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scene!
By Katherine Hansen
F AN AESTHETIC STATEMENT is a mosaic of show
and tell, visual impressions articulate more than a puny
voice can say. Whether we consciously subscribe to
fashion's transient dictates or not, we adorn ourselves to
communicate an image that we hold in common with no
other person.
"The first thing the first couple did after committing
the first sin was to get dressed. Thus Adam and Eve started
the world offashion, and styles have been changing ever since."
- Time, November 18, 1963
Okay, so maybe the first fashion statement - the fig leaf -
was necessitated by modesty. But the seasonal aura which
pervaded the Garden of Eden would linger for centuries. Spring
was no time to hide your skin. When the mercury makes the
year's first momentous climb past 60 degrees, winter wools go
back into hiding, making room for the next-to-nothing cottons
that carry us gratefully into spring.
True to Adam and Eve's mythical precedent, the styles they are
a-changin'. This spring's big change is in color, or a lack thereof.
Last spring's first warm day ushered in brights, branding them
"big news." Nautical navies, kelly greens, fiery reds, and sunny
yellows, in every combination imaginable, were the mainstay
fashion elements. When the summer sun gave way to frosty
autumn, the primary brights mellowed into jewel tones that took
their place in fall wardrobes.
1987 finds a fickle reversal in the season's approach to color.
For men, the few signs of intense hues are the scant jewel tones
that survived the winter, only now the rubies and topazes turn up
in short-sleeved, lighter, and cooler versions. For women, the
perennial pastel pinks, blues, and yellows are back, but in only
about one quarter of last spring's profusion. The single pastel that
commands warm weather attention is fresh peach, which
complements the season's decisive attitude on color: beige and
green khaki's, and washed down or frosted blues are where the
color action is this spring.
"All that fashion demands is composure and self-content."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
This spring's innovative approach to the most easygoing
material - denim - lends itself to the primary fashion goal of
many University students: dressing for comfort. Since Levi
Strauss first introduced his indigo-dyed canvas pants, nothing has
been more comfy or more faithful than old blue. Dictated by the
public's demand for both comfort and diversity, spring offers a
multitude of denim or denim-inspired pieces to serve both needs.
The new jeans styles satisfy a craving for comfort, and also
envelop the wearer in an image that appears approachable to
members of the opposite sex.
"It's not what she wears," says LSA sophomore Erhan Ozil,
"it's the way she wears it." Ozil explained that he'd much prefer
to see a woman in jeans and a sweatshirt, perhaps, than a woman
who's obviously spent two hours mirror gazing. Implicit in
Ozil's comment is the suggestion that the woman who appears
comfortable'with herself, whether sporting jeans or their
"dressier" counterpart, is the truly fashionable woman. Fashion
anarchists take heart - you may not think that you're making a
statement, but silence may well communicate louder than words
in creating an image bearing your signature.
This spring's jeans strive for comfortable fashion panache. The
jean mini-skirt still holds its versatile place in the warm-weather
See FASHION, Page 18
Y
Photos by Andi Schreiber
and Scott Lituchy
NERD: Shirt, $35 by B.D. YUPPIE: A-dothes and JOCK: Rugby shirt, $57. SORORITY GIRL: Putumayo ENVIRONMENTALIST: Cut- PREP: Shirt, $25; shorts, PUNK: Shirt, $42, by REPORTER: Skirt, $65
Baggie's; pants, $46 by accessories available at From D.B. Conley Irish skirt, $48; Putumayo blouse, out top and gauchos set, $35; Jacket, $90. All from Bogey's; shorts, $14, by CP Shades; Shirt, $52 b
Tommy Hiltfiger; belt, $24. Steeplechase. Woolens. Shorts, $26. From $38; Putumayo sash, $18. All $120; antique African cho- Wild's. Vest, $59, from D.B. Surplus By UFO. Both CP Shades. Both items
All available at Bivouac. Model: David1Lewven. Biouac. High-top sneakers, items at The Bagpiper. ker, $72;hand-woven shigra, Conley Irish Woolens. Loafers, available at The Cat's Meow. available at NuSport.
Model: Christopher Kraft $23 From South U. Shoes. Model: E&in Seeney. $95. From Orchid Lane. $60. From South U. Shoes. Model: Temar, zechowski. Model: Jenifer McCa.
MI t iicheal Lei. Model:Kate Gordon. Model: Christopher Pruefte.
PAGE 14 WEEKEND/MARCH'20, 1987WEKN/AC',19
WEEKEND/MARCH 20; 1987 }