Most Controversial Vogue Shoot Yet?

article from abc news:

Wearing makeup, high heels and haute couture, Blondeau looks a far cry from a typical 10-year-old. Even in childish smocks and cotton tees, her expressions are oddly adult -- a product, perhaps, of living half her young life in the fashion world (she reportedly hit the runway for Jean-Paul Gauthier at age 5). And some say Blondeau's grown-up beauty is giving other young girls unhealthy ideas about how they should look.

"We don't want kids to grow up too fast," said Shari Miles-Cohen, senior director of women's programs for the American Psychological Association. "We want them to be able to develop physically, emotionally, psychologically and socially at appropriate rates for their age." 

French Vogue provocatively poked at this principle, running photos of Blondeau and two other tweens playing designer dress-up captioned with, "Quel maquillage à quel âge?" -- What makeup at what age? But a shot of Blondeau wearing a red dress and stilettos lying on a tiger skin rug had critics crying foul.

This isn't edgy. It's inappropriate, and creepy, and I never want to see a nine-year-old girl in high-heeled leopard print bedroom slippers ever again," wrote Chloe Angyal, editor of Feminsting.com.  Sexualized images can have lasting effects on the young girls who see them. An APA taskforce found that sexualization by the media affects how girls think about femininity and sexuality, promoting "appearance and physical attractiveness" as key values. It's also linked to low self-esteem, eating disorders and depression.

"The research clearly shows that the fashion industry affects girls and women's images of themselves and their self-esteem if they do not meet the industry 'image' that is currently in vogue," said Paul Miller, associate professor of psychology at Arizona State University in Phoenix. "Even the very young are quite conscious of media images of what is 'pretty' and desirable."  In a photo not affiliated with Vogue, Blondeau poses topless on a bed with a young male playmate propositioning a pillow fight. And in another, she wears hip-slung jeans and no top with beaded necklaces covering her would-be breasts. 

Many in the industry have defended the work as art. Others say it crosses a line.

"Any creepy child pornographer could plead 'artistic license,'" said Miller.



Ashanti Strip Weaving - Kente Cloth

Also known as a Kente cloth. Made by the Ashanti people of Ghana and is the most labour intensive weaving in the world. It became a true art form and represented the concept of royalty and status. Traditionally the Ashanti people only worked around geometric patterns. The spider Anansi taught the art of weaving to two brothers who had discovered his web while on a hunting trip. Anansi also taught them how to spin and dye the threads. Since then the Ashanti have used the strip looms Anansi taught them to build. Men traditionally do the strip weaving in West Africa.

Back Strap Loom



In primitive societies it provides a weaving device at very little cost. Even in the more advanced countries it is used. It is very portable. It can be set up and used almost anywhere. The primary feature of the back strap loom is that the lengthwise threads (warp) are stretched from a fixed device such as a post or tree to a belt that a person wears around their waist. By backing away from the post or tree, the user can pull the warp threads into tension. In order to weave, the threads must be stretched in a horizontal direction and a means must be provided so that the threads can be separated into two (or more) parts so that a weft thread can be passed between the two sets of threads. The two sets of warp threads can then be reversed and a weft thread passed through again. By repeating this process, fabric can be woven. Using the backstrap loom, a weaver can produce fabric with a plain weave. Most simply, this is an over-under-over-under pattern.

Ikat Weaving



Ikat is the method of weaving that uses a resist dyeing process similar to tie-dye on either the warp or weft fibres. The dye is applied prior to the threads being woven to create the final fabric pattern or design. One of the oldest forms of textile decoration. Ikat weaving styles vary widely. Many design motifs may have ethnic, ritual or symbolic meaning or have been developed for export trade. Traditionally, ikat are symbols of status, wealth, power and prestige. Because of the time and skill involved in weaving ikat, some cultures believe the cloth is imbued with magical powers

Quick Response Systems + Just In Time

This aims to meet customers orders quickly at the required level of quality in the right quantity and with minium waste of raw materials time and resources. The use of computer systems and ict enable jit to function successfully – materials and components are ordered from the supplier and are delivered just before they are needed for production. Jit is used in combination with QR because it

-         Reduces the need for raw material stocks

-         Reduces the space required

-         Reduces levels of finished goods waiting to be sold

-         Cuts the costs of tying money up in stock

JIT provides a systems approach to operating all the processes in a manufacturing system. It is so effective that it increases productivity, work performance, quality and reduces costs.

-         Use multi skilled flexible teams

-         Balanced operations

-         Kanban approach

-         Continuous improvement

-         Look for opportunities to provide machines

-         Eliminate waste by making to order

-         Factory layout matches the production processes.

Louboution vs YSL

A brand is a name or logo – a marketing identity – that sets a product apart from competitors products. It protects and promotes the identity of the product. Branding is a key marketing tool because it promotes the concept of brand loyalty. Consumers by the chosen brand because it provides a perceived reliability, special features or added value which makes it special in the eyes of the consumer.

A brands USP - unique selling point - can be extremely important in the brand's recognition and makes it distinguishable from other items. The red sole found on Louboution's have become their USP but have recently been involved in a dispute with YSL who also used the red sole in their new collection.

article below from the Mail Online:

The company was seeking more than $1million damages claiming another luxury designer was 'copying' its shoes’ most distinctive characteristic - the red sole. But last month in the case of Christian Louboutin vs Yves Saint Laurent, the plot thickened when it emerged that YSL had decided to counter-sue Louboutin stating that the French designer had no right to monopolize a colour. Now it seems that the judge has sided with Louboutin refusing to accept arguments submitted by YSL as the two fashion labels battled it out in a New York courtroom last week.

Both parties submitted documents stating their position with YSL additional articles - including a chart depicting its red-soled shoe designs since 2004 - which the presiding judge Victor Marrero, deemed invalid. Lawyer, David Bernstein also raised smiles as he argued that his client, YSL had been using red as a signature colour since it began in 1962 and that even King Louis XIV of France and Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz had worn red-soled shoes. 

But Louboutin's lawyer argued these were unreliable findings and judge Marrero agreed. Louboutin was originally seeking an injunction to stop YSL producing red-soled shoes for its 2011 cruise collection. But the French label fought back stating that Louboutin - which claim to have been awarded an official trademark for the red sole in 2008, - have no right to monopolize a colour for their product.  The lawyer for YSL, David Bernstein had said: ‘Louboutin’s trademark should have never been granted.

‘We just don’t think that any fashion designer should be able to monopolize any colour.’
YSL alleges that Mr Louboutin was fraudulent in his trademark application claim that he had 'exclusive' use of the red sole. The luxury shoe makers responded, saying it is only one specific shade of red that they are claiming the rights to. A spokesman said: ‘Unless you are living in a cave, the consumer most definitely recognizes a red-soled shoe as a Louboutin. We are not claiming to own every red under the sun. There’s a particular red that Christian uses on his shoes, a bright, lacquered red 'We aren’t saying burgundy or orange-red, we aren’t saying pink. We don’t own any other red but that red.’

According to court papers filed last month, Christian Louboutin had also obtained evidence from a private investigator stating that Christian Dior was planning to launch a collection of red shoes with red soles. A Dior spokesperson denied these claims telling WWD: 'Christian Dior does not manufacture and sell any shoes with a red sole.' It is not known when a verdict on the case will be reached as judge Victor Marrero has asked for more time.

even if the red soles were not invented by Louboution, for most people its synonomous with the designer brand's shoe collections. it has even been patented by Louboution so have a valid reason for the infringement of their trademark. only time will tell how YSL rescue the situation!



Useful Websites

here are a few of my favourite websites that could be helpful especially for coursework:

www.weheartit.com

this is a database of 'inspiring images' where you can search key words and comes up with lots of more fashion forward and nice photography that are a lot nicer than you would find on google! with an account made they can be saved, and create your own database of pictures you like which can be used for inspiration and mood boards. 

www.polyvore.com

this website enables you to make moodboards online and use a huge range of products from the website and drag and drop to arrange your own look book. you can look at other people's mood boards and easily look through thousands of garments from high street to designer - really useful when investigating trends and quickly looking through existing designs.

http://www.drapersonline.com/

drapers is a great website for 'fashion new's' and has loads of information of the business side of brands we know, really interesting for information of how retail shops profits are doing, new business plans and disputes between companys. some of the information is for subscribers only, but through the email subscriptions you can easily read the articles hassle free.

youtube channels

a lot of people on YouTube make DIY tutorials and look books of items which I find really inspiring and gave me a lot of ideas, and teaching me easy techniques such as studding, dyeing and fringing garments that could be done easily at home, or incorpate these skills into designs through coursework and practical pieces. here are a few of my favourite DIY tutorials:

• DIY stud
• DIY dip dye shorts
• DIY laptop sleeve 
• DIY fringe

blogs

i also find fashion blogs really useful as I like to see how people style things, other people's outfits and also look at blogs from around the world to see how style changes. these are some of my favourites:

• www.llymlrs.com
• www.mariannan.com
• Victoria Tornegren

hope this has been helpful!

World's top models?

While Gisele Bundchen may be the world's highest-earning, and Kate Moss is arguably the most famous, the world's top models by industry standards are rather less familiar names.

You may not have heard of the likes of Freja Beha Erichsen and Abbey Lee Kershaw, but the top five alone have collectively appeared on 265 magazine covers, walked 232 catwalk shows and have 115,000 Twitter followers.

According to new research by the Fashion Spot, Polish runway star Anja Rubik was the most in-demand girl between April 2010 and April this year. The 26-year-old posed on an impressive 59 magazine covers and appeared on 43 designers' runways.

But that is a small workload compared to Constance Jablonski, 20, who walked for an impressive 83 designers in the past year alone. That is in addition to appearing on 46 magazine covers.

Lara Stone, the Dutch-born model wife of comedian David Walliams is probably the most famous of the five thanks to her gap-toothed smile and bombshell curves.

The 27-year-old ranked third in the list of the most in-demand, but due to her contract with Calvin Klein, her appearances have been fewer than her peers, with only two runway shows and 47 magazine covers.

Danish model Freja Beha Erichsen is one of the industry's most popular names, having landed high-profile campaigns for Chanel and Valentino. In addition to appearing on 65 different covers and in 51 shows, she also starred in a short film by Karl Lagerfeld.

Abbey Lee Kershaw rounds out the top five. The Melbourne-born 24-year-old has also modelled for Chanel, as well as Tom Ford, and has been hailed Australia's biggest model export since Elle Macpherson.

While each girl's workload does not mirror how in-demand she is, their number of Twitter followers and Google searches echoes the ranking more accurately.

Numer 1. ANJA RUBIK

Number 2. FREJA BEHA ERICHSEN



Number 3. LARA STONE



Number 4. ABBEY LEE KERSHAW

Number 5. CONSTANCE JABLONSKI



Mui Mui's new campaign

Hailee Steinfeld and Mui Mui alike have sparked criticism for her use in these new campaigns in relation to the fact she is just 14 years old. They have been accused of using models so young, that the women who can afford to buy designer clothing cannot relate to them. And even though it is clear that she has not been dressed up to look like an adust, as so often happens with teenage models, it is hard to see that the 14 year old will convincingly sell designer clothes to grown women. After a leading role in True Grit, red carpet appearances led to Mui Mui becoming the teenagers favourite designer and has been seen wearing the label on a number of occassions.



Does age of the model really matter to such a well known high fashion brand? Or will the extra publicity be more beneficial and simply a good PR stunt?

Ballet Anyone?

Created by iconic shoe designer Christian Louboutin, he has designed a pair of eight inch, red sole stillettos based on the ballet shoe to be auctioned off to raise funds for the English National Ballet. Designers including Giles Deacon, Moschino and Julien Macdonald have also donated ballet inspired pieces to the auction and is expected to raiuse over £50,000 for the EMB.

Louboutin said: 'I could not help being inspired by English National Ballet... after all... isn’t the classical dancing ballet slipper the ultimate heel?
'The heel which makes dancers closer than any other women to the sky, closer to heaven!'

Alexander Mcqueen

At the age of 16, Mcqueen was offered an apprenticeship at the traditional tailors Anderson and Shepard, and then neighbouring Gieves and Hawkes, both masters in the technical construction of clothing. From there he moved to a theatrical costumiers where he mastered 6 methods of pattern cutting from the melodramatic 16th century to the razor sharp tailoring which has become a Mcqueen signature.

Alexander McQueen shows are known for their emotional power and raw energy, as well as the romantic but determinedly contemporary nature of the collections.

McQueen's early runway collections developed his reputation for controversy and shock tactics, earning the title “l’enfant terrible" and ‘the hooligan of English fashion’. He has been credited with bringing drama and extravagance to the catwalk. Mcqueen used new technology and innovation to add a different twist to his shows and often shocked and surprised audiences.   

McQueen was known for his lavish, unconventional, runway shows, such as a recreation of a shipwreck for his spring 2003 collection, spring 2005's human chess game and his fall 2006 show, "Widows of Culloden", which featured a life-sized hologram of supermodel Kate Moss dressed in yards of rippling fabric.

McQueen designed a range of dresses under the name of "manta", priced at around £2800. The line, named after the manta ray, was inspired by a holiday McQueen took in the Maldives in 2009. The designs have been worn by various models and celebrities, including Lily Cole.

Alexander's collections combine an in-depth working knowledge of bespoke British tailoring, the fine workmanship of the French Haute Couture atelier and the impeccable finish of Italian manufacturing.

 McQueen has been credited with bringing drama and extravagance to the catwalk.

He used new technology and innovation to add a different twist to his shows and often shocked and surprised audiences. The silhouettes that he created have been credited for adding a sense of fantasy and rebellion to fashion.

Biostoning

Used to give a distressed look to denim. Used to use pumice stones but it damaged the clothes, hems and machinery. Most manufactures use enzymes instead. This is suitable for denim as the indigo dye hardly penetrates the surface of the fibres staying mostly on the surface where it can be removed.

Benefits

-         Less damage to fabric and machines

-         Reduced product variability – more control

-         Reduced labour costs

-         Reduced environmental cost – no abrasive sludge left in waste water.

Body Scanning

Its aim is to accurately measure an individual customer, automatically develop flat patterns and mass customise a garment. another application is the development of cyber mannequins that can be used to try on clothing for fit size and look.

Body scanning uses a white light to capture a persons silhouette from which measurement data can be extracted. Fast and painless it means less error when taking measurements, as long as the person is wearing a body suit or a snug fitting garment during the process.

Benefits

-         Produce better fitting clothes

-         Exploit internet shopping

-         Increase sales

-         Reduce returns of wrong sizes

-         Automate measurements and pattern development of rtw clothing.

Most organisations that use them are interested in in store measuring booths and potential for offering  made to measure service. Current body scanning technology works by exporting measurement data to a cad system. This is then used to grade a chosen design of the nearest size to the individual measurements so that an accurately fitting custom tailored garment can be quickly manufactured. It's currently being used in a Japanese lingerie retailer to help with bra fitting and other stores in Germany, Holland and Slovenia.

1920's - Coco Chanel

Coco Chanel, a French fashion designer, epitomised the modern women. She designed comfortable loose blouses, chemise dresses and clothes that were sporty, relaxed, wearable and well suited to the outdoor lifestyle that was being promoted as healthy in the 1920’s. These clothes were designed to be worn without corsets and were make with fewer linings to make them lighter and more flexible. Chanel believed that fashion must meet the needs of modern lifestyles and give women freedom of movement. In 1916 she began using kitted jersey fabric, a relatively cheap fabric used for underwear and by the 1918 was producing cardigans and twinsets. Chanel was one of the most influential designers of the 20^th century. Her clothes broke away from the fussy over decorated clothing of the 19^th century.

She adapted men’s tailoring and produced classic suits with short skirts, always relying on good cut, finish and high quality fabric. What we all now consider to be normal part of women’s clothing – trousers, tweeds, pea jackets, blazers and the little black dress were all introduced by Chanel.

Fashion became more widely available as clothing by designers were copied for RTW – ready to wear. Clothing that had once only been available for the wealthy was now available to women on the street. This was a dramatic change for ordinary people who had previously only had every day and ‘best’ clothes that had to last for years. Even though it was still unaffordable to most, this gave it a desirability factor.

The production of RTW was an important turning point in the democratisation of fashion. The very styling of the clothes themselves, together with the lower prices means that social class was now immediately shown by what you wore.

Batik

Traditional technique produced all over the far east. The process is done by hand to produce pretty, expensive fabrics and by machine for mass produced fashion fabrics.

Hand produced batik:

1.       Draw the design with melted wax onto white of undyed fabric using a brush to cover the areas of the fabric that is desired to be left white or undyed. Wooden or metal blocks can also be used.

2.      When the wax is hard, crackle it, brush it with coldwater dye or dip dye then rinse off the excess dye.

3.      Repeat the waxing and dyeing process to produce more complex patterns by over dyeing.

4.      Dry the fabric then iron between absorbent paper to remove the wax and heat set the dye.

Industrially produced batik.

Mass produced batik fabrics incorporate the use of machinery for fast, automated production which reduces costs. This can be done by using various methods.

1.       Print gum or wax resist paste onto the fabric surface from hot rollers to form a resist. Dye the fabric and use a heat finishing to remove the surplus gum or wax and fix the dye.

2.      Print resin onto white or coloured fabric as a resist. Dye the fabric and use heat finishing to remove resin and fix the dye.

3.      Print a batik style design onto the fabric from engraved rollers, using photographic methods or CAD CAM. Apply finishing to fix the dye.



Tie Dye

Resistance dye technique involving manipulating the fabric by twisting, tying and crumpling the fabric to create the desired technique before being put into a dye bath. The ties are then removed to reveal that these parts of the fabric have resisted the dye and leave an effect such as circles, stripes or a random effect.

how to tie dye!

Dyes

Modern dyestuffs use chemical dyes in solution and require large amounts of water. Dyeing can cause pollution when wastewater is released into rivers.

Textiles can be dyed at the fibre, yarn, fabric of product stage.

Fabrics are often produced in a greige – undyed state and then piece dyed to meet the colour requirements of the maker up and the selling season. The fabric is passed through a bath of dyestuff and then squeezed between rubber rollers to ensure even and consistent dyeing. Continuous fixation machinery fixes the dye in the fabric. This process enables continual dyeing but also reduces the costs of setting machines up for producing colour woven fabrics.

Over dyeing is used on fabrics made from different fibre types to produce colour effects, depending on the dye that’s used. Different dyes are suitable for different fibres and need to form a physical or chemical bond with the fibre.

Garment dyeing enables colours to be chosen late in the manufacturing cycle, as dictated by fashion. This is desirable and cost effective for some manufacturers because colour decisions can be made close to the selling season. This is often used on fashion products.

Colour fastness is the resistance to colour loss during the manufacturing process and in use. A wide range of colourfastness exists for different fibre type and blends. Fastness depends on the type of dye and fabric and there is no universal colour that has the same level of fastness on all types of fibre. Also, different end uses have different fastness requirements. Underwear needs to be fast to perspiration.  The ISO 105 standard for fastness: resistance of the colour to rubbing, resistance to washing determines the wash programme that can be used – dyes are expected to be fast to the wash programmes at 60 degrees.  Resistance to perspiration is very important in underwear, outerwear and sportswear.

Standards and Testing

Consumer rights are protected and promoted by a range of organisations that provide guidance, discrimination, and approval. These include consumer organisations, BSI and the trading standards.

Consumer organisation – which? Provides reports on product testing and best buys. It’s a good source of product info and is regularly updated. Products can also be reviewed though the internet, digital media and printed media such as magazines and websites.

Standards ensure that products fulfil the quality and safety requirements of consumers and the environment and the standards are set at the request of industry or to implement legislation. When you see a product that displays the kite mark, you know what it has been independently tested under controlled conditions to confirm that it complies with a relevant British standard. The manufacture has to pay for this service and must have a quality system in place because the product tested and assessed at regular intervals. This means that every product is made to the same standard. The kite mark symbol provides the customer with the assurance that the product meets the BS and is safe and reliable.

The CE mark shown on a product means that a manufacturer meets essential safety requirements set up by a directive of the European commission. It is used on products that are sold across Europe that are required to meet the common ec legal technical and safety standards.

ITSA

Institute of trading standards administration. They have the power to enforce and advise of a wide range of legislation relating to consumer protection. They have the power to investigate claims about

-         False of misleading description of prices

-         Inaccurate weights and measures

-         Consumer credit

-         Safety of consumer goods

Quality control

Categorised by inspection and repair when used without quality assurance and can be very wasteful in terms of material usage and time.

Quality assurance

Manufacturers use feedback to trade faults to the production process and eliminating the cause, possibly by adjusting existing machinery, by using more special equipment or by retraining a machinist to acquire a new skill.

Using TQM system to promote sustained quality based on the British standard. In TQM system, all the areas of an organisation and its suppliers use agreed specifications and quality control methods.

Makin quality the responsibility of everybody in the department of a company, not just the production.

TQM

To build quality into the design and manufacture of a garment rather than relying on inspection and to reduce the need of inspection on every garment. in other words it is proactive rather than reactive.

ISO 9000

An internationally agreed set of standards for the development and operation of QMS. All industrial QMS use structured procedures to manage the quality of the designing and making process. The steps included in the management process is the use of modelling, evaluating the product to the spec, and use research and questionnaires.

Legislation

Statutory rights protect customers eg,

-         Trade description act – cant lie

-         Weights and measurements act

-         Sale of goods act

Children’s clothing

-         Cords and ribbons must not be accessible to the child’s mouth

-         No cords in hoods

-         Fastenings must not imitate food

-         Non ties or zips for boys under 4 years old