French Fashion

French fashion - The association of France with fashion and style (French: la mode) dates largely to the reign of Louis XIV when the luxury goods industries in France

Fashion has been important industry and cultural export of France since the seventeenth century, and modern "haute couture" originated in Paris in the 1860s. Today, Paris, along with Tokyo, London, Milan, and New York City, is considered one of the world's fashion capitals, and the city is home or headquarters to many of the premier fashion houses. Historically, many of the world's top designers and fashion houses have been French, including Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, Lanvin, Chloé, Hermès, Guy Laroche, Yves Saint Laurent and shoe designer Christian Louboutin. The Paris fashion houses also attract many foreign designers.

Since the seventeenth century, the headquarters for fashion houses have been traditionally situated in the quarter around the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré. Since the 1980s, the Avenue Montaigne has, to some extent, overtaken the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in high fashion as well as accessories. Other areas, such as Le Marais, a traditional Jewish quarter, have also included the clothing industry.

The Paris Fashion week takes place twice a year after the London Fashion Week and before Milan Fashion Week. Dates are determined by the French Fashion Federation. Currently, the Fashion Week is held in the Carrousel du Louvre.

O'More Student Fashion Show at TPAC

Catch a range of collections from evening and bridal wear to daytime and urban clothing, and watch 20 students compete for cash, a scholarship and a swanky sewing machine.

This annual event features the work of O'More's recent grads and senior designers.

Judges include former Project Runway contestant Johnathan Kayne, who will make an appearance at the after-party. Local fashion designers ought to consider this a good chance to network, and fashion lovers have a rare opportunity to discover an up-and-coming fashion designer--way before their prices become prohibitively out of reach.

Thousands of Women Swap Clothes Online to Save Money in a Recession

There were no other online clothes swap sites - we were the first! The economy and the environment weren't at the forefront of people's minds, and I had a lot of people telling me that I was crazy - that the idea would never take off"

Urban street fashion clothing can be swaped online and help people find clothing that suit

Fast forward to 2009. With economic and environmental concern, swapstyle.com has had to increase its servers on a monthly basis to keep up with the huge demand from members uploading swap items. From shoes to bags, cosmetics to designer fashion and vintage clothes, there are tens of thousands of members world-wide swapping and saving thousands of dollars a year through the site.

Not just a clothes swap site, also offers a strong social networking platform in which members chat in forums, create personal profile pages and make friends. "It has become a really thriving online community," says Chesher. "It was always my dream to have swapstyle.com be a space where money didn't matter anymore. I found it refreshing to have an area online where we could enjoy fashion without having the guilt of spending attached" No guessing why one of the sites tag lines is experience guilt free shopping.

Chesher was also disillusioned by the environmental impact that fashion was having on the planet. "The waste created from the fashion industry is huge. We live season by season, sometimes only wearing an item once. It brings a smile to my face knowing that Ive created a easily accessible economically, socially and environmentally sound solution to an age old problem."

With its tag line 'open your world-wide wardrobe', fashion savvy women are taking heed and saving thousands of dollars by getting their fashion for free by swapping.