Can Columbus become a Midwestern fashion capital?
The Alive wrote
Can Columbus become a Midwestern fashion capital?
Thursday, October 2, 2008
By Brittany Kress
Take a look at the street corners, the sidewalks, the grocery stores. It’s a sea of people in sweatshirts and sneakers, and that casual, Midwest lifestyle is stifling Columbus designers’ best intentions.
Well, so are the makeshift studios they’re working from in bedrooms and living rooms across the city.
But it’s not just quality craftsmanship, training and education, sweatshop-style long nights and promotional efforts that’ll put the city’s designers on the map. Simply put, if Columbus wants to become a fashion capital - and plenty are pushing for it - we’re going to have to start looking more like New York. Or at least shopping a little more local, and with a little more style. Because designers can’t get respect coming from a city of sweatpants.
Alive’s Featured Fashion Designers:
- Columbus Style: Akira Burgess
- Columbus Style: Working from home
- Columbus Style: Brad Osting and Justin Hemm
- Alive & Unedited: Project Runway’s Terri Stevens
- Columbus Style: Shannon Mingus
- Columbus Style: Kelli Martin
- Columbus Style: Corey Winborn
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Related Tags: creative • designers • fashion • industry • midwest • style
October 4th, 2008 at 8:31 am
OK, now you are just being silly
If Columbus wants BE something or IS something then that ’something’ should be a strong suit for Columbus. No city should try and be something it’s not. Chicago has the Merchandise mart, New York, Fifth ave. High street isn’t going to cut it. Not that it should try to cut it.
High street should be frickin’ High street. The beautiful parks should be the beautiful parks, German Village should be what it is.
There are great things about Columbus that you don’t have to be something else. Being Columbus is good enough for 1.5 million. (and they just keep coming)
So it’s not glamorous to have good jobs, clean air a low cost of living and the American dream available to everyone. Tough, most people wish they lived in a city like Columbus. And if you can’t see that, no High fashion will make you happy.
Besides, unless this comes into style:
You guys don’t have a prayer
October 4th, 2008 at 8:56 am
1. Cities change. Especially when they are growing in population.
2. I think the point of the Alive article was to say that we’re already on the way to becoming a fashion capital, not to say that it’s something we should considering “becoming”. They highlight several local designers, some of which are having pretty big breakthroughs right now. It’s only a matter of time before everyone else starts noticing.
3. You’re completely entitled to your own opinion, but it’s my opinion that you get out of the house and give this city a fair shot. Come out to the Pizza Grand Prix today and make some friends. Perhaps we can get you out of this debbie downer mode. ;)
October 4th, 2008 at 9:36 am
Except for you, obviously. In saying that you seem to be exhibiting an outsized sense of self importance?
October 4th, 2008 at 9:46 am
Whoa! Is that Mr. Heiney from Green Acres??
… Do come out to the Pizza Grand Prix
October 4th, 2008 at 10:07 am
In Columbus, I think the stereotypical view of “fashion” makes people uncomfortable and sometimes insecure. That view is a little cartoony like Zoolander. There is an element of that vanity, competitiveness, glamor and superficiality in fashion, but it doesn’t have to be in order to be a “fashion capital”.
Is Columbus poised to be a fashion capital? No, I don’t think so. At least not for Men’s fashion. There are more fashionable women here, but not enough to declare this distinction. It’s a wonder some of these sloppy men ever get a date. Fashion to me is about an always evolving user defined creative, unique sense of self-presentation.
In my opinion two things are lacking that would make us a “fashion capital”.
First, assessing fashion choices, it doesn’t appear people are comfortable taking the social risks to step their self-presentation. Things that appear to be fashion forward (those gawdy men’s shirts with ‘crazy’ baroque embroidery on the shoulders for example) become a uniform quickly. A minor part of the social risk is - how you wear it. One might argue that “fashion capitals” have the same level of conformity. That may be true in the quest to appear not to conform.
Second we lack access to the tools to step up fashion. Even the places that purport to deliver us “high fashion” (Saks, Nordstroms, etc..) are a joke and an insult to our wallets and intelligence for the most part. Boutiques have it tough because people want CHEAP for everything. Lots of cheap is fine, but it needs to be balanced with some decent pieces. That requires an investment. In order to play the game you have to go online or go to another city.
As far as sweatpants. Yeah, those will hold us back from our rise in the fashion ranks. Hmmm. Bummer. Kind of like an adult diaper without all the mess.
October 4th, 2008 at 10:56 am
No. Next question?
:P
October 4th, 2008 at 11:02 am
i think it’s a nice article about what people are already doing. it’s not talking about some grand strategy. i do find that columbus is developing it’s own aesthetic. i can’t really articulate it yet, but it’s there. i’m not educated in fashion so i’m not able to use the correct vocabulary, but hopefully, you get my meaning.
October 4th, 2008 at 11:33 am
Where’s the civic pride? I love it here in Columbus. I don’t agree that we have to look like NYC to get respect as a fashion capital. Not everyone in NYC dresses in high fashion either. Having style and a sense of fashion is doing something that everyone else ISN’T doing and making it stylish. So I say let everyone wear those sweats and let the stylish folks stand out.
It is really good to hear about local designers having some success, BTW.
October 4th, 2008 at 11:54 am
Some people look past the exterior when looking for someone to spend their time with. But if said “sloppy” user’s defined, creative, unique sense of self for the day is Levi’s and a t-shirt isn’t that fashion???
Personally, I think a lot of the “fashionable men” in Columbus look like GIRLS!!! If I see another dude with a scarf around his neck when it’s not 30 degrees outside I’m going to strangle him with it.
October 4th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
^ WORD!
October 4th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
this is the sort of backward thinking that doesn’t help when trying to advance our city image. i’m all for this city being big on fashion. we have the companies, big and small. we have CCAD. we have the momentum. fashion is one of the biggest industries around the world. why not get in on it. let’s go for it. anything i can do to help, i’ll be more than happy with a t-shirt and sweatpants on.
October 4th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Hmmm… in some respects, isn’t Columbus already a fashion capital? Not necessarily ‘high fashion’, but between the Limited (and it’s spinoffs) and Abercrombie, there probably aren’t too many cities that have more direct influence over what people are wearing.
As for the scarves, I’d have to agree. Any piece of clothing or accessory that doesn’t have some element of genuine function usually looks fairly silly on a man (speaking in terms of ‘day to day’ garb). Scarves worn on an 80 degree day serve no purpose other than to make the man look like an over-accessorized twit.
Finally, a bold fashion prediction: if the economy goes off the deep end, expect the playfulness and frivolity of recent fashions to recede. Will Warren Buffet’s wardrobe become haute couture?
October 4th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
HEY HEY! whats with all the ragging on men wearing scarves?! ill be wearing mine tonight at work, so if anyone wants to come and see me and strangle me at work, please don’t hesitate to let me know! :wink:
October 4th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
I certainly hope so, and my wife and I are betting our futures on it. We relocated our line (which is sold at some of the top department stores and boutiques worldwide) here from Los Angeles. We also opted to open our first shop here. It doesn’t have to be Milan or Paris or even Chicago to be A style capital. The Short North is already the best thing in the region, and we have Grandview and Clintonville on top of that.
October 4th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Why draw the “functionality” line with accessories? Most design elements of standard articles of clothing serve no function outside of creative expression.
October 4th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
It’s also funny that you bring up the summer, as the trends origins can be traced to mid-eastern men.
October 4th, 2008 at 1:43 pm
I don’t really care if Columbus is a fashion capital or not, but I’ve had enough of this Tenzo guy calling us all a bunch of hicks.
October 4th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Everyone need to wear, say, a shirt, so why not choose a shirt that is interesting or expressive? I’m certainly not anti-fashion… there’s plenty of opportunity for creativity within the bounds of functional apparel items. The function of the shirt, which is to say to cover flesh and keep the upper body warm or otherwise protected (not to mention keeping the wearer within the bounds of basic social norms), is still the primary reason for wearing it.
But, and I want to emphasize that this is just my personal opinion, adding miscellaneous ’stuff’ solely for the purpose of embellishment often strikes me as being any combination of the following - frivolous, narcissistic, overtly unserious, otherwise self-absorbed, etc. Not to the extent that it would define how I felt about the wearer for me, but it’d certainly influence the first impression.
And, perhaps inappropriately given the times (here’s where I put a target on my back…) I feel that way only when speaking in terms of men’s fashions.
All that said, there’s a small minority for whom their ‘look’ is such an integral part of what they do that such embellishment is essentially a functional necessity - I’m thinking of anyone from Elton John to your friendly local police officer.
October 4th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
>insert long-winded digression on the cultural and functional relevance of the keffiyeh to middle easterner men vs it’s relevance to pasty-faced, well-to-do, midwestern US wannabe hipsters<
October 4th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
You being a pompous ass does nothing to make my argument irrelevant.
On the shirt thing.. I totally agree. I think a woven should have two components, fit and pattern. Small embellishments like a contrast pattern on the cuff or buttons I like, when executed properly. But that English Laundry, Ed Hardy stuff is ridiculous.
October 4th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
So then it could be considered frivolous during the warmer months and anyone wearing one is ridiculous?
I understand what you’re getting at, and I’m partly just playing Devil’s Advocate here, but ultimately I think the whole issue could be dealt with by you just not caring about what other people choose to wear or not wear, right? ;)
October 4th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Wasn’t trying to be a pompous ass… maybe a little cutesy…
I guess I see the keffiyeh thing differently. Prior to it becoming the hipster accessory du jour, I thought of it as either a symbol of Palestinian resistance or something that could be pulled over the face to keep flying debris out of the mouth and nose. I believe it can also be worn over the head as a turban.
Anyhow, symbols have meaning. Function has meaning. Are Americans wearing it as an act of solidarity with Palestine? Occasionally, maybe, but in general I kind of doubt it. Just like I doubt it’s being used to keep anything out of their faces.
October 4th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
Yeah, except I pointed out the social stigma attached to not wearing a shirt. That is a ’soft’ function, but it certainly serves a very significant purpose.
Hey, I openly admitted that I was choosing to put a target on my back, didn’t I? :lol:
October 4th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Sounds like a frivolous accessory to me. ;)
Anyway, to try to steer some of this back on topic…
I wrote about local D’Ira clothing on my blog back in March, and like some of their sweater designs. I wasn’t going to pick up a sweater in the Spring though, so perhaps now that it’s getting cool enough I need to place that order. ;)
Anyone else have any other local favorites not mentioned by the Alive?
October 4th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
I think the cost of living really hurts the ability to be a “fashion capital.” Now bear with me here. My cost of living here is lower than what it was before, and in such, I get paid less. That works out fine for me on most fronts (rent, food, gas, etc.), and leaves me with about the same percentage of my paycheck left over as before. However, slick clothes cost the same here as they cost me in Seattle/San Francisco/New York and while I have the same percentage of free money available, that percentage is smaller in actual amount of money.
Thus, I can’t just drop 30-40 bucks on a t-shirt without thinking twice, or 150-175 on jeans.
Not to mention, the sheer population of people, in Columbus, who have the income necessary to put fashion as a priority, and who match the body type of some of the more stylish clothing makers (I’m looking at you Ben Sherman, Ted Baker, and G-Star… why must you make me cry? You loved me 40 lbs ago… now I have to shop at fucking Old Navy, are you happy now?), aren’t quite as common in sheer numbers as in other “fashion capitals.”