Ethnic influences on Apparel Design

Throughout the world everyone is being influenced in some way or the other. Throughout fashion we influence others, for instance the United States has influenced the dress in many other cultures this is also known as westernization. In Africa the children dress in shorts and a shirt until they hit their teens and are ready to wear traditional African wear of boubou, a long wrap.

Yet other cultures also effect the way we as Americans dress. The main culture that I can think of that has had a huge impact on the design of clothes is the Greek culture. The Greek culture has to also be one of my favorite influences. Their long dresses with amazing drapery help accent a women's body. The Greek also introduced the one shoulder. I think this look is very flattering on most women. It is also very elegant. The dress shown above is hand beaded rope straps and belt on and gives it a real Greek goddess feel. The silk Georgette has a flattering, body skimming effect making for a stunning dress to wear to parties.Versace and Missoni in the past have done a lot with this Greek influence.

Another culture that has influenced the way we dress are the British. England's art colleges have led the fashion world in creating patterns for at least two decades. Today designers continue to update designs with new patterns to match the direction of the recent trends. As we all know the latest trends have been bright and loud patterns on dresses, shirts, and skirts. And the art of Britain has helped with the new inventive looks of these patterns which has carried over into the United States.

These are just a few examples of how other cultures have influenced the way we dress. Dress is a globalization process were we all influence each other in different ways. Many designers get inspiration from different cultures like the Greek drapery and the British patterns are all ways other cultures have influenced the United States

Main Trends of the New York Fashion Week

New York fashion week is one of the biggest fashion events in the United States. After looking through different shows featuring Marc Jacobs, Valentino, Sass & Bide and others I began to notice a few common trends throughout each collection.
The first thing I noticed was the use of floral prints throughout a lot of the collections. I think that is a way of bringing the spring happiness to fall with the play on bright colors. I am not sure how I feel about floral print just because this past season it was popular and a little overwhelming. However I do like the idea of trying to brighten up fall with a plethora of colors, instead of continuing the trend of fall with yellows, greens, and browns.
The second thing I noticed throughout the collections were fabrics with a lot of sequins and luster to them. This trend seems kind of like a costume however there were a few items that looked amazing with the metallic luster look to them because they look very form fitting and fit the body well to accentuate the curves of a women's body. The sequins and fabric all seemed to be more on the dark side to fit the fall colors. This could also be worn at night like the current trends with a play on a few sequins on shirts. However some designers have spread the sequins to fill an entire skirt which is a new trend.
The last main trend I noticed throughout the collections were a more feminine approach to the design of the clothes. Designers are using more lace, ribbon, ruffles, pleating, and bows. The colors very light and flirty with pinks, off whites, and grays. I really like how the designers use this eccentric use of draping fabric and tone it down with subtle colors. This adds to the feminine look the designers are trying to go for. I am excited to continue to watch the runway shows and learn more about the upcoming fashion trends.

Organic and Environmental freiendly clothing

As we start to recognize the destruction we have caused on the planet thus far, we as Americans have begun to go green.
As I was walking in downtown Asheville I came across an clothing store with organic clothes. In this process they grow cotton without the harmful pesticides, herbicides, or any other fertilizer that could be harmful. As I walked around the store all the clothes I felt were more soft than my regular clothes. I was very surprised by this. I also love how the clothes were made with organic cotton. Although I myself have never come across a very bad reaction to clothing I do have very sensitive skin so knowing that organic clothing assures me that my skin will not break out by wearing it is a great feeling. Also as I walked through the store I noticed how they are trying to make the organic clothes very up to date on the latest trends. This is a great way to improve the popularity of organic clothing. If I saw the same cute shirt one being organic cotton and the other being regular cotton and the organic cotton I would choose the organic cotton.
However two things I noticed that i did not like were the color of the clothes seemed off, they were not as bright as they could be and the second thing I noticed were the outrageous prices. I think it is a great idea to have organic and environmental friendly clothing I just wish it was not so expensive. In my opinion getting more people to buy organic clothing has a lot to do with price. I know that is the reason why I dont own any organic clothing is because of the high prices. Although I do understand the whole supply and demand reasoning behind the high prices. Once the word get put out more about the organic clothing and more people start buying organic clothing the more the price will go down. I think that is another thing we can start doing is spread the word more. This way we are helping to prevent toxic fibers being grown and the price of the good fibers will go down.