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Category / Fashion for Dummies

The Tokyo Subculture of 1950s Rockabilly Gangs

They say rock’n’roll never dies, but there’s one slick-back haired subculture in a corner of Tokyo, Japan that’s making damn well sure of it. Suited up in full-leather gear and greased with obscene amounts of hair gel, the Tokyo Rockabilly Club has been gathering every Sunday in the city’s famous Yoyogi Park near Meiji-Jingumae station…

Guinness Meets the Sapeurs of Congo

Three years ago, I wrote a little article exploring the sapeurs, a subculture of extraordinarily dressed dandies from the Congo. I can safely say it is one of a handful of articles I wrote in the beginning that really launched my blog, helping my readership to grow to numbers I could never have imagined. The story…

Botany and the Forgotten Sexual Revolution

Sex and botany– two words rarely found in the same sentence, but there was a time when the study of botany was considered so obscene that books on the subject were censored for women; branded dangerous and unsuitable for her delicate sensibilities. Gardens and greenhouses became an enlightened woman’s secret haven of discovery, expression and temptation. While today’s scientific…

Let Cindy Crawford Guide you through Paris Fashion Week Circa 1992

It’s Haute Couture Fashion week in Paris – well, sort of. Shows are being attended by video links and style is being created, communicated and consumed in a virtual world. But for a brief moment, let’s pretend we’re not in the middle of a pandemic and turn the clock back to the early 90s courtesy…

The Pathé Archive is hiding some Rad Midcentury Hair Trends

It’s no secret the British Pathé is a treasure trove of vintage content, but here’s a tip: pick a key search word, any word and let the channel Youtube channel dig up some delightful buried gems. Today’s keyword? Hair. Hair Flashes (1955) Space Age Hair Fashions (1962) Two Tone Hairstyles (1956) Hair Styles Beware (1956)…

Dream about Dressing Up Again with a Century-Old Fashion Magazine

What will you wear to your first social event when the lockdowns are over? Are you daydreaming about that moment yet? When you finally get to open your closet and put together an outfit that doesn’t involve a stretchy-pant combo. Here’s hoping this worldwide confinement will change fashion for us and bring us back to…

The Cult British Brand of Diana’s Iconic 80s Look is Ready for a Comeback

A new wave of Diana fashion fever comes along now and again, reminding us of how iconic the late People’s Princess truly was, be it in leg warmers or the perfect little black dress. This time, that reminder comes courtesy of Netflix’s The Crown, whose fourth season is a gem for so many reasons, but…

Wait, Why Did Men Stop Wearing Hats?

Let’s play a little game of Where’s Waldo? Only, with men who aren’t wearing hats in the above photograph. It raises the question: where have all the elegant fedoras, bowlers, news caps, and top hats gone? Hats have had a role to play for most of our history, walking the line between the utilitarian, decorative,…

Discover a Secret Fashion Time Capsule in Paris

When I think of Paris fashion week, I like to think of the historic couture houses and their army of skilled artisans furiously tailoring together glorious silks and handmade fabrics in the final hours before the show. I like to picture long-standing ateliers in the garment district; life-sized dollhouses; each floor with its own particular…

The Lost Style Subculture of Elvis Presley Rebels

What are the Swiss known for? Beautiful skiing and great chocolate? Handy pocket knives and offshore accounts? Founding the Red Cross and being the only country in the heart of Europe to resist fascism? All good points. But did you know that Switzerland was also the birthplace of an extreme rebel youth subculture, based on an…

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