Article Feature: Tomás Adam

from the

-Daily Fashion Paper Back-

The Individual Community:
Tomás Adam

My grandfather was raised in the countryside of southern Brazil, land of many poor German immigrants. When he was a young boy, his family didn’t have money to buy footwear. The first time he ever wore a shoe was in the Army and that gave him blisters to the point of being admitted to a hospital. To this day, he finds it very painful to use any kind of closed shoes – but he does so in special occasions, like going to church and singing in the local choral.

This little story speaks to me about fashion. It represents the idea of reverence that is bound to dressing well. Even if it’s hard, even if it hurts, your personal attire should be respectful and adequate to the place you are, to the people you are with, and most importantly, to who you are.

That is why I feel that community is one of the key factors that influence fashion. When I say “community”, I’m thinking about it in a narrow sense. I am, for instance a Brazilian who doesn’t really belong to the colorful, Chiquita Banana stereotype of my fellow compatriots. Most of the time, when I walk in my neighborhood, my clothes are a black or pastel spot in the midst of a fruit salad. But my style certainly reflects my personal circle of friends, beliefs and cultural references.

I always think about my grandfather when he reverentially and respectfully enters in the church wearing his best pair of shoes. I always think about my grandfather when I choose my clothes. But I also think about the music of João Gilberto.

I think about the old wooden dresser that I have in my living room, and the light that comes from the lamp beside it. I think about all the Blue Note records’ art work. I think about the photographs embedded on W.G. Sebald’s books. The Pampas, and Buenow Aires.

“La sombra del plátano solitario en el viraje”, as in Cortázar’s Kindberg.
I think about conciseness, and introspection, and simplicity.

Those images and feelings are the real members of my community, my individual and singular community. When I bring this world to my clothes, I’m trying as much as possible to be close to who I am – just like when my grandfather reverentially and respectfully enters in the church wearing his best pair of shoes.

Tomás Adam
‘Journalista’
serhisterica.tumblr.com

Article Feature: Tajinder Hayer

from the

-Daily Fashion Paper Back-

The Fashion Community:
By Tajinder Hayer

The fashion industry is growing. Expansion in the area of men’s fashion in particular has been rapid over the last few years. Reasons for this are twofold –The first is designers and retailers have wisely seen that men with a disposable income have money to spare. The second reason is that men are more interested in fashion and lifestyle in ways that they have previously not been. This is largely due to the fashion community and its growing influence.

Enormous growth in social media has played a huge part in how the fashion community has influence.  The boom of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have made it easier than ever to spot fashion trends, find out where items are from, or try and find designer looks on budget prices. In typical fashion, once small sites like Instagram now have millions of worldwide users. Brands like Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana and Alexander McQueen have official accounts revealing backstage pictures, promoting sales and showing new items arriving to stores.

The community, both online and breathing, is getting better and better at sharing ideas and styles. The fashion business, once known as being cold and aloof, has become more inclusive and accepting of newcomers, due to the growth of the industry.

This growth in the fashion community has had a knock on effect. It has inspired countless numbers of people to use their creativity in new ways. The Daily Fashion Project takes the story behind

those involved in fashion and creates beautiful illustrations that celebrate the community. For The Rakish Gent, I write about fashion, literature, movies and anything else. The community allows us to express ourselves and take risks in fashion. The community is growing larger by the day and this is good for followers and innovators alike.

Tajinder Hayer
Fashion Writer.

therakishgent.blogspot.co.uk
The Rakish Gent- a menswear fashion and lifestyle blog

Article Feature: Darshanan Govender

from the

-Daily Fashion Paper Back-

Social Media In Fashion:
Darshanan Govender

“Fashion has always been a repetition of ideas... but what makes it new is the way you put it together”

The same applies to how we create the communities we associate ourselves with. Many of us have created our own communities online, whether it is Instagram, Facebook or blogs, we regard these people as our community, the pages we like and people we “follow”. Community has a great impact on fashions that we see today because we are gathering what we see from others and adding our own twist onto it and calling it our own, changing what is currently in fashion.  The most influential is social media because we know this is the way forward in reaching and connecting millions of people.

Each day every one of us, no matter what career or life path sees something different, it may have been online or on the streets. We remember the things we like and the things we don’t, and after that automatically we seek out what has had a positive influence.

I started following fashion trends by starting a blog via Tumblr. After a while I started communicating with the people who ran other blogs and built online friendships with them. I know South Africa tends to receive fashion trends later than anywhere else, so I use this as a gateway to discover upcoming trends and incorporate that into my style and dress. Building relations like this should be motivated by the fact that we do influence each other more than we think.

Social media plays a large role in marketing and brand testing especially for new brands, products and projects. From experience I was able to use this with marketing pocket squares internationally. I discovered what people fancy and what items to decrease in production, simply by asking my instagram and blog community. I took advice from people whom I have never met and it has definitely had a positive impact. Who better to ask

than such a vast community and people with different perspectives? I can only imagine how these communities have impacted other businesses in a similar way. Larger, more established businesses would benefit greatly from this kind of response and information. It would be good to see this happen more often.

Darshanan Govender
smokingclothing.tumblr.com