It is only fitting to talk about Fashion today as it happens to be the 180th birthday of Henry Perkin, the man who turned the fashion industry on its head. As a species, we have always been into fashion, whether we wore the latest animal fur or the latest trendy haute- couture outfit. Even a brief review of our history should make it apparent to one and all that we have indeed been obsessed with trendy wear for a long time indeed. From the times of ancient Rome, where a whitewashed toga was essential to wear for all adult men. Indeed ancient Romans started the bleaching process by processing laundry through urine though thankfully we no longer revert to this practice but have chosen to opt for modern chemicals to clean the fabrics.
From the color and make of the fabric to the design itself, a lot of work goes into processing an ordinary fabric and turning it into one of a kind design that comes with a hefty price tag. From the dyes used to the stitching, a lot of work goes into it, which we often fail to consider when buying the dress. For example, did you know that the jeans we often wear started off as a poor man’s clothes providing the wearer with durability and the fact that the person need not wash it for long periods? But today, the humble jeans is appreciated as something trendy that one should have. Every design, dress in high fashion has its own tale, from the weird to the outright ridiculous. It is not surprising, seeing how this is a billion-dollar industry with apparel retailers, which also includes haute-couture pieces, to garner nearly 165 billion USD by 2025.
That’s a lot whichever way you look at it; more to the point, designers have started to incorporate modern tech into their designs from coming up with a handbag, that changes color to suit the dress, thanks to its unique design and Bluetooth. And of course, thanks to other chemists, several retailers have come up with wrinkle proof dresses, dresses designed to smell good all the time, unique colors, and patterns, etc. Some of these would not be possible without modern tech but even so, the creativity shown by these designers should indeed be appreciated and their contribution to fashion should be noted.
Did you know that both men and women wore high heels, back in 1740’s? The point is this, modern fashion is still evolving and manages to encapsulate the best our society has to offer in terms of taste, fabrics, designs and creativity. So the next time you choose to purchase a dress, you may want to spend some time going over the design, the cut, the make and ponder about the process that went into the making of that dress. While the saying “clothes do make the man” may seem common and trite, the fact remains that dressing well does always pay dividends.
