El-Yes: Follow the Dress Code and Wear Wood
Wednesday, October 27, 2010 I missed Chicago Fashion Week. Sigh.
Since I knew that I would be out of town, I asked one of my students to take in the sights for me. Armed with her fashionable besties and her camera she tackled Dress Code. She found wearable wood and a man in a dress.
Take it away Hillary:
Being a full time student, I was so excited to attend last week’s Dress Code. This runway show featured student work from four local design schools: The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Columbia College, and The International Academy of Design and Technology. Dedicated to “sustainable, repurposed clothing that blends fashion and environment,” this event took place last Thursday in Millennium Park.
The twenty-student show had a lot of variety. Looks ranged from Alexander McQueen inspired outfits to garments that could be made from my parent’s bed comforter. The event was exciting and filled with fierceness.
A collection that I found interesting was what I considered to be “homeless chic.” It consisted of garments made from plastic bags, newspapers, blankets, and well… garbage. Tres eco friendly, but I wouldn’t wear it. I prefer my recyclables in a blue bin (or woven into fabric) and not tacked on my outfits.
There were also pieces that reminded me of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast- but in this fairy tale, the bed was alive instead of the silverware. I understand repurposed clothing but let’s keep the duvet in the bedroom and not on the runway.
My absolute favorite pieces were created using wood. Wood was used during the Renaissance for corset stays (but never like this!). The corset top was made from long slats of wood. As the model walked these planks towered towards her head. I love that the student paired this wood piece with a skirt that looked like a Renaissance era ruff (a lace neck ruffle). I was in awe the moment that I saw these garments!
I thought that I would find Hillary some wearable “wood” pieces. Obviously Etsy was the place to go. Check out these great finds.
Wood Dress from Shop Red Squirrel for $95
Wood Grain Plank T-shirt from Overlap for $32
Faux Bois Vintage Dress from Stacy Leigh Atelier for $45
Fashion Focus, Student, Womenswear in El-Yes, photo