Last night, I read something that upset me. It was something that struck me right to the core and something that made me worry a little bit about the state of the world as a whole. That something was in the September issue of Harper's Bazaar, and it was called "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fake Chanel." It's an article about Courtney Love and, in particular, an apparently heinous crime committed earlier in the year.
To be specific, she wore a fake dress. Yes, there are such things as fake dresses. There's fake everything. Sunglasses, bags, perfume, shoes - you name it, it's been copied. And it's causing a bit of a stir. I'm going to go ahead and give Fashionista credit where credit is due because they've been following this trend (ha!) for a while now. And they kind of did my research for me. (Don't worry - I fact checked. Uh, yeah...) But basically, the world is starting to get wise to the fact that you don't have to pay 1 billion (I'm doing my Dr. Evil impression here) dollars to get that hot-off-the-runway look anymore. And before anyone (or everyone) starts to get all preachy on me, let (s)he who shops not at F21 / H&M / [insert name of trendy mass retailer here] cast the first stone. That isn't to say I don't get indignant every now and then when I finally splurge on what I think is going to be the piece, the classic item, the worth-every-penny-of-monthly -interest-on-my-credit-card dress, only to see a co-worker wearing the knockoff (and $20) version that somehow looks better in the way that only F21 can. It's annoying, but get over it, people! I know I have.
So where was I? We've got cheapie retailers ripping off designers, and designers suing designers, when all along, designers (and the fashion world in general) have been getting, ahem, "inspiration" from somewhere else to begin with. For an extremely obvious example, this month's Elle states clearly on Pg. 350 that vests are the fall must-have. Fall 2007? Really, Elle? Does no one remember Kate Moss from last summer? Fall 2006? No takers? I think I've made my point. Or maybe the opposite. Moving on.
But my actual point here (or one of them) is that this stuff is making the news. Like, real news. I don't need to say it, but I'm going to: we've got a lot more important things to worry about.
So in all of this - who's the victim? The designers? Diane von Furstenburg and her pillaged prints? How about the consumer? But, which one? The Saks Fifth Avenue consumer or the Urban Outfitters one? Depends how you look at it, I suppose. While it's clearly not the women suffering in Darfur, or the casualties of Katrina, what about the hipsters who were wearing leggings when they were ironic, not Olsen? Don't they get a vote?
I say for the answer, we go to the top! And since I can't get Anna Wintour on the phone, Congress clearly has enough on their hands, and Lord knows what I'll get out of George W., I'll settle for Karl (Lagerfeld, not Rove. Although...). So Karl, who's the victim here?
Courtney Love, clearly.
Ahh. Of course. How very magnanimous of Karl! How kind of the teeming masses to open their collective arms and embrace this sartorially-challenged star! There is goodness in this world. I mean, the poor thing! In Karl's own words: "She was the victim in this story...Poor girl, she had never seen a real couture dress!"
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But that is less a reflection on designer knock-offs and more about overseas slave labor.
HOWEVER, if designers have a real problem with this then they should (and ARE) policing it themselves. Louis Vuitton spends billions of dollars policing the knock-off market.
BUT do the folks at LV and YSL and Gucci actually believe for one minute that the people who buy knock-offs would EVER be buying authentic bags at $4,000 a pop? Conversely, the folks who can afford authentic designer wares would not be caught dead in a knock-off. They INSIST that they could spot a knock-off a mile away simply by the stitching or zipper or any other detail would makes them feel justified when they pay their Black American Express card bill each month.
So in the long run, the ONLY victims are the slave laborers and children who are making the knock-offs
There's nothing new under the sun.
If some one is pissed off because I'm wearing a $20 version of a $2000 dress that they 'created' after checking out a club, tough.
And if I'm stupid enough to wear a cheesy copy of some designer's product covered with the designer's logo (why is that considered stylish in the first place?) then let me be stupid in peace.
I can afford Mossimo at Target but not Stella McCartney. So you won't find me crying in my beer for Michael Kors et al. Those of us who can't afford a $900 pair of jeans like to look fashionable too.
That said, knockoffs are hardly a new phenomenon (reference the black and white Perry Mason episode where dress designs were stolen). Wearing one is hardly a sin. The fashion snobs should recognize that they are as elitist as Bush was when he ridiculed a reporters suit at a press conference. The adage about judging books by their cover comes to mind.
To top it off, Love was a disaster for all music lovers and doesn't merit the focus of the fashion police either.