Free From Fashion
I had some time at work today to just read about the business of fashion as well as other interesting articles. It was brought to my attention by Style Bubble of this article in The Guardian (UK) about why this journalist hates fashion and why people who love it, are essentially morons.
I've come across my share of fashion haters. I think many of us who study in this industry, especially my fellow Parsons girls, are particularly sensitive when others put it down as a senseless, unfulfilling choice of career. It has always been a struggle as Christians, to find meaning and a voice in what we are called to do and always a conscious decision to make it something we use to glorify God rather than glorifying It- the 'It' being 'fashion'.
I remember days of the past when friends who would continuously tell me that they don't care about fashion or how they dress suddenly get riled up over what to wear for prom or for some party. Now when I look back, I muse and ask, "if you really didn't care about fashion at all, then you would go just as you are in a tee and jeans to the prom because really, if you think fashion is beyond you, it shouldn't shake you up this bad."
It does anger me, when people denounce it as pure senselessness (see the article above- no one that riled up can be that unaffected by the industry). I'm a lot calmer these days when people put it down because I often just dismiss them as not fully understanding the potential of innovation and impact. Although I've stopped trying to justify the reason I am in this industry, because I think the justification that God has placed me here is a reason enough to justify itself, I do shake my head at people who think they have little to do with the long arms of the realm of fashion.
How I see it is this: at one point in time all of us had or have the conscious choice to stick with the norm or to go beyond. Most people think sticking to the norm, that is a T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, distances themselves from fashion in relation to those people, like me, who are very sensitive to the pulse of Vogue/style bloggers/designers/trends. To them, they find people who are interested in fashion, people who are self-absorbed, insecure, have self esteem issues, worship at Carrie Bradshaw's feet (or shoe closet) and most of all, copy whatever goes without a thought of asking why.
I see that. It's a valid argument but I usually associate that with girls who buy from American Eagle or Abercrombie. It's not a diss against girls who like AF and Abercrombie, heck half of my closet is from H&M/Cotton On/Zara which is the epitome of mass production- it just so happens they cater to a different customer from the AE girl- but the fact is that I chose early on to ask "why must I dress in AE when I could go to a thrift store, tweak a dress and make it my own?" sets many of us apart.
Creating, customizing, consuming and changing/adapting is what makes fashion so great. I love offering a viewpoint when I dress the way I do- can I do 'this' differently from what was seen before to create a temporary new aesthetic? It's a dialogue, a challenge and a form of expression that allows many of us to validate or question the idea of 'the classic' or 'what is beauty?' Here, Hong Kong girls dress modestly and their ideas of beauty is either the super sweet (trapeze t-shirt dresses with leggings even in 30 degree heat) or super fake (MK- dyed hair, fake eyelashes, blush that looks like family abuse with neon halter tops and short shorts). The way I dress now (or at least I hope) questions the idea of the cookie cutter Asian: how does one look good if one was born to stand out and not conform? How do I dress to fit my body type when I can't fit in the free size that all standard Asians fit into? Can I take what is considered 'sexy' and make it look good without sacrificing morals? Can I create even without a sewing machine? Can I make this for cheaper but make it look just as good?
All these questions come into play every day when I open my closet. These things, while most 'intellectuals' would snub their noses as saying that they are 'above and beyond' the frivolity of dress, I retort that what I love to do is bring into conscious what we do unconsciously daily. To me, nothing ignites my imagination or excites me more when someone takes something ordinary and makes it extraordinary through examination, questioning and exploration. Granted when I dress, there is no genius behind it, just that I know what I like for this moment is what's on my back, but just the fact that I'm trying to understand my own thought process really comes down to me trying to understand the unconscious portion of my thinking. That's why I love thrift stores. Not because things are cheap but because someone threw this away thinking it was garbage makes me happy. I like to think of the alternative and I love mini challenges like this: taking something that has no or little value, and creating value and beauty in them with a tweak here and there. Although there aren't any thrift stores here in HK that are really that sanitary, I'm trying to make do with what there is here namely street market products.
To be free in Christ is to be free from the idols that people worship. I have started to understand that particularly after coming here and realizing I don't fit in, trying to/failing and having God speaking to me that as His children none of us were meant to blend in. As was said in the movie 'Julie and Julia', "you couldn't fit in when you were born, literally, so you don't!" The simple truth is that even if I were not in fashion, the way we are meant to live our lives must be different from non-Christians. It's not even an option, it's a necessity. Now I am not saying that I am consuming my way to be more holy through dress, but I have broken free from a corrupted self-image that the industry has weaned me on. Being the thinnest girl is not my goal because I know validation does and should not come from the scale nor the flawlessness of my skin the reason to be called beautiful, but looking myself in the mirror and saying I was born like this because God wanted it so, makes all the difference. Once I began to realize that nothing is a mistake- not the two birthmarks on my legs which I used to want to get lasered off to the length of my fingers- but that everything has been orchestrated for a purpose, I found a confidence that being born different is really not that bad. People remember you for your idiosyncracies and your quirks- not because they fit a beauty mold but because they don't which sets you apart. Who ever has said "oh I like her because she's the same as everyone else?"
I like fashion not to seek validation but being free to celebrate the creativity and the beauty of which I was called to be. I do struggle with materialism, granted, because that is the evil part of my interest with fashion. It' a given. Yes I still, at times, wish I could lipo the fat out of my thighs (I guess my baking blog conflicts with this whole interest) or wish my skin was poreless (aka airbrushed) but knowing that the God I worship is not hanging in my closet reminds me that whatever purpose and passions we were given, we have full responsibility over until we are called Home.
I now understand the parable of the talents farther in depth than I ever have before. It's a sermon preached over and over again but you really don't understand the power of it until you come across a real life encounter. That real life encounter came when I had to do my thesis and when I started working. I had a decision to just barely graduate with a thesis that wasn't innovative and work mindlessly in an office, OR I could take this opportunity of doing whatever the heck I wanted for a thesis as long as I dreamt big and at work, seek other opportunities of having positive impact. God placed me here for a reason, I refuse to grumble about my situation and bury my talents like the worthless servant; I wish to find alternate purposes and explore my talents while waiting for God to show me the path I need to run. I don't want to meet God one day and have Him ask me, "so I gave the the abilities to write, bake and create... what did you do with them?" and answer, "oh really? I thought you were gonna give me the opportunity to serve as CEO to use my gifts so I put them on hiatus in the meantime!"
Anyway this has meandered beyond fashion and into the overarching theme of talents, patience and what it means to be free from this world.
And where best to start than in an industry most Christians have discarded as hopeless and useless to become leaders in and to see God work?
Oh another good article as a person who is passionate about sustainable design. BOO TO ANTHROPOLOGIE- you give off this idea of vintage furniture sold for high prices when in fact you trash unwanted merchandise: Click here!
I've come across my share of fashion haters. I think many of us who study in this industry, especially my fellow Parsons girls, are particularly sensitive when others put it down as a senseless, unfulfilling choice of career. It has always been a struggle as Christians, to find meaning and a voice in what we are called to do and always a conscious decision to make it something we use to glorify God rather than glorifying It- the 'It' being 'fashion'.
I remember days of the past when friends who would continuously tell me that they don't care about fashion or how they dress suddenly get riled up over what to wear for prom or for some party. Now when I look back, I muse and ask, "if you really didn't care about fashion at all, then you would go just as you are in a tee and jeans to the prom because really, if you think fashion is beyond you, it shouldn't shake you up this bad."
It does anger me, when people denounce it as pure senselessness (see the article above- no one that riled up can be that unaffected by the industry). I'm a lot calmer these days when people put it down because I often just dismiss them as not fully understanding the potential of innovation and impact. Although I've stopped trying to justify the reason I am in this industry, because I think the justification that God has placed me here is a reason enough to justify itself, I do shake my head at people who think they have little to do with the long arms of the realm of fashion.
How I see it is this: at one point in time all of us had or have the conscious choice to stick with the norm or to go beyond. Most people think sticking to the norm, that is a T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, distances themselves from fashion in relation to those people, like me, who are very sensitive to the pulse of Vogue/style bloggers/designers/trends. To them, they find people who are interested in fashion, people who are self-absorbed, insecure, have self esteem issues, worship at Carrie Bradshaw's feet (or shoe closet) and most of all, copy whatever goes without a thought of asking why.
I see that. It's a valid argument but I usually associate that with girls who buy from American Eagle or Abercrombie. It's not a diss against girls who like AF and Abercrombie, heck half of my closet is from H&M/Cotton On/Zara which is the epitome of mass production- it just so happens they cater to a different customer from the AE girl- but the fact is that I chose early on to ask "why must I dress in AE when I could go to a thrift store, tweak a dress and make it my own?" sets many of us apart.
Creating, customizing, consuming and changing/adapting is what makes fashion so great. I love offering a viewpoint when I dress the way I do- can I do 'this' differently from what was seen before to create a temporary new aesthetic? It's a dialogue, a challenge and a form of expression that allows many of us to validate or question the idea of 'the classic' or 'what is beauty?' Here, Hong Kong girls dress modestly and their ideas of beauty is either the super sweet (trapeze t-shirt dresses with leggings even in 30 degree heat) or super fake (MK- dyed hair, fake eyelashes, blush that looks like family abuse with neon halter tops and short shorts). The way I dress now (or at least I hope) questions the idea of the cookie cutter Asian: how does one look good if one was born to stand out and not conform? How do I dress to fit my body type when I can't fit in the free size that all standard Asians fit into? Can I take what is considered 'sexy' and make it look good without sacrificing morals? Can I create even without a sewing machine? Can I make this for cheaper but make it look just as good?
All these questions come into play every day when I open my closet. These things, while most 'intellectuals' would snub their noses as saying that they are 'above and beyond' the frivolity of dress, I retort that what I love to do is bring into conscious what we do unconsciously daily. To me, nothing ignites my imagination or excites me more when someone takes something ordinary and makes it extraordinary through examination, questioning and exploration. Granted when I dress, there is no genius behind it, just that I know what I like for this moment is what's on my back, but just the fact that I'm trying to understand my own thought process really comes down to me trying to understand the unconscious portion of my thinking. That's why I love thrift stores. Not because things are cheap but because someone threw this away thinking it was garbage makes me happy. I like to think of the alternative and I love mini challenges like this: taking something that has no or little value, and creating value and beauty in them with a tweak here and there. Although there aren't any thrift stores here in HK that are really that sanitary, I'm trying to make do with what there is here namely street market products.
To be free in Christ is to be free from the idols that people worship. I have started to understand that particularly after coming here and realizing I don't fit in, trying to/failing and having God speaking to me that as His children none of us were meant to blend in. As was said in the movie 'Julie and Julia', "you couldn't fit in when you were born, literally, so you don't!" The simple truth is that even if I were not in fashion, the way we are meant to live our lives must be different from non-Christians. It's not even an option, it's a necessity. Now I am not saying that I am consuming my way to be more holy through dress, but I have broken free from a corrupted self-image that the industry has weaned me on. Being the thinnest girl is not my goal because I know validation does and should not come from the scale nor the flawlessness of my skin the reason to be called beautiful, but looking myself in the mirror and saying I was born like this because God wanted it so, makes all the difference. Once I began to realize that nothing is a mistake- not the two birthmarks on my legs which I used to want to get lasered off to the length of my fingers- but that everything has been orchestrated for a purpose, I found a confidence that being born different is really not that bad. People remember you for your idiosyncracies and your quirks- not because they fit a beauty mold but because they don't which sets you apart. Who ever has said "oh I like her because she's the same as everyone else?"
I like fashion not to seek validation but being free to celebrate the creativity and the beauty of which I was called to be. I do struggle with materialism, granted, because that is the evil part of my interest with fashion. It' a given. Yes I still, at times, wish I could lipo the fat out of my thighs (I guess my baking blog conflicts with this whole interest) or wish my skin was poreless (aka airbrushed) but knowing that the God I worship is not hanging in my closet reminds me that whatever purpose and passions we were given, we have full responsibility over until we are called Home.
I now understand the parable of the talents farther in depth than I ever have before. It's a sermon preached over and over again but you really don't understand the power of it until you come across a real life encounter. That real life encounter came when I had to do my thesis and when I started working. I had a decision to just barely graduate with a thesis that wasn't innovative and work mindlessly in an office, OR I could take this opportunity of doing whatever the heck I wanted for a thesis as long as I dreamt big and at work, seek other opportunities of having positive impact. God placed me here for a reason, I refuse to grumble about my situation and bury my talents like the worthless servant; I wish to find alternate purposes and explore my talents while waiting for God to show me the path I need to run. I don't want to meet God one day and have Him ask me, "so I gave the the abilities to write, bake and create... what did you do with them?" and answer, "oh really? I thought you were gonna give me the opportunity to serve as CEO to use my gifts so I put them on hiatus in the meantime!"
Anyway this has meandered beyond fashion and into the overarching theme of talents, patience and what it means to be free from this world.
And where best to start than in an industry most Christians have discarded as hopeless and useless to become leaders in and to see God work?
Oh another good article as a person who is passionate about sustainable design. BOO TO ANTHROPOLOGIE- you give off this idea of vintage furniture sold for high prices when in fact you trash unwanted merchandise: Click here!
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home