random fashion thoughts

[Faust]

Agreed. Faust, I sincerely respect your words and your work. However, I deeply believe that kind of attitude is what got us here in the first place. Mainstream news are typically bullshit anyway, but I don't think that it is detrimental to at least be aware of current social and evironmental issues. This is not to become an "activist" or become a hardcore vegan, but simply to help us decide how lenient we are willing to be about the impact of our choices. I don't think that closing our eyes and covering our ears really does anything for anyone. At the end of the day, the problem is still there, and I think it is better to keep one's feet on the ground.

Also: WE are all participants in society (consumption of goods, housing, use/exploitation of land/labor), and thus WE are all part of it's problems and issues. This isn't a moral perspective, it is a realistic one.

I know, I know. I was not being entirely serious. But I was not being entirely facetious either. There is something to be said for cleansing yourself of this world. A few points to consider:

Would you call a Buddhist monk who spends his life in a monastery a callous, uncaring person? Does the fact that he chooses to retire from this terrible world make him an uncaring person?

Also, most importantly - I invite you to really think things through to their logical end. Please give me a scenario, for example, about what YOU personally are going to do about the current refugee crisis. Aside from donating some money, which has a fift chance of being misused, by the way. No, really, please sketch out a scenario for me how YOU are going to solve the world's problems. Pick one that's on the news and let me know. Because my post above does not come from an uncaring place - god knows I've made enough public statements and you should know better by now - it comes from a place of caring too much and the frustration it causes at one's own powerlessness. What does that mean to witness constant barrage of evil while being unable to do anything about it?

[julian_doe]

the idea that good and evil are social construct or relative concepts is ridiculous.

to harm or kill an individual who did absolutely nothing to you is EVIL
and I have to laugh at these things because we can argue all we want, I am sure if a robber backs you up in an alley with a gun to rape you girlfriend or take your wallet you wont contemplate for a second if his actions are good or evil. you will know precisely what they are without even considering it.

I am sure If a seller posts a CCP Boots in the classified collect your money through paypal and disappear after doing that to 6 people we won't argue that he is a good person or that good/ evil is relative because in such a case it will be PRETTY CLEAR to you......

there are a lot of Evil things done by people who are NOT mentally ill, who understand exactly what they are doing and only show remorse after they have been caught and don't want to have to deal with the consequences
I fear sometimes intellectualism and sophistry have made some of us really unwise. One thing I'm certain of, ideology cannot refute reality.

When Politicians engage in fear mongering to rally the bases and energize supporters to get votes, or blatantly lie to discredit the opponent, I am sure they are not sociopaths.......they know EXACTLY what they want to accomplish

With all due respect, this is not wise thinking...this is an extremely emotional and antiquated way to look at life. If faced with a situation like the (Creative? Shitty? [Insert adjective here]) one your proposed, where my wife might be raped, I would not take the time to judge the asshole, I would rush to action and try to protect my wife. As you can imagine, in this case my opinion of such a person is neither beneficial to myself or others, but how I react to that person's actions is.

And Faust, I am not trying to save the world...I believe aiming for that is just as idealistic and empty as faith is. Look at the scenario above, I am merely saying that although shit inevitably happens, when we have a choice we should take it. We need to cover our bodies, but fast fashion is not a necessity. We can choose what we purchase, and that is why following along to the "it isn't my fault" ideology doesn't help anybody. If anything, it prolongs the existence of the companies that make those shitty products, and which exploit it's workers, and whom are responsible for some of the world's pollution, etc.. I love this forum because it discusses matters of this sort and allows for a more profound analysis not only of the fashion circus as a whole, but also about the impact which the manufacture of clothing has on the world and it's inhabitants.

[forget it]

I'm late to the current events discussion, but my opinion is that there are a few ways to approach the concept of bad things happening in the world.

Certainly, if one passively watches the news and does absolutely nothing about the issue at hand, he or she isn't doing much for the conflict/issue. However, I think it's really impossible to not discuss things, whether it be in person or especially online. To use a platform like Reddit for example is a means to influence millions of people at once. If one was someone who only passively watched the news and was particularly struck by the plight of something in particular, that person can very easily create a discussion and inform people with such low effort which can possibly grow into something much bigger. Creating a Reddit post with a photo of Africans attempting to cross the Mediterranean, for example - one may or may not have a deep connection to that thing, but by posting a photo one of the millions of people who may see it may go on to do something great in response, like start an NGO.

Now, this isn't exceptionally likely because a person who would start an NGO would already be informed, but there are also tons of people out there who MIGHT start an NGO if they felt a certain way about something. One person may make the difference through their charity to help just twenty or so people - but to me any help is worth it. So this isn't likely but I think any attention to the news is worth it because even if something only makes you care enough to make a post on the internet about it, the probability for aid/help to that cause is now larger.

I think there's also a different way to go about caring, which my friend brings up on occasion when we talk about philanthropy. His position is that those who are or will become high net worth individuals and/or academics are better off focusing on their careers than to donate the most possible money or time in the present. For example, if a Harvard medical student feels compelled to go help out in Africa after they attain their degree instead of doing research, they may help a lot of people - but if they had waited on their philanthropy and instead focused on research, they may have made a medical discovery that could have helped millions.

So, if you want to not spend time watching the news and instead focus on something that could potentially do more good in the long run, that's great as well. Personally, I find that I care most about issues facing Latin America and Latin American immigrants in America. I pay most attention to those stories and issues and less to others because that's what I personally feel I want to be the most informed about and potentially do something about. But, in general, I think observing the news (perhaps not primetime or 24-hour news broadcasts which may not depict the most accurate information) is really critical for every person. It's impossible to know about every conflict obviously, but it's maybe more important to look with the purpose of finding something that speaks to you personally, or, to a lesser extent, to something that speaks to you enough to have a discussion about which could influence others.

Now, whether or not humans are obligated to help others in need is a different discussion.

[DudleyGray]

yeezy placed above geoffrey, forme, guidi, and andresen by a supposedly avant garde boutique is something i won't soon stop shaking my head at...

There was a good post on The Cutting Class about Yeezy, basically amounting to how it is plain objectively terrible:

http://thecuttingclass.com/post/130129628568/is-it-ever-ok-to-have-bad-finishes

[gregor]

dudley saw that on another forum, great post, really, worth a re-read for me, because it's applicable on a greater scale, as well.

not like i need another reason to think yeezy is a joke, i think there's enough of those as-is

[TriggerDiscipline]

dudley saw that on another forum, great post, really, worth a re-read for me, because it's applicable on a greater scale, as well.

not like i need another reason to think yeezy is a joke, i think there's enough of those as-is

huh, i see these features in a lot of stuff that people on here wear though, Ma+ /anything that has been object dyed with a zipper that then does the wave/ oversized hems/ drop crotch. I see this on Julius BBS Rick and even in the article CDG is mentioned and they also have wavy zippers like that on some of the boiled stuff.

I am not here to defend West, but what is the point of this

lots of utilitarian pocket details ,


overstretched hemline


fading on seams suggests garment was washed after construction



etc, etc, etc.

[DudleyGray]

Haha, sure, I'll play along. We know that SZ designers are more than capable of creating flawless garments with innovative design from their oeuvres, whereas West has not demonstrated any competence. Even giving him the benefit of the doubt, the quirks and flaws mentioned are artfully elevated in the real pieces while remaining derivative and pedestrian in West's. But I think most importantly, there's a big difference between defiling perfection to the point of "imperfection" and merely copying and manipulating imperfection to a different state of imperfection. The difference is not explicitly definable, but contextual and self-evident.

[TriggerDiscipline]

Haha, sure, I'll play along. We know that SZ designers are more than capable of creating flawless garments with innovative design from their oeuvres, whereas West has not demonstrated any competence. Even giving him the benefit of the doubt, the quirks and flaws mentioned are artfully elevated in the real pieces while remaining derivative and pedestrian in West's. But I think most importantly, there's a big difference between defiling perfection to the point of "imperfection" and merely copying and manipulating imperfection to a different state of imperfection. The difference is not explicitly definable, but contextual and self-evident.

while I agree with your new point, especially about the copying(although this does not bother me as much as the practices of Zara and friends) , the article is straight up garbage.

[gregor]

while I agree with your new point, especially about the copying(although this does not bother me as much as the practices of Zara and friends) , the article is straight up garbage.

my allusion to the greater scale was that beyond the recycled garbage kanye west produces, it was an allusion to exactly the brands and styles prevalent on here. i totally agree with, and see where you're coming from.

i'm of course holding a bias in favour of the latter, but i'm still happy to make such a concession. part of it has to do with my opinion on who does it well, as i don't think that the facets talked about are necessarily an intrinsic detriment to the clothes they are found in, so much as just badly executed and banal on the part of west.

i'll even concede that it can look equally terrible on sz-type designers, but as dudley said, it does sort of come down to who did it best. the "inspirations" (generous phrasing) are rather obvious in kanye's collection.

[delicious_not]

i hate when rick looks slim on guys. just doesn't feel right. obviously i'm not talking about jeans or tailored pants - i mean tees, knits, hoodies, sometimes even blazers and coats. not sure how to express myself, but when i wear rick i try to make it look real heavy and mean and overload, to make all the layers move on their own so it's not me stretching the fabrics with every step, you know what i mean? that's why i always size up in tts rick items.

what can be more worse in a fit than a long slim tee that hugs the butt, eww.

[Ahimsa]

i hate when rick looks slim on guys. just doesn't feel right. obviously i'm not talking about jeans or tailored pants - i mean tees, knits, hoodies, sometimes even blazers and coats. not sure how to express myself, but when i wear rick i try to make it look real heavy and mean and overload, to make all the layers move on their own so it's not me stretching the fabrics with every step, you know what i mean? that's why i always size up in tts rick items.

what can be more worse in a fit than a long slim tee that hugs the butt, eww.

I'm the exact opposite with Rick. I only wear XS or lean towards women's.

[ProfMonnitoff]

I did not interpret that article as an attack against Kanye West's clothing line, I think doing so reveals the reader's bias more than anything.

On the line itself, sure it's not the greatest thing in the world but there are also people who pretend that Greg Lauren does good work.

[Faust]

I'm the exact opposite with Rick. I only wear XS or lean towards women's.

I'm with Ahimsa.

[timm3h]

On the line itself, sure it's not the greatest thing in the world but there are also people who pretend that Greg Lauren does good work.

I'd be interested in your thoughts. I've never handled it so I'm unaware of the construction issues I've heard mention of. To me the stuff is extremely visually compelling, if not the most novel.

[Faust]

Shit's terrible. It's just reworked stuff that doesn't even look good. It has none of the wit and conceptual energy of Margiela or GBS when Geoffrey was into deconstruction, nor the mad scientist construction prowess of the Soloist's earlier collections.

I really wish all these famous rich people or the wives of famous rich people would just stop playing at fashion design.