The Noughties’ Aesthetic

Now that we’ve hit the last leg of 2009, and with that, the end of a decade, retrospection naturally kicks into high gear.

What’s been tugging at my fashion conscience?

Let’s call it The Noughties’ Aesthetic.

The ’60s had a look, the ’70s had a look, so did the ’80s and the ’90s…and now we are left to ponder how the ’00s will leave their mark on fashion history.

It’s been a fashion decade that epitomized postmodernism: endless references to years long past (Vintage started out as a trend but has since outlived its trend cycle to score solid cred. Plus, how many comeback decades have we been though already?) put together without pattern or coherence (“i love how she mixes vintage pieces with modern pieces”, “i love how she mixes designer labels with high street labels”, “effortless chic” – how many times have we read these lines on magazines, blogs, and on our friends’ lips?), often giving rise to irony verging on parody (celebrities dressed like hobos, hipster culture going mainstream when it was meant to be non-mainstream to begin with, and the old becoming new). Honestly? It feels like we just dredged up bits of our past, and just mashed it up with whatever was in the air, whatever suited the zeitgeist….as if it were meaningful (irony: it isn’t meaningful).

That was probably a lot for one paragraph (don’t bother digesting it, elaboration will follow soon enough), but it was to illustrate that after so much randomness and so many references to the past, my gripe is this: I don’t get how we have lived an entire decade without some novel approach to design, or a significant contribution to the neverending dialogue that is fashion.

Having spent my teenhood in the Noughties, I’d  hate to think I grew up in an insignificant period in fashion. (Perhaps we can pass it off as significant for being insignificant. Who knows?). Either way, it worries me that this might only be remembered as a decade of noise, just trying to gain closure from the 20th century by rehashing some 20th century highlights – a sort of warped approach to bringing the 21st century to a state of tabula rasa, before we finally have a new generation of cuts, dimensions, technologies and subcultures, bursting on the scene for the new century.

So I’ve decided to investigate The Noughties’ Aesthetic in a series of posts following this introductory post. I decided on a series since I think we are allowed more than one interpretation, and I don’t want to leave posts of epic lengths in my blogging trail – too cumbersome when blogs lack tactility. Better yet if spacing out ideas creates more room for dialogue, no?

Singapore, in New York

The New York Times featured our little island today, in Singapore Lane Springs to Life!

It seems that the Comme des Garçons guerrilla store, which kick-started the Haji Lane Renaissance (to put it simply), didn’t have quite the same effect on Tiong Bahru and Mount Sophia. What’s so special about Haji Lane? I’m guessing its proximity to the city, accessibility, and rent. Mount Sophia is probably closer to the city than Haji Lane is, but the long flight of stairs makes it a tad less accessible.

Anyhow, it’d be interesting to see how CDG’s business model affects various neighbourhoods here. I’m not too sure how decentralized fashion retail is in Singapore, but major companies seem to be expanding into the heartlands — think Isetan and Uniqlo.

Do give the article a read. It probably doesn’t feature much more than what the next Singaporean knows about Haji Lane, but it’s always nice when people pay attention to our sunny island (set in the sea…).

Deconstructing the Shopaholic

I don’t have many bags because every time I see one that I’m relatively interested in, I ask myself if I would still like it two seasons later — that’s usually the dealbreaker. It has saved me an awful lot of heartache over large sums of money, though it doesn’t explain why I still have two shelves of clothes yet unworn.

Why do people buy now, and regret later? Jane Wang posits that such consumers make irrational purchase decisions because they neglect to consider the diminishing enjoyment from owning a product. When consumers don’t think about how much they will enjoy the product in the long run, they tend to purchase it more readily. Conversely, consumers might be dissuaded from buying a product if they actually consider how much they will enjoy it over a long period of time.

This has an interesting application for marketing managers: they should focus on the “here and now” when promoting a product, instead of reminding consumers of the duration over which they will use it. For example, marketers might want to focus on where the consumer might take that bag immediately, instead of how it might (or more probably, might not) last the next few seasons.

The Alexander McQueen Knuckle Duster: Now or Forever?

I suppose it might be much easier to concentrate on the here-and-now in the fashion industry than, say, in the automobile industry. After all, we don’t really expect all that stuff on the runway to be there again next season, and the next, and the one after that.

This probably isn’t much news to conscientious shoppers, though I think it offers a rather interesting framework with which we can assess marketers’ strategies in promoting next season’s new obsession.

(Photo Credits: Alexander McQueen Official Site)

Made in China: a new concept

Photographer Li Wei’s fashion shoot for Wallpaper. I find the thought process rather intriguing — though he could have elaborated on it. PB, I think it’s a project you might be interested in.

After Black Friday

So, here’s what happens after the happily ever after: No firm buyer for Christian Lacroix.

Frontrunner Sheikh Hassan Ben Ali al-Naimi, who is close to the ruling family of the Ajman emirate, stepped in in September when the Italian retailer Borletti pulled out. His formal offer of 100 million euros, which the couturier favours, would cover clearing the debts and covering the losses expected in relaunching and developing the brand.

But at the last hearing on November 17 he dropped a bombshell when he said through a representative in court that he was unable to come up with the financial guarantees to back his proposal.

Let’s see what happens in court tomorrow.

Update: Lacroix May Become Licensing Firm After Ruling
So the Paris court approved of its turnaround plans — though I’m not sure how far they’ll take Lacroix. Only 11 staff remain. Pierre Cardin, anyone?

For friends and girlfriends alike

Some images from the Elle Shoe Diary. Some Japanese porn magazines feature photographs like these on the last few pages (why? why do I know such things?), but these were taken for a whole different reason. Some of these shoes, however, may cause similar reactions.

Weekday

Swedish label Weekday has got really interesting mini collaborations with other labels like minimarket! I really like these shots from their lookbook. Check out the mesh shirt in the second image!

Complex Geometries

If taxi drivers are a barometer of national discourse (see unrelated article on the recent kindness movement), then photographers probably do the same for the indie scene. An excerpt from a recent conversation in a certain photographer’s car:

Me: Do you think indie is the new mainstream?
Photographer: I think mainstream is the new indie.

There is probably quite a bit of truth to this, though the scene kids will probably have one or two things to say about it. The most enlightened (and postmodern) among us would probably waive the need for such quibbling, though I must say I have a few more questions. Is Topshop really indie-indie? Isn’t time for some boys to hit the gym? So here we have a problem with labels, labels, labels.

Same photographer also has me looking at complex geometries this morning. Some of you might like it.

Prom Night II

Prabal Gurung seems rather new to the scene, but celebrities seem to be snapping up his dresses rather quickly. I don’t think all his dresses are that great, but these are rather interesting. More ideas for prom?

(Photo Credits: Style.com)

Prom Night

Our dear friend JS reminded me a couple of weeks ago that it’s Prom period again! Girls are now trawling the streets of Orchard (well, there’s only one) in search of the Ultimate prom dress; most of them regret their purchases after a while.

While I was snooping around the top few levels of Far East over the weekend, I found myself beside a Mother (M) and Daughter (D) pair on their search for the Ultimate. After a minute of browsing, D grabbed a tiny dress of the rack and asked the sales assistant if it was available in Large. Sales assistant replied that there were only 2 of those dresses left, and they were on the rack. D stomped back and threw the dress noisily back on the rack. M, not noticing the commotion, asked D if she would like to try another dress. D mumbled, “Also don’t have my size; let’s go lah!” D then dragged M out of the store. I hope she found something suitable! Prom can be such an ego-bruiser for some.

For some reason, many secondary school girls seem to think that A Certain Orchard Road Label (no names here!) produces the Ultimate prom dresses — the glaring caveat is that they’re bound to be wearing the same dress as someone else in the room. Girls! Take inspiration elsewhere! If budget is a concern, getting your dress tailored might be cheaper than buying it from A Certain Orchard Road Label!

PB, I hope you learn to sew in time for your sister’s prom.

For those who need ideas, would Haider Ackermann ss10 work for you?

OK, maybe it’ll be a little hard to finish up that overpriced 10-course prom dinner with one hand protecting your modesty, but smart girls will find ways around it!

(Photo Credits: Style.com)