The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, November 15, 1996, Page 6, Image 6
6
Head
?e
COLLEGE PRESS EXCHANGE
PARIS ? I now know the difference
between wide-legged hip-huggers and
low-waisted trapeze skirts.
I can tell you what colors any fashionoriented
person will be wearing next
season, and what colors won't be seen
until the next retro-look springs forth.
I know how to use words like "salon" and
"boutique" in their proper contexts. I can
pick up any item of women's clothing
and hold it without feeling like a pervert.
I am able to get directions from a woman
wearing nothing but a see-through plastic
jacket and some underwear. I can do a
pretty good imitation of that bouncy step
and spin models do on
the catwalk.
And Fve learned that . . . .
"Haute Couture" is til III K till
indeed just another looking go
pretentious French word. gf thOSO (
That was just part of tn to hwn
my education at the . (
world's largest ready-to- ? PfOte!
wear fashion show, the model. 11
Pret-a-Porter hOW anyi
(pronounced: PRET-a- cou||| nni
por-TAY), held at a big 7 u'J"*
convention hall at the I n 10 I n B
south end of Paris. inainlaBiBii
Although ifs not as glitzy CirClllatiOl
as the Haute-Couture
show, I decided I should
attend the Pret-a-Porter
clothes parade because
it has a major impact on world fashion,
and it was happening the same day I
was passing through Paris.
I spent my first hour in the Bureau
de Presse, a little, French journalists'
club at the convention hall, where, in
addition to essential press aides, such
as an open bar, you get a bag filled with
Hr ^ . :
'' I j % \
' H F5 : 1 H \%i
i?trJ
iffe; fii
Ifcfej?T jMk hi
- jflt fl|
m ?
wk B
V .? i,
^M?
Br - ^BmP
1 11 i
mmml| x ^ ^ v i 1
' - ^ ^ /V
: ijroir twk*/s**sii #1996 AWT -
Y To
AH
heaps of ? get ready?fashion literature.
Basically, the designers exhibit their
wares (or should I say wears?) in booths
like any other convention.
The main difference is jillions of dropdead
gorgeous women walking around
in cutting-edge clothing with the surface
area of a chewing-gum wrapper. This
makes the event much more exciting
than say, the American Booksellers
Convention, where overly attractive
people are not even allowed in the door.
In my first two hours on the
convention floor, I fell in love-at-first
sight 40 times. The models were wearing
things so revealing they looked more
naked than if they had just been naked.
One had a top with
a V-neck so low-cut it
_ urart^ rlmim fn Vinr uroiof1
H I A If In "V11V uunu w iivi n uiov
and a skirt cut up to her
Ou R1 mOSl waist. Like a stalactite
ilothes iS and a stalagmite about
aid rased to j?in? there were just
cci final a few threads around
j 1 the navel hoiding the
10 n t S 6 6 whole outfit together. A'
one else blowdryersetonlow
SSible fit could have blown the
mwhile , ., ....
. I think the trick to
9 8 norma looking good in most of
1. these dothes is to be bom
and raised a professional
model. I don't see how
anyone else could
possibly fit into them while maintaining
normal circulation.
The latest high-fashion trend is to
wear clothing thaf s about two sizes too
small. It's as if all the models confined
their shopping to the Junior Miss section.
By the way, the Big Name
supermodels wouldn't be caught dead
at this particular show because it features
.
?/' , . ; : / :;'V . : : . . . Vr
: -r. . *
nWFM
:' ' .. .
-4J
h|:
'
-'-' Mk ' 4*4$ j: 4f!
flHHf
H
JnL^ iiH jilfflL
^ /j ^' v/ '* *
1 i i WtmmM
">:V:;:; \: -V" ' ^ ^ > ' "', " '
El
The recent fashion show In Paris s
only ready-to-wear duds ? the sort of
clothing you can just walk into-a store
and buy (I didn't realize there was any
other kind).
Showing off such lowly stuff is not
nearly serious enough to require
supermodels. Supermodels are only hired
to "catwalk" by Big Name designers like
Coco Chanel. And the Big Names only
design Haute-Couture clothes.
These garments are not sold in stores
and to buy even the skimpiest boa, you
have to take out a mortgage on your
house. Each piece is custom made to
your size. Well, usually. You can buy an
overpriced Coco Chanel bag without
having it specially fitted to your particular
D' XT J : ? J 11 J..
aim, Dig name uesignei^* uu sen xeauyto-wear
accessories within reach of the
' ;
: >/ -
H ''
^ 8
pi
I pp
I .
I fl
j Hi IB
I 1
i
i fm
inl
% , . ,, J ?*
|jj |il
Haig I ? BH I
"C.
^K, :: wffl
lilfe^&j^.. :.' ' J; Jp - ^9
: ?w^9i^^83
pPPPP^^^ ipaSfc ^*?h|
J|j|
"' .
V\:* ; "':' ' ,
howed that tha latest high fashion tre
lower classes. I watched two fashion
shows on the convention's larger catwalks.
The first show was referred to as "normal"
by the people standing behind me, who
were wearing trendy lampshades on
their heads.
Most of the outfits I saw on stage
could have been worn by Cher in concert,
such as the bikini made from tiny green
mirrors. The model wearing it had some
green glitter sprayed around her navel.
Just remember, you heard it here first:
Mirrored swimsuits and navel glitter
will be hot in *97!
The other show was "alternative,"
meaning no one except space aliens and
maybe Dennis Rodman would ever even
contemplate wearing this stuff. All the
models had tattoos, dyed hair and pierced
52
1
1 Hi H HI
I mm 1
1 mm I ^9
: . : '
I m mm
'
nd Is to wear clothes two sizes to<
everything.
One female with a shaved head
modeled an old T-shirt with a big hole
in it that allowed one bare breast to hang
out. She also had on a pair of well-used
men's briefs with a hole exposing one
cheek. (Fm not sure about the copyright
laws, but I could swear this innovative
design was stolen from a roommate I
had in college.)
A male model wore a full-body Saran
wrap jumpsuit. Another displayed a laige
pin that pierced his mouth completely
shut ? the perfect accessory to set off
his faux-fur dress. Look for this hot new
outfit in a few weeks on Main Street in
Boise, Idaho.
The style for 1997 is ... beats me. I
saw everything from sportcoats with
mam mm
;
Friday, November 15, 1996
Special to The Gamecock
> small.
vinyl lapels to shirts made out of sh<?g
carpet. Pick a fabric and you'd find n
the runway: sandpaper, toilet paper,
origami paper.
One model wore a skimpy dress with
small words written all over it, looking
like a giant cheat-sheet for French class.
As far as I can tell, there are only two
rules of thumb in the fashion industry.
First, there is no rule of thumb.
Secondly, everyone is trying to make a
rule of thumb, which is in direct co^1^
with rule No. 1.
According to the fashion literature I
picked up at the Pret-a-Porter press club,
here's a hot tip for summer 1997: Keep
your eyes out for English Green and
Sublime Violet. Fm assuming these are
colors.
'
. ..
p: :
>, '' ' . ' ' J
H J
?B? I
' mm
<1tI
M I
HBp
I
IBfaa
I ' 1
JSm|
jsk
* T yl
w
IP* ^ ' : f
b
9Mlilli
||| 1
I 1? 1
^ 'S
-'*! v *"' ''' "' '
in ??ll
.
A "i" -