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Styled Out: A boy in girls' clothingI'm Emily Hartl, the new style blogger for AfterEllen.com. Styled Out will be a weekly blog (running on Wednesdays after this week's initial post) all about fashion. Its aim is to be different than other fashion coverage though, as it'll be exceptionally less straight! About me: I'm a salon executive and fashion show producer, as well as a personal stylist. In a past life, I wrote a fashion column for an online lesbian magazine and I'm excited to be back at it on AfterEllen.com. Please do utilize the comments section to let me know what you want to see about style. We gay girls are an untapped resource when it comes to fashion, so shouts from the peanut gallery are always encouraged. While flipping through Lucky last weekend, I paused subconsciously (per usual) on the latest Marc Jacobs ad. God, I have such a platonic love for him it's ridiculous — he's always smoking cigarettes and looking so fabulous. Something about the blasé set dressing of shoots and clothing always triggers some sort of inner pause button deep within, just the dazzling simplicity of everything he produces. Sally Singer of Vogue has called him a “genius of American sportswear.” But guess what he’s doing this season? He’s using a male model (Cole Mohr specifically) to market his Marc for Marc Jacobs fall line — both his men's and his women's lines.
Jacobs himself had modeled in lady apparel for a spread in Interview a couple of months ago and I’m glad to see he took the concept and ran with it. Here’s the thing: By daring to be so delectably subtle Marc has managed to reign yet again. I mean, go MJ. In all seriousness, it’s about time someone bent gender in the opposite direction of the societal norm in this kind of way. Typically it’s some tailored suit fit to a Ford Model (tweed for she, if you will). Sexism and gender stereotypes are unfortunately still dominating American advertisements even in the most “liberal” of industries, and Jacobs has chosen to blaze the trail by loosening gender’s girdle. He isn’t using men for his runway, however, which is probably wise. In my opinion — though lovely — a lot of them never quite master the saunter of a lady born with curves. Captured through a lens, it’s amazing but I can speak from experience in casting fashion shows. I haven’t cast certain girls for shows due to their inability to bitch out their walk properly. Androgynous imagery yet dripping with femininity, all the while holding up his reputation for having impeccable taste and fashion foresight. I nearly choked I was so happy.
I wonder if he dreamt up the initial framework himself. Maybe his own photo shoot was a subliminal focus group for his peers? It’s quite trendy to be bold in the fashion industry and I feel like he accomplished this with such delicacy and was surprising without being offensive — not to mention he shed an entirely new light on transsexuals. This is the best press they’ve gotten in ages. I mean, couture? Silence of the Lambs did nothing in this department; skin jumpsuits just never really caught on. Felicity Huffman as Bree was no fashionista either. Let’s be real here.
These ads will probably be in every major fashion publication in September. As you may or may not know, the fashion industry has their runway seasons ass backwards, but the photography in fall fashion issues generally matches the impending weather. Submitted by on August 21, 2008 - 11:00am. |
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Yay!
A fashion bloooo-ooooog! Maybe Jill could get you a fancy voice-clip as an intro ;) Great writing you've got there :)
The photos are awesome, and it's a smart move, I must say.
We don't need sleep to be dreamers
Wow
reversed androgyny
I'm really excited to see something like this. Generally speaking, the closest thing we normally get to male-centered androgyny is a metrosexual spread, like David Beckham or some old Calvin Klein ad. As you said, it's normally a woman dressing like a man.
However, what i really want to see is the kind of ad where you honestly don't know whether the models are male or female. What we have here just scores in on a titillation factor. If there were an ad with truly androgynous models and a genuinely unisex product, that would be an ad that really hit the "radical" nail on the head.
I am so damn happy to see this!! >>
Kudos to AE for getting a fashion blog up and running! I am beyond excited to see what you guys will be featuring and talking about.
VIVA DYKE AND TRANS VISIBILITY!!!
So totally agree with
So totally agree with scooter! Ads with androgynous models of both sexes would certainly take fashion in a more edgy direction.
Furthermore, I want androgynous /unisex products. It feels like over the last 15 years, there's been less and less androgynous clothing targetted at women. As I am small for a woman, I find it hard to find men's clothing that fit my size.Its ridiculous that I've often had to resort to buying boy's clothing; of course their body shape doesn't fit mine either. gah!
Gap used to have unisex products, but seem to have phased them out. Where the hell does Samantha Ronson get her clothes!!
Thanks!
Thank you Emily for joining AE. Pretty tired of the non fashion vloggers bashing the fashion forwardness (real word?) of the ladies of the LWord and Pappi's hats (now everyone wears them, ha!). If you ever meet Marc Jacobs ask him to creat some things for a boi as well.
Good luck!
thank you thank you thank you
Androginy rocks
I have a long held fascination with androginy, and those pictures really amazed me. I want to see more of this in fashion!
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Taking off - the novel, coming soon. Starring Katie, a lesbian in London...
In the meanwhile, you can read reviews of films and books with lesbian/bi characters and/or taking place in London at www.takingoff.org
That is very interesting.
That is very interesting. Go Marc Jacobs.
Can't wait to read your next column!
i asked for a fashion blog...AND I GOT IT!?
wow...this is better than Christmas and Eid combined together. :D
this is truly a remarkable approach at trying to redefine androgynousty, the model doesnt look that weird in girls clothing like i would have expected.
Kudos to Marc Jacobs for pioneering in erasing the lines between gender and fashion, a very radical move!
YAY! A fashion blog:)
YAY! A fashion blog:) Awesome!
I saw this ad in one of my magazines at work and did a double take. I'm glad that it's been explained, now I get it. I just could not believe that he had it in him to do this :)
Fashion blog!!!!
I was so excited when I saw this post that i screamed louder than when Walsh and May won the gold last night. (Which was very loud)
I love, love, LOVE that coat in the last pic. Want it. Need it. Alas it's probably about $600 which is so not in my student budget.
Meh.
trying to be constructive
!
awesome.
a fashion blog
I'm not crazy for marc jacobs, but this was a nice idea for a campaign.
This. is. GENIUS! Marc
This. is. GENIUS! Marc Jacobs rocks.
And i'm glad we have a fashion blog now :D Welcome on board!
Wow, I love that first
Wow, I love that first picture, it has the same feel as the pictures of Kurt Cobbain in a dress. A man can still be very masculin in a girly dress, and it shows in that picture.
I love that there now is a blog about fashion here, and I hope you will write about fashion that is inspiring and fun like this. Fashion is a lot about sexuality and gender even if it isn't as obvious as in that case.
But I must admit that girl-models are the best, 'cuz gils are just my thing :)
First it started with the
androgyny
love it that there will be a fashion blog up. and it probably/hopefully won`t be covering the typical mainstream stuff but things like this first edition of it. I also love it when people try to confuse by dressing cross-gender, some stars, music groups (some Japanese) and fashion designers are doing that quite well.
I really liked the photo shoot Katie Sketch (The Organ) did for Vogue in 2006 titled "The Boys are back in town"
I always loved Katie's shoot
Yes!
I just thought "What is missing on AfterEllen.com?" And now I understood that it's fashion blog! I am very happy, that it's exist now))) Good luck to you, I'l be your faithful reader)))
P.S. OMG, I love Marc Jacobs, he's genius! That's fabulous line, it reminds me about 70-80's when glaming and glittering, androgynious club-kids were kings and queens of the fashion))) And I adore Marc's models!
http://www.myspace.com/1kiloofbrains
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1333585854
http://www.reverbnation.com/1kiloofbrains
Two big thumbs up to Marc