Michelle is also a Democratic Fashion Icon. She shops at thrift stores, publicly wears dresses twice, and wears brands that the average American can afford, like J. Crew and Ann Taylor. People really seem to like her...
...but not Elizabeth Cline. Cline has been making waves in the practical-fashion blogosphere with The Good Closet, a blog dedicated to affordable, practical, and ethically-made fashion: it's like ACL for moms (fashion blogger joke!). Cline sees fast-fashion stores like H&M and Forever 21 as a big problem, and similarly mass-produced, similarly foreign-manufactured brands like J. Crew aren't much better. The American habit of purchasing artificially inexpensive clothes -- even ones as stylish as J. Crew's -- is a problem, and a very wealthy woman who could afford to wear ethical, domestic labels but instead chooses to buy cheap-chic brands doesn't help.
For that reason, Cline calls out Michelle Obama in a recent article in the Huffington Post. Where the heck is Huffington? Who knows? Either way, the article presents a very eloquent and evocative argument from Ms. Cline that presents a side of this Michelle Obama character that most people don't really think about. Is democracy really about compromising with the lowest common denominator? Are cheap clothes JUST clothes? Is cheap food JUST food? What is JUSTICE? Lots to think about. Read the article and sound off!
If Michelle Obama isn't an American hero, than who is? How about Google? Here at FJ HOUSE we use Ask Jeeves, but apparently everyone likes Google. Somehow they've ended up with a lot of money, and they spend a lot of it making other things, like home entertainment systems. Recently they've decided to put out a wireless home media player. This wouldn't really be news, but the cool thing is that they're MANUFACTURING THEM IN AMERICA! Read all about it in this article here! When I heard this it literally brought tears to my eyes. If there's any industry with almost exclusively bad manufacturing practices -- and an industry that we've become completely dependent on -- it's electronics. It's so discouraging to read about companies with great public images, like Apple, and learn that they're treating their workers abominably. For the first time, this seems to be a step in the right direction; Google is putting out a well-made, ethical product, and it looks good. Is this the beginning of a bright new future? Is Google less evil than Apple? Will Facebook start opening up factories in Detroit? The future is technology, and it's not only bright, but American!
Elizabeth Cline's book, Overdressed: The Shockingly High Price of Cheap Fashion, just came out; buy it in your local bookstore (not on Amazon!) today, and check out her blog, The Good Closet, in the meantime. I don't know when Google's product comes out, or what it even does, but keep your ears open if you're into that sort of thing.
In other first lady news, FJ HOUSE loves post-ironic icon Lana Del Rey's new video for her hit, National Anthem!
To hell with J Crew!!
ReplyDeleteBut I'm sorry, I just can't afford clothes like that and I have to stick with my H&M.
I showed mah bellay to the judggezz..