Fashion? Hold On A Second.

Alo people! 

So.... this will be my first entry featuring an article of mine. : ) I will do this more often. Enjoy!

Yours, Lea. 

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Fashion? Hold on a second!

What German Sixth Form Students think about clothes and style

“Wow, wow, wow… Hold on a second! You want to take a picture of me in my outfit? Not gonna happen… What about tomorrow?” My friend Lukas whom I’ve known since 5^th grade was stunned– even though I thought he was just as neatly styled as he always is. On point. Colours, shoes, hair, everything.

Two weeks before. Browsing down my tumblr timeline I keep wondering: How come I have never seen anyone dressed like that in my high school? Are German students really that backwards regarding fashion? Is fashion important out here? It seems like every country is more fashionable than Germany.  Germans are good in engineering, but in design, especially fashion? Never, is the worldwide opinion. I wanted to know why.

To get some first-hand, „real“ information, we conducted a survey among German sixth form students between 16 and 20 years of age. Interviewed about fifty people (26 girls & 24 boys)... The result? Astonishing! Only one year ago the dress code was: Dark colours, nothing special. Do not attract any attention. The survey partly reconfirmed but also declined this.

Let’s start off with the ladies. Most of them said that fashion – indeed – has an important meaning for them as they’re influenced by media and friends. “Fashion is always around… you are going to be confronted.” Fashion is a form of self-expression and a way to make you feel good and comfortable. “I am automatically happy as soon as I wear something I like. It directly affects my mood”, says an 18 year old girl. A minority thinks they don’t have to follow every trend, fashion itself though still has an inspirational meaning to them. Others said that they don’t care about any trends but fun. Apparently, the fact that fashion is completely subjective is fascinating as well as annoying to a lot of the interviewees. Asked about their style, most of the girls felt very uncomfortable. No one actually wanted to be defined. Some even said they didn’t have any. “Well… I guess it depends on the season…” some said. Others: “I just wear what I like.” Most of them could give tendencies: Feminine, independent, colourful, fantastic, extravagant etc. The minority is actually really interested in expressing something through the way they dress. Openly supporting fair trade, braveness or independence is no issue. “I just want to inspire people”, “want to bring art to the world”, they say.

Some people want to catch people’s attention though a lot prefer not having any attention at all – which seems kind of contradictory as the same people still intended to express themselves. Surprisingly, none of the surveyed ladies was interested in brands – especially not in brands “more exquisite” than H&M or Zara. The reason is not that they dislike them. “Quality isn’t guaranteed by prize and brand”, they say. “There is no need to buy a shirt for 50 bucks.” Furthermore, it is important to them that the clothes don’t look cheap – it doesn’t matter whether they are though. Fashion’s function is to make you feel good and express yourself. It gives you the chance to be creative and provides social orientation. Mostly fashion can also act as some sort of wall and defence from the outside. It has to be fun, pretty, nice. Functionality does not seem to matter that much to girls. They tend to buy things they saw on blogs, in magazines or their friends wearing as well as “inspiration from within”. There is one other aspect though: “Of course… if there is one piece and it is love at first sight all other criteria of selection lose all significance.”

And the guys? Throughout the survey two completely different groups could be identified. No matter what question asked the minority (let us call them group #1) was always against it: “No, we don’t care about fashion. It has no meaning for me as I define myself through other values. I don’t care what other’s think – I am an individual. I just get whatever fits me well.”

And then there was the majority, group #2. They feel that fashion makes them strong and sort of functions like a wall. But it is more, it is representative: “I want to make sure that my friends and others know that I can afford certain things.” Regarding their style, most (whether they call it style or not…) want to be sporty and a little elegant. “I know that is probably kind of mainstream”, as one of them said. Some claim they mix a little bit of everything just because they do not want to be put in a box and “seem like they care too much about the way they look”. They want to get attention with their looks but not seem ‘zesty’ or fancy. At the same time they want to make sure that it’s obvious that they care about fashion – also to girls. More than ¾ of the interviewed guys admitted that brands and labels were very important to them. Unlike the girls, they think that prize and brand guarantee quality, which equals an improved feeling about their body and themselves. They are more interested in clothes which are harder to get and more costly (like Abercombie & Fitch in Germany), because of the attention they get and their status. They want to show their independence and strength and therefore buy brands with that image (like Ben Sherman). “It is important not to look German”, admits a 17 year old student. “Germans don’t have class. I don’t want to be like that.”

Finally, fashion, to them, also has to be comfortable and functional. “I have to keep my keys, wallet and stuff in there…” Guys mostly get their inspiration from trips to other countries, music or their peers. Criteria for selection are mostly: Style, fit, prize (‘the higher the better!’), cut, look, colour and the possibilities of combining it with other items of clothing.

It is interesting how often German youngsters say they are not interested in fashion or do not have a style – almost as if it is something bad. Among aspiring intellectuals, fashion seems to be something negative, or in the least superficial. Most of them don’t think that fashion has any impact on people except supporting anorexia. In fact they do not realize that it is way more than this and that nowadays fashion – whether you like it or not  - can have a bigger impact than books. Regarding the guys: Maybe saying ‘I have a style’ is not “manly” enough but none of them admitted to that. The funny thing is how a majority of the surveyed people put an emphasis on being ‘individuals’, though nearly all of them want one simple thing: Attention.