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Fashion
Warm up
Find the "odd one out"
There may be more than one answer. Tell your partner why?
| A | B | C | |
| 1. | a cat walk | a promenade | a platform |
| 2. | to consume | to market | to advertise |
| 3. | to endorse | to condone | to promote |
| 4. | a new look | a new design | a new image |
| 5. | fashionable | in vogue | popular |
| 6. | offensive | controversial | shocking |
| 7. | a trend | a connection | an association |
| 8. | glossy | artificial | colorful |
Reading, Listening and Vocabulary
| I was born
in the '70s, but a knowledge of fashion and trends
really began for me in the '80s. In the early 1980s, unlike the rather
unisex clothing of earlier decades,
anything shiny that screamed girl! seemed to be part of the focus
of this decade. One of the most common
concepts that started then, (for
women) and is still in use today, is the idea of a
well coordinated wardrobe. Instead of having things that only go
with one 'outfit', the ability to have
everything in your wardrobe work with
everything else was one of the main themes that you would see in department
stores and in catalogs. Men wore power suits as a result of the greater
tendency for people to display their wealth. Brand names became increasingly
important in this decade, making Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein
household names.
Pop culture had a big impact on the fashion of this decade.
During Like A Virgin era, Madonna was titled the "Material Girl" and many
young girls around the world looked to her for fashion statements, and of
course, this was the start of the aerobics craze!
To be properly dressed, you would have to be covered in bright colored
Lycra/spandex leotards, and expensive shoes. In the
United Kingdom, shell suits
became particularly popular. The popular movie Flashdance
(1983) made ripped sweatshirts well-known in the general public. The
television shows Dallas and, in particular, Dynasty also had a
similar impact, especially in the area of the increasingly oversized
shoulder pads. Miami Vice a TV
series, whose leading men (such as Don Johnson) donned casual t-shirts
underneath expensive suit jackets -- often in bright or pastel colors,
accompanied by broad shoulders with padding, and a few days' growth of
facial hair, dubbed "designer stubble",
popularized a new look. Fashion in the '90s was all about function. There was a lot of things going on in the world, and as such, having designer clothing and looking perfect all of the time seemed to fall by the wayside. There was still a huge exercise craze going on, so it became more acceptable to wear your exercise clothes out of the gym and onto the street. In the UK for example, wearing sports clothing gave rise to the chav subculture. This was also the decade of the grunge look, with a lot of ripped jeans, flannel, unwashed hair. It was a trend that probably didn't look like much, but it was important to the people who dressed that way. One thing that everyone should remember about fads and trends is that even if you don't like them, the person who is wearing them probably does. Over the last few years, pop culture once again seems to have influenced the fashion world, with Sex and the City, brining in high fashion once again, the hip hop industry bringing bling onto the market and Japanese manga influencing the clothes and hairstyles of young people all over the world. Fashion TV reality shows are popping up everywhere, with supermodels hosting shows like America's Next Top Model, or the fashion design show, Project Runway. Fashion whether you are into it or not, is seen as a statement of who we are, or who we want to be, and it surrounds us everyday. I have never really kept up with the latest fashion trends, in terms of clothing. I think men generally (except for the new metrosexual man), see clothing as practical, and women see clothing as more creative and fashionable. My concern is fit and comfort first, design second. What are your concerns?
|
The most commonly used Clothes Phrasal Verbs
| Verb | Collocation | Example |
| break in | shoes | Do not anticipate the need to break in shoes. If shoes do not feel comfortable straight away then they simply do not fit. |
| cast on | stitches | For a jumper you would need to cast on enough stitches so that the front and back are equal. |
| come up | When you've got a big event coming up and want to make the right impression, choosing an outfit can prove a fashion headache. | |
| doll up | She is all dolled up like Marilyn Monroe in her new white halter dress and bright red lipstick. | |
| dress down | Some companies allow their employees to dress down on Fridays. | |
| dress up | He didn't dress up for the occasion at all, wearing an orange baseball cap, baggy khakis, and an oversized black sweater. | |
| fling on | jacket | She threw the book on the sofa, flung on her jacket, and was out of the house in under 30 seconds. |
| get on | dress | Amanda, I need your help getting the dress on. |
| grow into | It was a little big on him at first, but he soon grew into it and the more he wore it, the more he liked it. | |
| have on | Do you usually remember what people have on at parties? | |
| hold in | tummies | Look at her. She is trying to hold in her tummy for the photo. |
| iron out | creases | An iron used properly and rightly can iron out the creases in a shirt. |
| jazz up | scarf | You begin with only three stitches and can decide as you go how wide to make your shawl or scarf, and whether to keep it simple or jazz it up a bit with an eyelet border. |
| keep on | coat | We went inside, it was very cold outside. The studio itself was kind of cold as well so I kept my coat on. |
| mark down | dress | The dress was marked down more than 50 percent, from $125 to just 55 bucks. |
| pick out | clothes | Does your mother still pick out your clothes for you? |
Questions (Please click on the link below to find some sample questions)
Extra Vocabulary & Activities (Please click on the link below to find some sample extra vocabulary and activities)