An All Around Experience: Fashion Marketing

Growing up I was never one to know exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I had so many interests and limiting myself to one field was overwhelming. I wanted to be an x-ray tech, a flight attendant, graphic designer, model, actress; you name it I probably wanted to be it. Near the end of high school all I could remember was the gripping knot in my stomach because I knew that I needed to make a big decision that would affect my future. One thing I always knew about myself is that I’m creative, hard-working, and love the inspirations of life.
Like most women, I love clothes, shoes, and accessories. Most importantly, I love to be creative and use color and design to come up with new ideas. Fashion Marketing it is. Marketing is so broad and I had no interest really to be a fashion designer. I want to work on the other side of the fashion industry, the business side. Fashion Marketing is a more specialized field and I can still use creativity in the process.
Throughout the last couple years, I have had good experiences and bad experiences. I started out going to The Art Institute of Phoenix in Arizona, which was an eye opener. Aside from the culture shock, I got a little taste of how people can be in the industry. One thing I learned is that the fashion industry is fast paced and cut throat. Either you’re hot or you’re not. As a student you find out that even your fellow classmates thirst for drama and will do anything to get to the top. Everything was about status in Phoenix and I felt that when it came to my work I was not learning enough or being challenged to put forth my best effort.
Moving to Charlotte to attend the Art Institute of Charlotte has definitely been a more positive experience. It’s good to be independent and have the drive to be the best but, it’s also good to work as a team, and that is evident in my current internship and been helpful. You will always work with people and it’s best to learn how to work with them than against them. I have learned a lot more in the last 2 quarters at the Art Institute of Charlotte than I did for almost 2 years at AI Phoenix. The major difference between the two schools is the devotion of the instructors. The support and help from my instructors has made me feel that I have found my niche in what I really like to do. Their help and enjoyable projects have created several good experiences and increased my knowledge of the industry.
Some of the best experiences is working hard and seeing the result of your hard work. Success is quite satisfying and at this moment I feel I can do anything and go forward in my life taking it one step at a time. My life just keeps on rolling and I’m ready for it.

Fashion Makes A Vote

For year 2008, Barack Obama is setting a new trend in the fashion industry and that’s anything with his face and name on it. Many celebrities are showing their support for Obama such as Halle Berry, Jessica Biel, Ryan Phillippe, Scarlett Johannson, Kate Walsh, and Ben Affleck. Fashion designers are creating new threads for people to express their support for the candidate in a stylish way. Usually a bumper sticker or a button is enough, but everyone is going all out to show some love for Barack Obama.

A new clothing line called, Barackawear, specifically makes Obama into a fashion statement. Brother and sister Lorielle and Brandon Broussard started the line last August with $740 and have now distributed over 10,000 items all over the world. Hoodies, t-shirts, pins, children’s wear, and dogwear are rocking their slogan “Barack the Vote.” If you are more into footwear then muralist and custom sneaker designer, Van Monroe, has got you covered. Each of his custom design Obama sneakers takes 5 hours to make and apparently only 50 are going to be made. Citizens of the United States, if your Barack Obama crazy then it’s clear that showing off your support can make quite a statement.

New Designer Disaster

Actress, Tara Reid, is starting a new clothing line, Mantra, (woo hoo) which debuted at Project Fashion Show in Las Vegas. Mantra consists of bikinis and casual wear that reflects Tara’s fun, crazy, and flirty personality. Some of the clothing items have tag lines such as “catch me if you can”, “single and ready to mingle”, and funky embellishments, which comes as no surprise. Tara Reid really hasn’t grown up as you’ve seen on E! News and Access Hollywood, and quite frankly her line backs that up. “It’s about putting into the universe what you want in life: Red means love, pink is friendship, green is lucky, black is protection,” says Reid “You’re gonna have a story when you wear this bikini or when you put this dress on: You’ll either get love or meet a new friend or you might meet a guy.” Tara is hoping that a department store will pick up Mantra, but as of right now there is no specific retailer that carries her line. Prices range from $65 and $180. In my opinion, Mantra is juvenile and far from being a top selling brand. Sorry Tara.

A Diamond in the Rough

Subversive Jewelry is a new and innovative jewelry collection that will soon be popularized by the mass market. Justin Giunta, the creative brain behind Subversive Jewelry, is an artist that brings design and creativity to make a wearable piece of fine art. Giunta not only has skill but an educational background where he has studied at several art institutions such as Pratt Institute, Reitveld Academie in Amsterdam, and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts at Carnegie Mellon University. His collection has a variety of charms, chains, and embellishments that he gathers from around the world, scrounging through flea markets and warehouses to find those perfect pieces.

Guinta started out making tees, chandeliers, and selling his jewelry pieces on the street. His persistence paid off and he is well on his way for his second CFDA nomination and mass distribution with a limited collection at Target. Guinta states, “In my work I am always drawing parallels between art history and modern design to explore themes of fine art and commercial design. The only difference between the two seems to be where you sell it.” Although he is mass producing a limited collection, the pieces still reflect his signature collection and have the same resilience. Prices range for the Target collection from $14.99 to $59.99. The signature collection varies from $150-$2,000. These pieces are anything but ordinary and absolutely divine for those who love an exaggerated yet stunning conversation piece around their neck.

5 Must Haves

Every woman should have 5 essential items in their wardrobe. These five essential items can be interchangable from work, to an evening out on the town, to a weekend shopping trip with friends. Many of us women like to complain that we don't have anything to wear...don't act like you don't. I am guilty of this complaint but really much of what is in my closet can put together several different outfits for different events and occassions. As a college student on a tight budget, I can't just go out and have an unlimited shopping spree so I have to analyze my wardobe more closely.

An essential that everyone should have is a suit, particularly a black suit! A suit is important whether it is required for your career or not. You should always wear a suit to an interview. It doesn't matter if your applying for a restaurant position or for a high-end company. You want to look the part and that requires you to look sharp and polished. People will take you more seriously if you come to an interview in a suit rather than a t-shirt, jeans, and flip-flops. For women a suit consists of 3 items: pants, skirt, and blazer. All of these items should match as well. Same material and exact same color. You may think its black but really its navy so it's best to get a matching suit.

The next 2 essential items are a neutral cami and a colored button up blouse. A neutral cami or tank is an item that can be worn with just about everything. A colored blouse can look dressy but can also look casual. These 5 essentail items should be in every women's wardrobe and can easily be accessorized.

Work
Blazer, pants, and cami with black lace accent is a professional yet attractive outfit for an interview or a day at the office. Accessorize with a stylish briefcase but keep jewelry simplistic, it's not the weekend yet.




Evening
Same sexy cami but this time with a black pencil skirt that could also be worn as a suit with a blazer. Professional during the day and ready to go out at night.




Weekend
For a weekend out with the girls, whether it's a day at the mall or out for drinks, you can look casual yet sophisticated. Same black pants but with a red button up blouse. The small ruffles give the outfit a romanitc and flirty touch. Some animal print flats jazz it up and are comfortable for being on the go.

Time For A Change

The fall season can be best described as a season of change and much like how the colors of the leaves change so does color trends. The transition from summer to fall is usually a step down from bright to dark, but don't worry ladies this season Fall ’08 is rich and vibrant. Autumn hues of orange, yellow, red, and chocolate brown are some of the usual colors for the season and are seen on the runway but this season purples, grays, and tones of blue are shaking up designers collections for the cool season. According to Pantone's Fashion Color Trend Report for Fall '08, Blue Iris, Burnt Orange, Carribean Sea, Aurora Red, Shitake, and Royal Lilac are some of the hottest colors.

So instead of going on a huge shopping run to tone down your wardrobe for the season, it is a smooth transition and much of what was worn for the summer can be mixed up to make a trendy fall outfit.






A bright ruffled short sleeve top from the summer can be worn with straight legged jeans with printed flats is a great causal outfit for being on the go or for school. When it cools down you can easily throw on a light jacket. Mix up the look with a bright colored purse or heels to accentuate those legs. A perfect transitional outfit thats trendy, vibrant, and appropriate for the fall season.




For an evening out, look elegant and sexy in a steel gray dress, black heels, and a warm bow front coat. Throw in a splash of color with a bright clutch.

Saggy Jeans: The Designer's Influence

Jay-z released his first album in 1996 and had his breakthrough in 1998. His story is definitely the rags to riches dream. Growing up in the Marcy Projects of Brooklyn, NY, he has moved his status to elite executive of his very own record label, Roc-A-Fella records and Rocawear clothing.

Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, who launched Roc-A-Fella records wanted his business to spread into more than music, he wanted to incorporate fashion into his brand name. “Like Roc-A Fella Records, Rocawear quickly staked its claim in hip-hop history becoming the destination brand for street savvy consumers. Rocawear maintains a focus of providing clever innovation in fabrication, application and design to its customer. It has been the brand’s attention to detail that has pushed Rocawear’s appeal beyond its core urban customer. Ten years have passed since the genesis of The ROC and a dynasty now reigns” (Rocawear).
Jay-z has been in the public eye since his debut in 1996 and his hip-hop style has been duplicated and re-created ever since. The saggy jeans that are recognized from his early “Hard Knock Life” album have now been transferred into his own clothing line. Although it has been a decade since this trend was started, with the times changing and trends cycling loose fitting, saggy, baggy, or whatever you may call them jeans are still around. Kanye West and Pharrell Williams are great examples of the more modern fit of the saggy jean.

The hip hop mongul Russell Simmons owner of the record label Def Jam, started Phat Farm in 1992. The label first retail store opened in New York a year later on Prince Street. When starting the line he had in mind to change the stereotypical thoughts about hip hop clothing in the hip hop community. Since his styles were derived from the street his clothing consisted of Baggy jeans, Shirts with the logo big on the front, and hoodies. Russell Simmons changed the stereotypes of sagging jeans and changed it from being a negative thing to it being a fashionable symbol.
In 2000 after Russell Simmons created a whole new vision on street clothing his former supermodel wife, started a Phat Farm line for women. Where she transformed the baggy look, to a whole new style for women but she still keeping it urban. The line included the all popular baby tees which caused a huge sensation in the fashion world.



Symbolized by a Rhino, Ecko Unlimited is a brand for hip hop and urban clothing. Started in 1993 by Marc Ecko with a line of just 6 t-shirts, Ecko has grown into a lifestyle brand.
Marc Ecko began his artistic career as a graffiti artist in the New York area while still in college. Mark was beginning to get bored with the medium he used for his art, so he began to design handmade T-Shirts. Soon after the T-shirts became available Spike Lee and Chuck D began wearing Ecko’s designs. The fashion brand embodies sports, music, and video games. Ecko has partnerships with Playboy, the NFL, the NCAA, Alfred Hitchcock, Jimi Hendrix, and Marvel Comics. Ecko’s lines include jeans, shirts, jackets, backpacks and has expanded to footwear, leather goods, gloves, and outerwear. Most recently Ecko has developed a cosmetics line, a magazine, and a children’s collection.


Sean John Combs, also known as P.Diddy, Diddy, and Puff Daddy, is a successful rapper, record producer, fashion designer, and actor. He is a hip hop icon and one of the wealthiest celebrities in the United States. Sean Combs put his own mark in the fashion industry by introducing his clothing label, Sean John, in 1998. Sean John is a high-end urban fashion line that is targeted to trendy males ages 12-45.
The collection is separated into categories including Sean John, Bad Boy Sportswear, Sean John Tailored, and Sean John accessories. Each category in the collection reflects Combs own diverse and personal style. His various taste of style has been quite influential in the fashion industry and has been nominated for 5 years in a row for his designs by the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) since 2000.
Since the early 1990’s, “saggy” or “baggy” jeans have become more fitted to an extent. The “old school” hip hop style has become “prep-hop” that features polo shirts, trucker hats, and fitted jeans. Sean John’s sportswear collection is an example of the prep-hop trend. Many of the jeans and sportswear could be considered somewhat saggy but it really depends on the person wearing the pants that decide how far down they want to sag and show their behind. Combs has been known for wearing saggy jeans in the past but over the years his own wardrobe has become more tailored and fitted.

Read more about:
History of Saggy Jeans
Laws
Stereotypes

Sources:
MarcEcko. About Us. 13 August 2008. http://www.shopecko.com/corp/index.jsp?clickid=about
Rocawear. About Us. 7 August 2008. http://www.rocawear.com/shop/aboutus.php
Phatfarm. 11 August 2008. http://nymag.com/fashion/fashionshows/designers/bios/phatfarm
http://www.hoovers.com/sean-john/--ID__109178--/free-co-profile.xhtml
http://www.diddy.com/
http://seanjohn.com/main.html