Hey,
so I've noticed that my second blog was deleted...that really sucks. Anyways, I've been kind of lagging on this thing, I'm not so good with journals and stuff. But, the project itself is slowly growing on me. I can honestly say when we started, I thought it was pretty lame and easy to fake; but, I have consciously looked at some products and even sat around and thought about where they come from. So, maybe not a farce, but a different perspective, ya? By the way, I still haven't bought anything. Not even food...that could be a problem. As far as I know, I am still a participant though.
Last week, one of the articles dealt with the the popularization in Indian fashion around the world, but more specificaly London. Naturally, London isn't the CENTER of the fashion world, but they are quite influential. With elitest Hollywood stars making there stay in London, there is a lot of potential for top-down influence over American audiences and so on and so forth. I think popularization of cultural styles for other adaptions can always be interesting, but meanings oftentimes get lost in the new adaptions. New styles are for looks only, the meaning behing the fashion is lost, usually. In this sense, probably. But, considering how influential both countries have been to one another in the past century or two, it's amazing to think that popularization of cultural fashion is barely starting to permeate Western ideology. Is it good, is it bad? I don't know...but I think that it's a small step at worst to understanding one another just a little better.
Until tomorrow, maybe even later today,
-Billy D
Monday, June 2, 2008
Sunday, June 1, 2008
I have made it so far and I have not bought anything. Ok, save for gifts for friend’s baby shower and birthdays. But, really nothing for myself. Anyways, this weekend was the baby shower where after playing several “bottle chugging” and “make a baby” games, I met a young woman who is traveling to Japan over the summer. She has been there a few times and when asked about her past experiences, reflects that Japan is in many ways like US. She said that every time she goes it seems that Japan follows similar trends and moves along the same direction as the West. The same can be seen in Kondo reading, where the article also states that Japan in many ways tries to build a national image based on the West and the modernity we associate with that part of the world.
Why is it that only West is associated with modernity and other nations try to emulate the Western ways in order to come into the global perspective. Western fashion has gone global whereas a lot of Asian fashion is still confined to local regions of that country. However, I think that as Niessen states that fashion should be reoriented to include the Eastern perspective, a new approach must be employed when defining fashion as such constraints of including just the Western side of the world must be removed and redefined.
Why is it that only West is associated with modernity and other nations try to emulate the Western ways in order to come into the global perspective. Western fashion has gone global whereas a lot of Asian fashion is still confined to local regions of that country. However, I think that as Niessen states that fashion should be reoriented to include the Eastern perspective, a new approach must be employed when defining fashion as such constraints of including just the Western side of the world must be removed and redefined.
i will think of a clever title for this post in time for class
“The more indulgent you are now, the more you will regret it later. Save your money.” (Yahoo!) That little bit of spiritual knowledge is courtesy of the horoscope tab off yahoo dot com. I’m moderately superstitious; not very much into astrology but to have my horoscope unfold the way it did was pretty cool. I will heed the advice of the horoscope and start saving some money. Something great better be coming my way soon or I will get fairly agitated.
There is nothing new for this week in terms of not buying anything. I read professor’s post where she called Kobe and me a bunch of tools! (Valverde) Kobe has feelings too and he needs that multi-million dollar contract from Nike to feed his family and stuff. As for me, it’s hard to defend myself against those allegations.
I’m stressing out at the moment over all this work so this post is not up to par with the other intentionally irrational and ignorant, yet honest rants I’ve produced in the past.
There is nothing new for this week in terms of not buying anything. I read professor’s post where she called Kobe and me a bunch of tools! (Valverde) Kobe has feelings too and he needs that multi-million dollar contract from Nike to feed his family and stuff. As for me, it’s hard to defend myself against those allegations.
I’m stressing out at the moment over all this work so this post is not up to par with the other intentionally irrational and ignorant, yet honest rants I’ve produced in the past.
Can't give up Forever 21 =^( ...blog # 4
Ok so I know that this class is supposed to raise an awareness against consumerism. However, I LOVE forever 21. Their clothes are cheaper than department stores and quite trendy too. When i get paid, i like to buy a new outfit every week (hadnt been doing that much lately though even before this project, which made it easier for me to go along with this project). Forever 21 is affordable so that i can afford to buy a new outfit every week. I know that im choosing to ignore everything we've learned about forever 21 in the Forever in Trouble" article by Byun, but hey, I'm a college student who likes to TRY and look good lol. So as soon as this project is over, on the 29th day, im going to Forever 21! ...SORRY!! ..its like an addiction though...and im going clubbing to celebrate the end of finals and the beginning of summer...gotta look good!!!!!
My boyfriend had his first day off in 2 weeks this saturday. He only gets one saturday every two weeks off and i wanted to buy him something. HOwever, i had to stop myself and even started to explain to him why i didnt go into forever 21 to buy anything. He had a shocked look on his face "Like yea right, you won't actually keep up with that crap" ... i told him about the information in the "Santa's Sweatshop" by Palmer (such as people get paid so little for the labor) and that it was one of the major reasons why we were trying to be green for 28 days. He said that he was proud of me...but then looked at me funny when i told him that i was going back to buy something on the 29th day. MAN ...now im starting to feel guilty again!
Till next time....
My boyfriend had his first day off in 2 weeks this saturday. He only gets one saturday every two weeks off and i wanted to buy him something. HOwever, i had to stop myself and even started to explain to him why i didnt go into forever 21 to buy anything. He had a shocked look on his face "Like yea right, you won't actually keep up with that crap" ... i told him about the information in the "Santa's Sweatshop" by Palmer (such as people get paid so little for the labor) and that it was one of the major reasons why we were trying to be green for 28 days. He said that he was proud of me...but then looked at me funny when i told him that i was going back to buy something on the 29th day. MAN ...now im starting to feel guilty again!
Till next time....
it only gets tougher... blog #4
This weekend, my friends and I went out to the bay to hang out and check out some clubs. I was VERY tempted to buy new outfits for the weekend. So I went shopping in the morning on Friday with the mind-frame that I would buy something if I found anything that I really, really liked. We frequented one of our usual stores, Forever21. While looking around, it made me think about the article "Forever in trouble" for the obvious reasons. It made me wonder which ones were knockoffs since I don't particularly pay attention to designer duds; what's new and what not. And then it made me think about the conditions that these clothes were made under ("Santa's workshop") which made me feel extra guilty for breaking the pact, so luckily I didn't find anything that I really, really liked. After leaving Forever21, I didn't actively try to shop at other stores because I knew that if I didn't try to look then I wouldn't find anything. I ended up recycling some of my old clothes and was able to enjoy my weekend just the same.
It's hip to be Asian... or just adopted
So my very white friend (she is indeed, a pale lass) is a nanny for a very wealthy Indian family for the last two years. As part of the family, she is taken along on their travels (Europe, India, Laguna Beach, etc) and learns much of their Indian culture. What pertains to this course is the gift she received from them while on their trip to India: a sari. A honest-to-god authentic sari that they even taught her how to wear, lest she walk around without the right pleating and look like a poseur. This reminds me of the gifts of salwaar-kameezes in the article by Parminder Bhachu in London. Unlike the subsequent commodification post-diaspora, her case is very much the real thing.
She came back from the trip in full-on sari/bindi gear. It became apparent that it is not a mere commodity for her because she has a reason to wear the sari. Then it occurred to me that it was easy to label it as such. It was because I've known this girl since high school that I can't immediately label her as some hack. So is this appropriation?
This is also the friend where I first experimented with henna. Sunaina Maira discusses henna and its prevalence in stores compared to pre-indochic times. When "white" people wear henna, it's trendy but when the "other" wears it, it becomes exotic at best. As an Asian-American person, I was wary of how I would be perceived with henna all over my hands. I am caught in both appearing "exotic" and blindly following trends. I have certainly not appropriated the culture and I did not want to waste $20 worth of henna to look plain. It would appear then that in the case of multicultural individuals, it is especially far more difficult to maintain identities in our melting pot.
As for this experiment, I already live a brandless life. By that, I certainly do not mean I don't buy by brand only - I do own brands. But the reason for that is not because I want the insignia to establish my status. Brands oft come with other guarantees like quality. It is why I pay more, falling to the thralls of corporations because corporations have the infrastructure (sometimes bad infrastructure) for good work to be done. There is too much unknown in lesser known brands, even in clothing. I will pay extra for a top that compliments my body but at the same time, I also shop at thrift stores for the occasional oddity. So my shopping mantra is in line with my life mantra - everything in moderation.
She came back from the trip in full-on sari/bindi gear. It became apparent that it is not a mere commodity for her because she has a reason to wear the sari. Then it occurred to me that it was easy to label it as such. It was because I've known this girl since high school that I can't immediately label her as some hack. So is this appropriation?
This is also the friend where I first experimented with henna. Sunaina Maira discusses henna and its prevalence in stores compared to pre-indochic times. When "white" people wear henna, it's trendy but when the "other" wears it, it becomes exotic at best. As an Asian-American person, I was wary of how I would be perceived with henna all over my hands. I am caught in both appearing "exotic" and blindly following trends. I have certainly not appropriated the culture and I did not want to waste $20 worth of henna to look plain. It would appear then that in the case of multicultural individuals, it is especially far more difficult to maintain identities in our melting pot.
As for this experiment, I already live a brandless life. By that, I certainly do not mean I don't buy by brand only - I do own brands. But the reason for that is not because I want the insignia to establish my status. Brands oft come with other guarantees like quality. It is why I pay more, falling to the thralls of corporations because corporations have the infrastructure (sometimes bad infrastructure) for good work to be done. There is too much unknown in lesser known brands, even in clothing. I will pay extra for a top that compliments my body but at the same time, I also shop at thrift stores for the occasional oddity. So my shopping mantra is in line with my life mantra - everything in moderation.
Eating Green
In an attempt to be more green, I tried to research green recipes. My results - nothing I really liked. BUT this research reminded me of an episode of Colbert Report when he was making fun of Rachel Ray. Apparently, Rachel Ray did a commercial for Dunkin' Donuts where she was wearing a scarf that closely resembles a keffiyeh. I remember Colbert talking and criticizing Rachel Ray about that fashion choice. Prior to talking this class, I would have no idea what Colbert was talking about and would believe it was colbert just being himself, But this class have taught me about the political statements clothing makes. Rachel Ray might have chosen the scarf because she had no idea that the pattern on her scarf closely resembles the keffiyeh OR she might have known about it and didn't care. As Hoodfar presented in her article about veiling, sometimes clothing should not been seen one-sided. There is always reasons why one would choose to pick a certain outfit or clothing practice. Maybe for Rachel Ray, her environment or her stylist forced her to do so.
On a lighted note, I watched "Sexy and the City" on Friday and I highly encourage everyone to go watch it. Yes it is a chick-flick but it's a good one, especially if you've watch the episodes. In one scene of the movie, Carrie wears a beautiful Vivienne Westwood wedding dress. When I went to Vivienne Westwood's website, I was shocked to see how expensive her line was! Close to $200 for a black T with a seriously Rated R design on it. After a moment a shock, I was thought to myself, I wonder when people would copy her wedding dress design and sell it for much cheaper. sexy and the city gave that dress so much publicity that people are probably dieing to get their hands on it, but not everyone could afford it. Publicity plays such a big part to the promotion of clothing that fashion designs are waiting for magazines to publish something about them (Kawamura, 79). Well this dress certainly got a lot of publicity because it had a full page spread in Vogue, but is the dress really worth that price? For those who have not seem the movie, the dress could be summarized in two words "Cream Puff".
The moral of the movie: it's not about what you wear, it's about the underlying message.
On a lighted note, I watched "Sexy and the City" on Friday and I highly encourage everyone to go watch it. Yes it is a chick-flick but it's a good one, especially if you've watch the episodes. In one scene of the movie, Carrie wears a beautiful Vivienne Westwood wedding dress. When I went to Vivienne Westwood's website, I was shocked to see how expensive her line was! Close to $200 for a black T with a seriously Rated R design on it. After a moment a shock, I was thought to myself, I wonder when people would copy her wedding dress design and sell it for much cheaper. sexy and the city gave that dress so much publicity that people are probably dieing to get their hands on it, but not everyone could afford it. Publicity plays such a big part to the promotion of clothing that fashion designs are waiting for magazines to publish something about them (Kawamura, 79). Well this dress certainly got a lot of publicity because it had a full page spread in Vogue, but is the dress really worth that price? For those who have not seem the movie, the dress could be summarized in two words "Cream Puff".
The moral of the movie: it's not about what you wear, it's about the underlying message.
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