—the gender construct, so shoppers are “breaking the gender barriers” every time they pry open the bags for a peek inside. The mastermind behind this Agender project, Faye Toogood, describes her idea as “creating a blank slate to explore the way we think about what we wear.” As she outlines on Selfridges’ website, she believes Agendered fashion is the future and wants to be at the forefront of this

movement with her new stores. If the popup stores are a success, it could potentially change the way we think about shopping. While it may be hard to imagine a world where men and women are shopping for the same clothing, today’s youth is more exposed to gender equality than their predecessors. Young girls are no longer stuck playing with barbies. Nerf guns and building blocks are now also marketed for girls. The success of Target’s gender-neutral toy aisles makes it conceivable that apparel might be the next department to get an overhaul. Fashion is a way for people to show the world who they are, to give the world a glimpse into what they are like and how they see themselves. Consider transgender individuals, who often begin by wearing the clothes of the gender they identify with to display their self identity. At the most basic level, the clothes that people wear are often under the influence of the subculture they belong to—jock, prep, goth, nerd, male or female. But some transcend the gender binary. They are somewhere in between. If gender is socially perceived as more an expression of self than something coded in your DNA, fashion should be a medium of that self-expression, unrestricted by “boy clothes” and “girl clothes”. Fashion is something that is inherently personal; it needs to accommodate social and political trends. If fashion is a form of self-expression, a means of identifying yourself, then androgyny is a way for genderfluid people to be able to properly express themselves.With the media wrapped around their little finger, Ruby Rose is using their attention as an upand-coming actor to spread awareness for gender fluid people like Rose. In an interview with Elle, Rose explains, “Gender fluidity is not really feeling like you’re at one end of the spectrum or the other. For the most part, I definitely don’t identify as any gender. I’m not a guy; I don’t really feel like a woman, but obviously I was born one. So, I’m somewhere in the middle, which—in my perfect imagination— is like having the best of both sexes. I have a lot of characteristics that would normally be present in a guy and then less

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ANDROGYNY HAS BEEN A PART OF THE FASHION WORLD FOR OVER A CENTURY, FROM WOMEN WEARING PANTS TO MEN WALKING THE RUNWAY IN SKIRTS. than would be present in a woman. But then sometimes I’ll put on a skirt—like today.” Rose is giving a voice to a group of people who haven’t been heard in the media yet. Rose’s viral YouTube video “Break Free” gave an inside look at what it is like to be gender fluid. In it, the viewer is guided through both ends of the gender spectrum as Rose trades a blonde wig and high heels for an ace bandage and tattoos. This video gives the world a visual representation of the complex way in which a gender fluid person sees themselves. The acceptance and portrayal of Rose as a sex symbol may indicate that society is ready to accept a new kind of beauty that is not targeted at men or women, but that can appeal to society collectively. Androgyny has been a part of the fashion world for over a century, from women wearing pants to men walking the runway in skirts. Famous displays of androgyny—such as Mick Jagger wearing a men’s dress while performing in Hyde Park and Madonna rocking a pantsuit on the red carpet—have made statements about society’s gender barriers in fashion. With that said, it now it seems like those barriers are crumbling down as agendered fashion makes its way into the mainstream. The “boyfriend” look has been popular in women’s fashion for a while now. Women have been known to wear baggy jeans or an oversized cardigan that looks like they just threw on something their man left lying around. But as of recently, “the girlfriend” is experiencing a revolution. At the unveiling of its Spring/ Summer 2016 line, Gucci displayed a collection of feminine blouses and sweaters that look like the models borrowed a few items from their girlfriend’s closet.

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With men’s fashion taking inspiration from women’s fashion and vice versa, it is becoming apparent that there is a serious overlap in the fashion choices of both genders. What is so notable about this trend is its transcendence from catwalk to consumer. It’s never too much of a surprise when bold trends like androgynous fashion are seen on the runway, but the fact that androgyny is making its way into department stores and e-retailers holds weight. Androgynous clothing brands like Original Tomboy and Wildfang are making waves online and popping up in retail stores around the globe. As designers like Gucci and Burberry bring androgynous clothing into retail stores, one imperative question arises: What is the proper space for androgynous apparel? These clothes don’t belong in the men’s section or the women’s section. If unisex clothing is becoming mainstream, stores will need to accommodate these products with agendered clothing departments. If androgynous fashion becomes widely accepted, it could be the beginning of major social change—challenging the importance of gender in our society and making us question what it means to be masculine or feminine. That being said, androgynous fashion is not for everyone. Some people do identify as entirely male or female, and fashion should continue to accommodate them as it always has. Fashion is an outlet of self expression and androgynous fashion is simply a new means for people to express themselves who don’t feel like they belong in the women’s section or the men’s section. That is what makes androgynous fashion so revolutionary. It’s not fashion for men and women, it’s fashion for people. STITCHFASHION.COM • DECEMBER 2015

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On Brammy: Fur Coat: ZARA Striped Mockneck: Anthropologie Leggings: Lululemon Booties: Aldo On Edson: Headband: American Apparel Jacket: Orvis Shirt: Angelo Rossi Corduroys: H&M Shoes: Ralph Lauren

F -- THE ITINERARY Schoolgirl style meets whimsy and glamour in this Wes Anderson-inspired shoot

Photographer: Zack Laurence Makeup: Christian Maness, Jason Yuan, Evelyn Ma. Hair: Christian Maness, Madison Blanchard. Set assistants: Olivia Krevoy, Hannah Curcio, Caroline Bell, Jessica Ogwumike. Models: Brammy Geduld, Edson Montenegro.

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On Brammy: Plaid Shirt: Brandy Melville Skirt: American Apparel Leg Warmers: Vintage Beret: Amazon On Edson: Blazer: Angelo Rossi

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Shirt: J.Crew Skirt: Forever 21 Sneakers: Adidas Stan Smith

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LA ST O W RD

high tech HIGH RISK, HIGH REWARD, HIGH RESPONSIBILITY STITCH evaluates the duplicitous influence of technology in fashion and whether its fate is actually in our own hands BY ELIZABETH JOHNSON

In the summer of 2014, I was interning at a tech startup when the Apple Watch first debuted. As an Apple loyalist and Silicon Valley native, I demanded our office host a staffwide viewing of the presentation. (How classic startup is it that an intern required her bosses to interrupt their work to watch TV?) Still, the office complied, and we proceeded to drool over the gadgets Apple revealed in its signature showmanship–dramatically, pompously and at the pace of a snail, or a Northwestern student trudging down Sheridan in the winter. I even decided to take my first stab at live tweeting. This was important. I remember my awe when Tim Cook introduced the Watch. His pageantry of its features was like really good tech porn, or maybe even propaganda; either way, I had to have it. From a style standpoint, I liked its crisp aesthetic. But the concept of a timepiece becoming a tech piece captivated me. This was not the first time the world had met a wearable, but to me, this was the first time that style and science had clicked. But then I read the fine print. Your iPhone had to be within roughly 30 feet in order for it to sync with your

Watch; the coolest features required somebody else to have the Watch, too; and worst of all, the glitziest versions cost half a year’s tuition. But in the six months it took for the Watch to hit stores, I came to realize its unwritten flaw. I was already addicted to my iPhone, and that was glued to my back pocket. What would happen if I strapped a gadget to my front? Interactions between technology and fashion are occurring far beyond our wrists. In fact, technology is gradually starting to infiltrate all levels of fashion’s food chain. Brands like JAKE, a custom clothing startup based in San Francisco, are using advancements in machinery and printing to make custom garments affordable. “Technology lowers barriers between producers and consumers,” writes Fortune, which forges connections between made-to-order and the masses. 3D printing and robotics are bypassing a large part of the human process in apparel manufacturing. In the textile industry, “advanced machinery is boosting productivity levels, costing some workers their jobs while fundamentally changing the nature of work for others,” according to job hunting site CollegeGrad. These ad-

vancements are valuable, but we have to be cautious about allowing them to saturate our market. While technology advances efficiency and personalization, if we allow it to overwhelm the institutions we have nurtured for centuries—handmade goods, runway shows, premade collections—we will not only lose jobs, but we will lose the element of craftsmanship that makes fashion transcend practicality into art. The solution to these risks is simple: we have to change our perspective. We have to look at technology not as an end, but a means to an end. High tech sewing machines should improve people’s jobs, not replace them. Phones and watches should increase our access to experience, not become the experience. As technology changes our perspective on how we conduct our daily lives, we become responsible for changing our perspective on how we use technology. We can use it to become more informed, more innovative and more efficient; or, we can use it to replace human experiences that I personally don’t want to omit. Sure, my Apple Watch could tell me how I’m making someone’s heart dance like the Macarena—but I think I’ll just feel it for myself.

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“ Sam: Why do you always use binoculars? Suzy: It helps me see things closer. Even if they’re not very far away. I pretend it’s my magic power. Sam: That sounds like poetry. Poems don’t always have to rhyme, you know. They’re just supposed to be creative. - Moonrise Kingdom, 2012

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