Ojok Tek Intep: fashion

Showing posts with label fashion. Show all posts

Men in Skirts

In ages past men wore skirts, and I must confess that I like them. Was it not for my job at a conservative university, and were I to have been in a more creative career, I would definitely have enjoyed a much more artistic expression in my daily wardrobe, including some wrap-around skirts and kaftans.

Artist and fashion designer Rick Owens sports interesting skirts and kaftans for his Summer 2012 Men Collection.

Read more at 1883 Magazine about other designers that are putting men in skirts by Chad Burton, another blogger from Korea.

Invention Idea: Clothing Database and Clothes Personificator

So I have a lot of clothes. Not ridiculous amounts of clothing, but enough so that I sometimes forget to where certain items, partly because I haven't truly looked at these items in a while and thought about wearing them.

So here is my invention idea: I want to invent a little microchip to embed in each clothing item, which will record the frequency with which I interact (i.e. take out of my closet and look at, and / or actually wear) each item. The information will then be stored in a database, which I'm sure will reveal certain trends. Obviously certain clothes will reveal to be seasonal--I'm unlikely to touch my winter clothes during high summer.

It will also show the clothes I hardly wear.The reason could be threefold. Some clothes are used for exclusive events. Take my suits, for instance. I have three. My black suit is something I'd only wear to a very formal night time event, or maybe a funeral. My other suits are also used for formal occasions such as banquets, when I give a special talk, when I attend ceremonies, etc. Secondly, it might be that the clothes don't fit me. I'm not speaking merely of size, but also of style. Finally, it could be merely that I've forgotten about certain clothing items and for that reason I do not wear them, or they have gotten too old, worn and tattered to wear. In all but the case of special event clothes, I ought to get rid of the other clothes--those that are too old, don't fit me, or don't fit my style.

Furthermore, the embedded chip could act to "personify" the clothes. Were I to look at the database I could see which clothing items I am neglecting. The neglected items could possibly show up in the database as feeling depressed, they may even send me a text message to my cellphone or a tweet enquiring why I'm neglecting them. Other clothing items could complain that I wear them too often. Certain pairs of socks that I wear often could, for instance, complain that they feel over used and that I will wear them out if I continue like this. They could do an online search and suggest me certain brands of socks that are similar in fabric and style.

The clothing items could also take note of which combinations (specific items or colours) I often wear together. Amongst themselves they could come up with possible other workable combinations that they could suggest I try. The yellow tie could possibly tell me that it would also be a good match with my navy blue shirt, so I don't always have to don the orange tie. The brown jersey could say that it would work equally well with that blue shirt, so I should give it a try, rather than always opting for the brown jacket.

So there is my invention idea. Anyone of you is welcome to take this idea from me on condition that you always supply me with a workable and updated version of the invention for personal use.

A Male Collection -- 2011 Gangnam Fashion Festival

I shot this at the 2011 Gangnam Fashion Festival on 2 October 2011.

Modern Hanboks @ 2011 Gangnam Fashion Festival

I saw this beautiful collection of modern female hanboks (traditional Korean dress) at the 2011 Gangnam Fashion Festival on Monday.

Manhunt International 2011 -- Seoul, Korea

Currently Gangnam, a district in Seoul where I used to live, is hosting their annual Gangnam Fashion Festival. Fashion shows ran this past weekend and will continue over next weekend. Part of last nights line-up was the peacock parade of "Manhunt International". I wasn't going to take pictures of this section, but the battery of my friend who went with me to the fashion show ran out, so she asked me to take photos for her. Well here are the pictures of the global male beauty stereotypes for your viewing pleasure. I wasn't able to snap a picture of all of them, but these are most of them. There are more photos at the official website, including mugshots of each contestant and an opportunity to vote for your favourite.

Honestly, some of these guys do not reflect the countries they are from at all. Take for instance the guy representing Kazakhstan--he is the one in the green jacket. He has blond hair and bright blue eyes. Not what I would think a representative of Kazakhstan's handsome dark haired and some what Asian looking men.

In the photos below the pageant contestants are seen in their national costumes. Honestly, some of these costumes were quite outrageous. I added captions for the countries that I can remember.