Fashion's got a low self esteem

It’s been pushed to the back seat for over a year now, but every now and then it pops its head through to the front to remind me it is still there, and it needs attention. I joined the art club at one of the high school’s I teach at, in hopes of giving it a confidence booster! It seems none of these paintings or drawings would exist if I hadn’t joined. I’ve realised how important deadlines were to my production of something resembling a fashion portfolio. I’m not studying anymore, so really the only motivator I have is myself, or a kick up the cahoonay (I just pictured myself at fashion bootcamp and it wasn’t pretty). 

When it was all brand new

A recent springclean led me to this little list of gems: some notes I scribbled down just over a year ago during my first weekend in Tokyo:

Taxi doors open themselves

Doormen always bow

Marty buys a R42 icetea by mistake

Drinks with the Auzzies and the Irish

A three story McDonalds.

Lights make it feel like day

Charades in a department store

Walking until my feet are blistered

Feeling safe and free

Packed streets past midnight

Salarymen playing last touch

Japanese people screaming on the streets

Shibuya women – my smartest clothes don’t compare

Breakfasts worth R500

Octopus balls vendor

Laugh until I cry about the boys going on about a beautiful manhole cover

Finding coke in a vending machine and it tastes the same as home

City buildings as far as you can see

Flickering red lights from the hotel window

What do Victoria Beckham, Lady Gaga and Blake Lively have in common?

No, this is not a bad joke, just a really great project that gives fashion a brownie point against its usual fickle self. Each of these celebrities, among others, have designed a T-shirt print for UNIQLO and its SaveJapan! T-shirt range:

“The SaveJapan website was established immediately after the Great East Japan Earthquake to support the affected parts of the country by providing information on area-specific relief efforts. UNIQLO is working with Condѐ Nast Japan – a supporter of the SaveJapan! website and the publisher of Vogue Japan and GQ Japan – to create T-shirts featuring messages of encouragement from artists around the world. UNIQLO plans to donate approximately 100 million yen through the sale of SaveJapan! T-shirts to the Japanese Red Cross Society, to back recovery efforts in northeastern Japan.”  

It was Lady Gaga’s design that called out to me from across the UNIQLO store – but with my limited Japanese Kanji all I can make out on the T-shirt is “love,” “Gaga” and “small monster.” For the record I also liked Victoria Beckham’s clean design (cringe) but they never had it in stores here.  If you decide to purchase one after reading this post/ or already have one, I’d love to feature a picture of you in your SaveJapan! T-shirt on the blog. Email pictures to trixieandflo@gmail.com and support in style people! To see the rest of the designs visit Vogue Japan xoxo.