3 things everyone can learn from the fashion industry

The fashion industry is an industry that draws a lot of controversy. Although it definitely has it faults, it also has many virtues and I think there are a few things that everyone can learn from the fashion industry.

1. Creativity and innovation should be valued. The fashion industry is fast-paced and there are constantly new ideas, concepts, and trends springing up. Not only does fashion seem to have a greater tolerance for new ideas and stepping outside the box, but there seems to be more respect for such innovation as well. For example, Vogue Italia often takes an unconventional approach and it's one of the greatest things about it.



2. Not everyone will like everything. There will always be someone to criticise everything because you can't make everyone happy. Although appealing to consumers is decisive and crucial to the fashion industry, it seems to be generally understood that nothing can cater to everyone. Many brands and magazines stick to what they do best and rock their demographic. For example, Nicolas Ghesquière's work at Balenciaga definitely isn't everyone's cup of tea, but that's okay.



This isn't only true with big brands, but with individual people as well. You have all sorts of crazy fashion personalities who seem to be completely unafraid of being themselves.

3. Being inspired by others can be a good thing. Fashion is full of trends, one person's work being inspired by another's work, etc. But not every photo or dress is going to have a completely original idea behind it, but different people can have different takes on one concept or trend. Everyone has something different to bring to the table so ideas can be built on or improved. This isn't necessarily a lack of creative progression, but perhaps a different type of it. This third idea came to me from a Ted Talk by Johanna Blakely. She talks about the benefits of more laidback legal restrictions and how fashion is a freer culture than many other industries like film and publishing. Some of the things she says about fashion has me on the fence and her facts aren't 100% accurate but she does have some good points.

Focus on minimalism

Minimalism is a trend that I've been paying renewed attention to lately. I don't tend to carry it into my personal style because I don't think it really works for me, but I nonetheless love the clean look it has on the runway. Generally, I don't think it takes away from design as much as it brings attention to other aspects of design, like silhouettes and and structures.

I remember first coming to really notice minimalism on the Fendi runway several seasons ago. My interest in the trend was probably renewed by some of the great minimalistic looks on the FW12.13 runway. There are these lovely looks from Acne, Yves Saint Laurent, and Roland Mouret, for example.





I also find minimalism to be underrated but très cool when it comes to celebrity style. For instance, Kate Bosworth and Carey Mulligan pulled off their Jil Sander and Roland Mouret looks wonderfully.

Quotes on Karl

Karl Lagerfeld is the man behind Chanel, Fendi, and his own masstige line. He turned a dying brand into what is arguably the most recognizable high fashion label on the planet. He owns countless pairs of gloves and a paper-eating kitten. An exploration of the Internet will reveal, however, that he is not every netizen's cup of tea. But for me at least, the wonders he works on clothing definitely lives up to the hype surrounding him.



What I find as interesting as his work in fashion design is Karl Lagerfeld as a person. He is probably one of the most quotable people on this planet, but what I find equally interesting as what he has to say us what others have to say about him. Here are some quotes that show us a bit of the eccentric behind the sunglasses:

Diane Kruger: "I was once on his plane flying to China. He wouldn’t stop talking. After a while, I said to him, ‘I have to sleep now Karl.’ When I woke up 10 hours later he was still talking to some poor assistant!"

Florence Welch: "It was funny because Karl and I were doing a shoot for Japanese Vogue, where I was talking about the underwater themes in my record, and he was saying how he wanted to do an underwater theme for his show. Then he said: 'Wouldn't it be nice if you came down on a big wire like you were floating?' and I was like: 'What?' And he said: 'We can get all these harps together...' and all these ideas were coming to him just really off the cuff… so I thought he was joking and then he put his hand on mine and said: 'Ok, so we'll do it, I'm glad we talked.' It was all really spontaneous!"



Lily Allen: "It was at a big party in Coco’s apartments in Paris. I was drunk and got lost in the building. I wandered into an attic room and Karl was there. I got really embarrassed and apologized, but he said, “No, come in.” We had a chat – although I can’t remember what about, I was so drunk. I do remember asking him about some shoes he’d designed that had a green ring in the heel [from the Chanel a/w 2009 collection]. I asked how they worked. He drew a diagram explaining the physics of making the shoe. I’ve still got the drawing. A week later I was asked to do the campaign."

Dreaming of Paris

I've been having a generally lazy weekend as I dream of escaping this workload and going on a vacation. My dream destination at the moment? Paris. I want to see impressionist artwork at the Musée d'Orsay, people-watch for awesome streetstyle while sitting in a café, take an excursion to the stunning Château de Versailles, etc.

Unfortunately, it seems that the cold weather has returned to Canada and my huge winter coat has come out again. The weather app on my iPhone tells me that Paris should at least be warm enough for me to go out in a light coat, which makes me inevitably envious of all Parisians. So, I've been lusting after some FW 11.12 runway looks and dreaming that a)I could own them, and b)the weather here could be warm enough for me to wear them.

Maybe a piece of minimalism from Jil Sander?

Source: style.com

Or maybe fine-tailored leather from Yves Saint Laurent?

Source: style.com

How about a satin blazer from Marios Schwab?

Source: style.com

The full collections can be viewed here. The source of all images is style.com.