As the Hemline Falls...

Hilarious! Right on the heels of finding that video about the Hemline/Stock Market theory (see earlier post below), this article, "Do Low Hemlines Spell Bad News for the Market?" comes out via Reuters about the longer hemlines seen at Fashion Week. The invariable conclusion? Watch out, because the Stock Market must be crashing down again.

Pu-leeze. What about the Zandra Rhodes and Pucci inspired maxi-dresses and skirts that made a comeback in summer 06, not to mention this past season, two periods they report as economically thriving? And on Wednesday L.A.M.B. put thighs-the-limit microminis on the runway (not that Gwen Stefani is the end-all regarding the direction of high fashion, but still. Miss Sixty streetwear for spring showed hot pants, for Pete's sake, and Alexander Herchcovitch had tulip miniskirts.) The Hemline Theory was a cute idea in its time, but reporting on it now—as fact—is lazy. It's been disproven repeatedly. I'm guessing Reuters is looking for a way to report on fashion week that will pique the interest of readers who wouldn't otherwise give a flea about the shows. Maybe they're seeking to make news, not report news?

I do love it.

Admit It. You Love It. It Matters.

"It" being fashion and the article is from Sunday's NYT. The writer (Guy Trebay) loves his adjectives and he's crams a bevy of them into his 2-page article to describe Fashion: bourgeois, girly, unfeminist, conformist, elitist, frivolous, anti-intellectual, cultural stepchild, superficial, blameless, to name a few. It's no wonder we're fascinated by It!

Fashion insiders and fashionistas get their own laundry list of creative monikers: pixie-dust people, cuckoos, extravagant mythomaniacs, fops, dandies, flibbertigibbets, socialite geishas, second-rate celebrities, editorial priestesses, idlers and dupes. (I wonder where I, a Seattle-based fashion editor, fall into the mix?)

In between all the demiurgic wordage (see, I can do it, too), the article is a good read and makes some good points. Namely, that despite all the fanfare, criticism and debate, fashion is not only irresistible, it serves as an important measure of history. Agreed!