We learn something new from the Dreamers every day. Read on to learn about one Dreamer's passion for fashion!
Amour Fashion
by Laura Mejia
Coco Chanel once stated “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street; fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” Some people see fashion as pointless and just clothes that you have to wear so you won’t go outside nude; but fashion is much more. Every individual has a style; that style comes from fashion. Style is the way you like to wear something and a way of expressing yourself without having to say anything. If someone wears a band shirt, it expresses they really like the band they’re wearing. If someone likes to wear floral and pink stuff, it expresses they like to dress girly. A persons style doesn’t have to be fresh off the runway or expensive brands, it can be anything you like and feel comfortable wearing. Fashion comes from ideas, and those ideas can become very effective and change the way people live and the way people view certain things. Many Fashion Designers such as Coco Chanel and Levi Strauss changed the way the world viewed how people should dress.
Chanel changed the way society viewed women and the way that they dressed. Chanel took menswear and made it stylish and feminine for women. Chanel made clothing like suits and trousers popular for woman. She also made suntans symbolize “wealth and beauty” considering that having a tan back then symbolized poverty because it meant that you were working in the sun all day long. Chanel is also very known for her “little black dress.” She made the color black trendy. Back then, people used to think that the color black should be rarely worn and only worn for certain occasions such as funerals. Chanel completely changed the view people had on the color black and now it’s very normal and common seeing someone wear all black even for events like parties. Chanel made a big contribution to women’s style and changed the way people saw certain clothing.
Another designer that made a major impact on society back then and even today was Levi Strauss. Every one, every gender, every race, every age has worn jeans. Levi Strauss came up with the idea of denim pants when he heard that miners had the problem of frequently ripping their pants while mining. That’s when he decided to come up with a solution to make durable and effective pants using heavy canvas fabric. Later on with the help of the tailor Jacob Davis they added Davis invention to the pants which was using copper rivets to hold the pockets down and making sure they don’t fall off the pants. These pants quickly became very popular. Not only did miners wear them but so did everyone else. This made a big impact on how people dressed.
Designers are a big part of life. The way you dress is a part of who you are. The ideas made by designers made huge impact on society, because of them we have a big variety of styles to choose from and pick the particular one we like. If it wasn’t for the open mind of designers the world would be different and we would not have the chance to express ourselves the way we want to when it comes to clothing. This does not mean fashion is the most important thing in the world and we should all now focus on the newest trends but everyone can agree that fashion made a big contribution to society and changed how society adorn themselves today.
The “I Have A Dream” program has helped me decide on some colleges that I want to go that will later on help me in the fashion field. I spoke to Leslie, the Program Director at DeHostos and she advised me about Syracuse University and told me it has a really good art program. I eventually researched this university and I was really fond of it because it might enhance my skills in fashion. “I Have A Dream” also gives me a space outside of school and home to work on my fashion illustration. Leslie introduced me to “Prismacolors” that has helped the appearance of my artwork. I am grateful that “I Have A Dream” has supported me and my dreams.