What is Slow Fashion?
In our last blog, we talked about Fast Fashion. The evolution of Fast Fashion means consumers can continuously evolve their self-identity through their style. Increasingly consumers are becoming aware of the harm this fashion consumption is having on the environment and cynical of the mindless consumption of the Fast Fashion industry.
The term “sustainability” has become linked to the fashion industry, and with it, the term “slow fashion” has emerged in the industry.
Slow Fashion refers not to time (as opposed to the “fast” in fashion which does refer to time). Slow refers to conscious consumerism, a philosophy of mindfulness from designers, buyers, retailers, and consumers regarding the impact that producing fashion has on our industry and the environment.
Evolving with Fast Fashion
Fashion trends change in the blink of an eye making your last seasonpurchases feel decades old. Its little wonder why many consumers rely on fastfashion to help satisfy their fashion desires. We love it to hate it, but whatis the allure of fast fashion?
At its core, fast fashion is low-cost clothing collections based onhigh-end designer labels. Once upon a time, there was a six-month turn aroundtime from the catwalk to the consumer. Now, with a little help from clothingchains such as Zara and H&M, the latest styles coming from the catwalk cantake mere weeks. Fast fashion companies love the fast cycles of fashion; theythrive on the rapid prototyping, small batches combined with a large variety. Inprinciple, fast fashion is, a fast-response system that encouragesdisposability.
Much like the technology industry, the fast fashion industryconsistently produces more improved, more alluring products. Both of theseindustries exist courtesy of consumer impulse behaviour; we see it, we want it.The objective of the industry is called “planned obsolescence”; thestrategy of designing products which last long enough only to satisfy theconsumers need before becoming obsolete. Avid consumers of fast fashion know tobrowse fast fashion stores on a near-weekly basis to search for new styles.
But perhaps fast fashion is about more than just consumerism? You see, when we combine the consumer’s desire for the latest designer trends with their disposable incomes (or their availability of credit), something enjoyable happens. Rather than buying clothes within their comfort zone, fast fashion lovers can regularly sample new styles to evolve their style.
In short, fast fashion offers consumers the latest designs and the instant gratification of temporary self-identity. Fast fashion isn’t glamourous or at all exclusive, but it gives many people an otherwise unobtainable opportunity to evolve their fashion without breaking the bank.
What you don’t think about denim.
We doubt there is a fashion item that has more of a global presence than denim. When you stop and think about it, the majority of people, in the majority of countries are wearing their blue denim jeans on any given day. You could consider that denim jeans have more of an effect on contemporary clothing than we give them credit for. On a global average, people wear jeans 3.5 times per week. Let’s compare this to international fashion designers who’s clothing exists primarily on the catwalk and then subsequently worn by very few people.
Jeans began as working men’s garments and became a dominant 1950’s American youth icon with thanks to James Dean and Marlon Brando. From here, jeans became part of our pop culture. We have accepted this as a common-sense explanation for why blue jeans are so universal in our everyday lives.
Recently denim has increased in popularity in the choice as everyday wear. The core style of a pair of denim jeans is as much today as the first-ever pairs of Levi’s in the late nineteenth century. We choose jeans because of their wearability and affordability. We all have a favourite pair that has gradually distressed, worn in and personalised to our own individuality. We choose jeans because of their wearability and affordability.
And if you have ever wondered why blue jeans became blue in the first place; its because Indigo dye is unique. It is the only commonly available natural dye that could be used without any additives to work on fabrics, making it easier to work with than alternative colours.
So perhaps instead of thinking of them as “just” denim jeans, we should consider them as the global phenomenon that they genuinely are.
What is Fashion?
What do you think of when you think of Fashion? Models on a runway, the latest outfits on Instagram? Although this is not altogether wrong, Fashion is actually far more substantial than what is in your wardrobe.
A quick Google search defines the word Fashion as “a prevailing custom or style of dress,etiquette, socializing, etc.” Fashion is the perception of newnessthat we, as a society, adopt into our culture. It isn’t about clothes, in fact,Fashion isn’t even tangible.
Fashion can be found everywhere. In the homes we live in, the cars we drive, the type of pets we own, even the social media platform we use arefashionable. Fashion is a social process. It can be applied to any object,behaviour, or way of thinking.
It is no coincidence that clothing is the perfect ideology of Fashion. It’s because products created as clothing are designed to only have short lifespans. They are designed to only be popular for a short period of time; they are designed to die. The fashion world calls this “planned obsolescence,” and it is the foundation of the western fashion system. If a trend does not end, then there would be no need to replace it! Fashions are created to sell in one season, to bring joy and prosperity, and then to be discarded and replaced for something new.
Influence from the fashion industry is not only about clothing; itcomes from the jewelry we wear, our makeup techniques, or the latest nail hues.Style of shoes, belts, lingerie, handbags, hairstyles, fragrances, even ourphones and their covers have become fashion items.
And here’s how fashion cycles work. Let’s consider the 1990s when our dress was influenced by alternative music. A specific style of clothing becomes popular and is adopted by a few people. Adoption of the style will increase until the market has been saturated with it and the style is at its most popular. Then adoption of the style declines until it eventually tapers out of Fashion.
So to answer the question; what is Fashion? To put it simply, Fashion is everywhere and is everything and your clothes are the foundation of it.
The Hemline Theory
Mini, Midi, or Maxi? There is one bizarre urban legend that legitimately links the height of our hemlines to the economy.
The Hemline Index was first proposed by economist George Taylor in the 1920s. Taylor’s “theory” was that in strong economic times, women wore shorter skirts to reveal their expensive silk stockings. Conversely, in challenging economic times women would wear longer skirts to hide the fact they were not wearing silk stockings.
There are two specific periods in American history; the 1920s and the 1960s where persuasive evidence exists for the Hemline Theory. In both eras, the economic booms went hand in hand with women’s rising hemlines. The 1920s was a time of economic growth in the United States, and hemlines moved from the ankle to the knee. Again in the 1960s after a financial boom, the mini-skirt introduced.
Researcher Mary Ann Mabry re-examined the theory in the 1970s. By collecting data from fashion magazines, Mabry correlated the hemline length with data from the New York Stock Exchange from 1921 to 1971. Mabry concluded that there is a statistical correlation between hemlines and the stock market.
Fast forward to 2010 when Economists Marjolein van Baardwijk and Philip Hans Franses further examined the connection by collecting monthly data on the hemline, for 1921-2009 and evaluating it against the economic cycle. The main finding is that the urban legend holds true, although they say that it takes roughly three to four years for the financial impact to show on hemlines.
Luckily, because of the diversity in fashion today, any and every hemline length can be found on the streets, thus making the Hemline Theory obsolete. Nonetheless, people continue to perpetuate the myth of a connection between hemlines and the stock market…
The phenomenon of fashion
As the saying goes; the clothes maketh the man, but why does fashion matter so much? In fact, why does it matter at all? We are all aware that not adhering to a prescribed dress code can be disastrous, but how have the ideals on dress codes been acquired? And for that matter, why does the way we dress contribute to our self-esteem?
In the beginning, fashion was associated with power. Opulent clothes were worn to symbolise dominant status, wealth, and superiority. Still, to this day, there is the idea that fashion and styles of dress denote social power and status. Historically fashion trends in western society are centered around moments of each generation; think tight-laced corsets which epitomise the Victorian era or mini-skirts which represent the 1960s.
The behaviour of everyday fashion; dress codes and our sense of fashionability trickle down from high-end fashion designers. When a particular fashion mode taps into ordinary sensibilities it is popularised to street fashion, this is how everyday dress codes are constructed and gradually modified to new styles. As popular fashion cycles pass seemingly unnoticed through day to day life and into our daily fashion system it plays an essential part in our everyday lives. Our style identifies our group, including our subculture, ethnicity, lifestyle, and occupation.
Fashion is mysterious, complicated, provoking and above all, irresistible. If we like it or not, fashion has a hold over us. We all have mixed feelings on the topic of fashion, some of us even try to avoid it, but there is no doubt that clothes do indeed maketh the man.
Welcome!
Clare and Luisa from Ludic here, welcome to our first blog! We thought we would take this opportunity to tell you a little about us, what we do and how Ludic Agency began.
Our friendship formed many moons ago, slowly evolving over the years to become a unique partnership. I suppose you could say we are opposing forces, her strengths are my weaknesses and vice versa. The idea of working together began with a prerequisite of having fun. We chose the name Ludic based on this initial business idea. The word Ludic means ”to show spontaneous and undirected playfulness”. After a combination of serendipitous moments together with our joint industry experience, the concept of a fashion agency was born!
As a boutique agency, we specialise in distributing international lifestyle and fashion brands which offer individuality within the Australian market.
The Ludic blog is a reflection of us; our ideas, passion and inspiration regarding relevant topics on all things fashion for every woman and her wardrobe. We don’t write as an authority on our topics, rather to understand the culture of the fashion industry. Most importantly, we hope you enjoy reading xx
Clare and Luisa
The Journey Begins
Thanks for joining me!
Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton
Ludic Agency 