Sunday, 5 October 2014

What is fashion?


"A popular or the latest style of clothing, decoration, hair or behaviour"
"A manor of doing something"
"The style characteristic of the social elite: a man of fashion"
"Art form or Religion"

There is no particular definition to what fashion is; people see fashion in different ways to others. It is immersed into every day life and is constantly changing; it has the power to make a social statement. 



Let's go back to before the birth of Givenchy's "Little Black Dress", before the birth of icons Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly, back to Versailles in Paris. 







Fashion came from Royalty. During the 1700s, back to the days of Louis XIV, the growing middle class would copy the style of the royal/wealthy, creating almost a hierarchy in fashion with regards to the two different fashions at the time. With this, the Royal would constantly create new fashions to "separate" themselves from the poorer, with luxurious and extravagant taste using the finest materials and designs, using fashion to control nobility and express power. 



Louis XIV set up the Palace of Versailles, located on the outskirts of Paris. He was determined to make France the most influential fashion country int he world thereby created the finest, lavishly dressed dolls and sent them across Europe. It was the first move towards the formation of haute couture and today's industry in French fashion.



The age of the designer occurred 150 years ago. Charles-Frederick Worth was an English fashion designer, also known as the "Father of couture". He moved to Paris, the centre of the fashion world, creating ready-made garments establishing his reputation as a well-known inspired designer. Worth was famous for his extravagant and luxurious fabrics and trims.


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