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Monday, September 12, 2011

Designer Relevance: A Diagnosis of Sorts

Two days ago, my beloved sister bought me a sheer, navy t-shirt with a mélange trim, an exquisite piece under any circumstances. This tee proves to be especially appealing with the Spring 2012 sheer mini-trend and it feels Amazing. After recovering from the head rush of buying it, I contemplated the relevance of designer clothing, more specifically:

What pertinence does unaffordable fashion have in a country like South Africa?

In the past, designer attire was about quality and workmanship; an unrivalled level of attention to detail. Designer clothing still holds those points true but now, with more affordable stores clamping onto trends faster than leeches onto animals, and with their quality level rising steadily, are designers becoming irrelevant?

As much as I would like to scare the skirts off my readers (although I think I have none), designers may still have an ace up their sleeves: exclusivity.

For example, I do not know of an affordable store capable of manufacturing a decent Burberry inspired trench or a Dolce leopard print body-con dress (without being trashy that is). The basics of the collections are picked up by trend analysts, but the show-stoppers, the unattainables will always be the designers’ hook in their songs of fashion.

But here's another point:

Is there anything more annoying than having what you feel is a statement piece and then seeing half of the country’s population wearing it? I think not.

The allure may lie in knowing that you are one of a lucky few wearing it. So is it sad or scary that fashion is breeding an elitist attitude?

But that revelation will be elaborated on in due course, and my mélange trim tee will make me feel like a French Noble- with a head- and isn’t that what we all want to feel: Special.

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