"The Label"

Fashion has always been aspirational. Whether that was wanting to please the Royalty of the time through imitation or more relevant today in our admiration of all things Hollywood, people have always looked for direction on what they should be wearing. We want to look like those we admire but without the finances to do so, this can sometimes be impossible. In the last sixty to seventy years however, it has been easier to mimic that high-end fashion look. The advent of modern man made materials has made fashion more accessible to the masses. Modern consumerism and the rise of the "label" have all given us the illusion that we can be the same as our idols. A movie star walks the red carpet in a glamourous dress and two weeks later it is available in the shops. Is this true though? Has the gap narrowed between those that have, the supposed "trend setters" or is it just as wide as ever. Beth Ann Krier (Oct 1988) wrote "Some would even argue that it has divided society along class lines by heightening the distinctions between the upper class, which tends to favour natural fibres, and lower-class consumers of cheaper synthetic goods." I think this is somewhat disingenuous as the mass don't "favour" cheaper synthetic goods, it is more a matter of economics.