Fashion Week Cleveland: The Influence of the Military on Fashion

Back in February I read about Fashion Week Cleveland in a local newspaper, and shared my discovery with you here. Living close to the Cleveland area, I was very excited to learn that this even existed.  Recently, I was asked by the founder of FWC, Dr. Donald Shingler to attend some of the events for Fashion Week, thanks to the recommendation of fellow Cleveland blogger Christina from write-brained :)

This weekend,  I attended the Educational Programming section of FWC at the Western Reserve Historical Society in Cleveland. The theme this year was "The Influence of the Military on Fashion."

My favorite part of the event (besides having the opportunity to meet sweet bloggers like Allison from Fashionably Cleveland.com) was when Dr. Constance Korosec, a ready to wear designer, Professor and Chair at Ursuline College gave an outstanding presentation on the history of the influence of the Military on fashion. She went into much detail on the history of the trend, while sharing examples from the different eras dating back to WWI to the present day.  


From high collars, to jackets, pants, vests, embellishments to hats, The Military trend has become increasingly popular in 2010, with olive green and khaki shades glorifying the runways. Here, Dr. Korosec shares female military inspired pieces from 1891:

Examples of older military inspired pieces Dr. Korosec used during her presentation.

Click to read more..

Motivated by her speech, I thought I would use the examples Korosec provided, with items that caught my eye: 

Trench coats are inspired by the military and date way back to the first World War,  In this picture, I compared a British Military Officer's his trench coat circa WWI to a beautiful Burberry Trench circa 2010.

The 1940's introduced the aviator glasses. Worn here by an Army Pilot, and years later asos.com comes up with a similar style. And of course, who can forget the Top Gun aviators in the 80's?!

Fast forward to the 1960's, where Vietnam protestors wore  military uniforms to get their voices heard. I found this $3,790 Balmain military blazer. Also, Korosec mentioned the Beatles-they loved military inspired items during the 60's.

Protestors

The 80's combat boots and MJ's red jacket. Need I say more?

WWII solider 

Korosec suggests that military inspired clothing create a polished, structured, sophisticated look. Her  advice for embracing this ongoing trend? "Look at Military Fashion, and make it your own."She says. 

Need some ideas?  Peacoats, patrol caps, olive t-shirts, and mechanic's tool bags are just to name a few! 

Stay tuned next week for full coverage of the big gala fashion show! For more information on FWC, visit the website here