Gearing Up

Fashion Week is the talk of every style blog right now. As usual, there are a few interesting things that could go in a steamy or dieselpunk direction. I found Alexander McQueen’s Fall 2008 Menswear show particularly interesting. A few of his pieces (such as the jacket shown here) would work as steampunk couture virtually without editing, but more exiting to me is the way he blends traditional and modern styles. Citing his time in Asia (India, Nepal and Bhutan) as inspiration for the look, he’s created a fascinating example of the mashup look that so many steampunks pursue.

While the result sometimes looks over the top (as haute couture is almost by definition) it is a good reminder that we do not need to play it safe - certainly the historical Victorians did not, and our steampunk alter-egos are even more prone to a devil-may-care attitude. It’s easy to fall back on looking at historical costumes and reproducing them. While this can produce some stunning costumes, the true standouts of the steampunk look know when to add the unexpected, giving their style a true sense of history - and fashion - that never was.

Costuming is one of the safest places to take risks. After all, if you don’t like a vest or a jacket, you can take it off. If you don’t like a collar, you can modify it. You can always pull your stitching out and start over. When you feel like you’re getting too settled in your historical influences, go ahead and mix it up a bit with an unusual cultural influence or a clever modern element. Even if it doesn’t work, it might inspire you to something else - and if it does work, you’ll have a look that stands out from the crowd.

This entry was posted on Monday, September 15th, 2008 at 3:39 am and is filed under Clothing, Philosophizing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.