Jean-eology Keeps Right On Evolving
Dear Fashion Police: Please explain why the rage in women’s fashion is to wear pants that look as if the occupant accidentally was brushed by bleach. As a man, I can only shake my head when spotting women dressed in this style, and point out that big blotches of white around a gal’s behind only serve to highlight it.
Who came up with this ridiculous fashion, and why do women wear it?
--DON’T GET IT
Dear Don’t: There’s a lot more going on here than just some funky jeans. Your question brings up the issue of trends--how they get started and why they catch on, as well as why people wear things that are perceived by some as one notch below clown clothes. (And don’t forget, this isn’t limited to women--men can go way off course, too. Let’s all think about those open-toed slide shoes for a moment.)
The pants you started seeing last year are antique wash or vintage wash jeans, called that because they’re distressed to look old, with lighter, worn patches usually on the thighs and backside. They might be accented with “whiskers,” so named because the creases that normally form at the top of the leg are bleached out, giving the look of animal whiskers when the wearer stands up.
Bleaching or distressing jeans is nothing new and goes back some 40 years. The jean-eology also includes sandblasted, stonewashed, and acid wash denim. We’re not surprised to see the vintage look again, since everything in fashion eventually comes back around for a second, third or fourth incarnation. (So far there have been no leisure suit sightings, but we’re keeping an eye out.) But it’s new to the teens and 20-somethings who are the targeted demographic for the style, and they love it. One reason it became a trend and found success might be because it’s a perfect complement to the peasant blouses and prairie/western looks that abound--also retreads that look fresh and new to this generation, which has put its own spin on things.
The fact that you think these jeans look goofy doesn’t surprise us. Men and women are forever shaking their heads at the clothes worn by other generations. But let’s not forget that fashion is often about pushing the envelope. Although it’s been pushed too far for your taste in this instance, it’s not going to stop.
But don’t worry; even though these vintage wash jeans have stuck around for a while, they’ll be replaced by something else in the blink of an eye. Denim is such a wardrobe cornerstone and a malleable yet sturdy fabric that designers are always doing something to it, whether it’s dyeing, ripping, cutting, studding, embroidering or pounding it into near oblivion. Anything that can be done to jeans will be. Stay tuned.
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Dear Fashion Police: My parents are all, like, you can’t get a tattoo or like, another piercing until you’re, like, in college! And I was totally, like, that’s not fair! What should I do?
--LIKE, FRUSTRATED
Dear Like: Like, grow up, move out of the house, and then you can mark up your body however you, like, want! We’re all, what’s the rush? And do you have to, like, do everything your friends do? Like, don’t be a sheep!
As for the rest of you underage souls who are feuding with your parents over the same thing, one piece of advice: Listen to them. They’ve been on the planet a lot longer than you.
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Write to Fashion Police, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012, fax to (213) 237- 4888, or send e-mail to jeannine.stein@latimes .com.
