Monday, September 10, 2007

Some Hipster Girl and the Amazing Technicolor Sack

I was trying to think of something clever to write about for this first post in a while, but then I was just like, "Maybe I'll just check out Face Hunter instead- that usually comes through in the ugly department." And how!

Tie-dye is one of those things, in my opinion, that is simply flat out hideous. No matter what you do with it, or how Prada tried to rework it in some collection a few years ago, it's always going to look like something hippies with bad taste/kids at camp even though whenever we tie-dyed at camp it always just looked like the shirt had just grown mold on it/the sartorially clueless would wear. I mean, every time I see a hippie wearing tie-dye, I think, "Why don't you just tote along a giant bong and tattoo Bob Marley's name on your face and really take it all to the next level of walking cliche?"

(I did think tie-dye was pretty cool at around age nine, and when I went to New York City with my parents, I wore a tie-dyed onesie- perhaps exclusively, from the looks of the vacation snapshots. Even though I was just an innocent child, the idea of this still sort of repulses me.)

Anyway, the point is, I would like to think this is a joke. I mean, if this was a plain white oversized tee with an asymmetrical fringed bottom, it would be a gross outfit, but the fact that it has that psychedelic heart rainbow on it makes it all the worse. Perhaps worst of all, is that probably some tool in New York has that onesie now, and is wearing it out on the town, and being lauded for it, and such.

3 comments:

Simone said...

Isn't that the thing with all this hipster "fashion," though? It all starts out as a joke, though not a particularly funny joke, like one that elicits groans from all who hear it, because it's been heard a million times before...

Dude, seriously, tye dye is HOT for next spring. i'm going to tye dye my short-shorts, add some suspenders and slouch boots, maybe an old tshirt from the early 80s, a fedora, and parade bedford ave, shocking all who care to look with my sartorial finery. women will gasp. babies will cry. men will pound their chests with delight as i saunter through williamsburg! it's a tye dye revolution, mannnn.
next up: mexican blanket ponchos. i can feel it.

Anonymous said...

While I do see your point, trying to bash an ironic fashion gesture with more ironic humor seems a bit like shooting fish in a barrel - which are already playing dead. Although "hipster" fashion can become a bit "out-do-or-be-out-done," it serves as a reference point for all other fashion realms, both high and low. So, I personally enjoy a deliciously "bad" styling photo from Facehunter as much as a label/wealth-driven one from The Satorialist.

Mary said...

see, i disagree: irony as a critique certainly has a place, as well as a rich tradition in critique and humor, but embracing irony as a LOOK and a lifestyle is far different.

hipsters such as this lady wear things like this to distance themselves from who originally wore the garment, (and the social status implied by it), to elevate themselves by pointing out that they're wearing things/making music/creating "art" as a joke.

wearing a tie-dye caftan is like saying, "haha, i'm wearing something really ugly- isn't that fabulous because i'm not a fat tourist but instead some rich skinny girl?" it's not witty (you know, like this blog clearly is), and it's not creative (anyone can go to the thrift store and find something fugly), it's shallow, and it's basing a lifestyle on nothing more than distancing oneself and being negative, instead of actually being about something you genuinally care about and respect. and, in that respect, it's very safe, and very easy.

i admit it's kind of fascinating to see how far they will go, but as far as creativity goes, they basically all look the same and have the same intentions.

plus, i find half the high-end stuff on the sartorialist just as ugly. they both drive one another, and i find there is plenty of overlap between the two.

anyway, i feel very strongly about this, and want to express that my hatred of clothes such as these goes beyond just thinking it's clever to make fun of them.

note: shout-out to gerard if he reads this, as i am totally referencing out brilliant essay on camp. perhaps i should make a post about it! it's not like a have a job or anything.