Page 10-The Michigan Daily- Fall Fashion -October 22, 1992

TAN U S SAAD A
HOPES TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE WAY
PEOPLE THINKABOUT PUERTO RICANS, AS
STE REOTYPICALLY BAD AND LOUD. "THERE
ARE BAD AND LOUD PEOPLE IN EVERY RACE."
ALWAYS TRYING TO LOOK HIS BEST, HE
FEELS HIS PERSONALITY IS WHAT REALLY
REPRESENTS HIM.

ALEX VAN VLOTEN
CLAIMS TO HAVE ALWAYS BEEN "WEIRD" AND
FOR HER TO "BECOME LIKE THE REST,
WOULD BE VERY HARD TO DO." SHE IS A
JUNIOR WHO IS A FIRST GENERATION
AMERICAN WITH A UNIQUE DUTCH AND
MEXICAN BACKGROUND.

Try me
on... IM
very you
"I would go out tonight, but I
haven't got a stitch to wear."
The Smiths
"This Charming Man
I'll bet lovable old miseryguts
Morrissey had no idea just how
much truth is
contained in
this narcissistic
little couplet. 2
No matter boy
* ya slice it,
clothing has
become the
great
determinator it
our image-
crazed society.
Who you are, where you come
from, what you aspire to be -
When it comes to making that
grand statement, nothing screams
what you're all about like the
threads you step out in. Your
family's tax bracket, your zip code,
the car you drive, and ultimately
your class status seems to be
mighty important to a lot of kids
around here. Unfortunately, we
can't just wear signs proclaiming
our importance in the world ("Hi,
I'm a twentysomething upper-
middle class business student
whose parents rake in long
money, has a summer home in
the Hamptons, and upon
graduation has a cushy job lined
up at dad's company. You'd be a
fool not to envy/desire me")
So we take the easy way out.
We say it with fashion. Everyone
has leamed those not-so-subtle
codes that tell the world just
where the hell we're coming
from. When done skillfully, your
street gear is worth a thousand
words. An effortlessly casual but
achingly expensive Polo ensemble
with the "right" accessories hisses
"I'm from upstate New York and
drive a Beemer, you pathetic little
prole." There's also the 1Ishun
my parents wealth by spending
their dough on Birkenstocks,
Dead T-shirts and frayed jeans"
look. And of course, who can
ignore the newest fash statement,
which I like to call the "Pearl Jam
plays Cicely, Alaska" look. Lots of
big, comfy layers of long johns
and flannel, flannel, flannel.
"I'm so anti-fashion, I proudly
flaunt the down home, functional
clothes we all hated our mothers
for," you say smugly. But this
"anti-fashion" look has become so
fashionable, Ann Arbor has
become a sea of Eddie Vedder
clones wandering the set of
"Northern Exposure." Ain't
fashion grand?
But as always, the only
genuine fashion statements are
being made by urban youth. No,
I'm not talking about the Cross
Colours-Air Jordan-oversized
Carhartt-baggy jean-backwards
Stussy baseball cap look that so
many "Yo! MTV Raps! "-minded
kids would have you believe is the
hip hop uniform. I'm talking
about the real deal, the true B-
boys of Brooklyn.
You'll never catch these kids
wearing that stuff. They're too
busy dressing up, literally as well
as figuratively. Ralph Lauren, L.L.
Bean, Armani jeans- the look of

the upper class. Old money. It's
called "Lo Life," established a few
years ago by some teens tired of
looking like everybody else. They
use the five finger discount at
some of NY's finer
establishments, and then resell
the merchandise (at much
cheaper rates) on the street.
Featured in the October issue
of UK fashion mag The Face, Lo
Lifers target Ralph Lauren in
particular because of the
Imperialistic, homogenous image
he perpetuates. The sleek,
smooth, expressionless
Europerfect models in his ads
stare down at you from their thin
little noses, teasing you with "the
good life." Says "Superia;" a long
time Lo Lifer, "We're taking
money out of his pockets. We're
saying 'fuck you' to this rich,
white millionaire."
It looks like the Republicans'
"trickle-down economics"are
finally beginning to work.

01



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