Editing Fashion (section)

=== Fashion in the Western world ===
[[File:MA-Lebrun.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Marie Antoinette]], wife of Louis XVI, was a leader of fashion. Her choices, such as this 1783 white [[muslin]] dress called a {{lang|fr|chemise a la Reine}}, were highly influential and widely worn.<ref name=dam>{{cite book|last=Ribeiro|first=Aileen|title=Dress and Morality |year=2003 |publisher=Berg |isbn=9781859737828 |pages=116–117}}</ref>]]
{{See also|History of Western fashion|Chinoiserie in fashion|label 2=Chinoiserie in European and American fashion|Fashion week}}
The beginning in Europe of continual and accelerating change in clothing styles can be fairly reliably dated to late [[medieval times]]. Historians, including [[James Laver]] and [[Fernand Braudel]], date the start of Western fashion in clothing to the middle of the [[1300–1400 in fashion|14th century]],<ref name=Braudel/>{{Rp|page=317}}<ref name=Laver>Laver, James: ''The Concise History of Costume and Fashion'', Abrams, 1979.</ref>{{Rp|page=62}} though they tend to rely heavily on contemporary imagery,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Fashion in Medieval France|last=Heller|first=Sarah-Grace|publisher=Boydell and Brewer|year=2007|isbn=9781843841104|location=Cambridge; Rochester, NY|pages=49–50}}</ref> as illuminated manuscripts were not common before the 14th century.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CMvTkgVRYvMC&pg=PA28|title=English Medieval Narrative in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries |last=Boitani|first=Piero|date=1986-07-31|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521311496}}</ref> The most dramatic early change in fashion was a sudden drastic shortening and tightening of the male over-garment from calf-length to barely covering the buttocks,<ref name="conceitom.com.br">{{cite web|url=http://www.conceitom.com.br/jeans/#more-1226|title=Jeans Calças Modelos Ideais|date=19 November 2014|work=Conceito M.|access-date=26 April 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150419063504/http://www.conceitom.com.br/jeans/#more-1226|archive-date=19 April 2015}}</ref> sometimes accompanied with stuffing in the chest to make it look bigger. This created the distinctive Western outline of a tailored top worn over leggings or trousers.

The pace of change accelerated considerably in the following century, and women's and men's fashion, especially in the dressing and adorning of the hair, became equally complex. [[Art history|Art historians]] are, therefore, able to use fashion with confidence and precision to date images, often to within five years, particularly in the case of images from the 15th century. Initially, changes in fashion led to a fragmentation across the upper classes of Europe of what had previously been a very similar style of dressing and the subsequent development of distinctive national styles. These national styles remained very different until a counter-movement in the 17th to 18th centuries imposed similar styles once again, mostly originating from [[Ancien Régime]] France.<ref name=Braudel/>{{Rp|pages=317–324}} Though the rich usually led fashion, the increasing affluence of [[early modern Europe]] led to the [[bourgeoisie]] and even peasants following trends at a distance, but still uncomfortably close for the elites – a factor that Fernand Braudel regards as one of the main motors of changing fashion.<ref name=Braudel/>{{Rp|pages=313–315}}

[[File:ADurerNuremburgVenetianWomen.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Albrecht Dürer]]'s drawing contrasts a well-turned out ''bourgeoise'' from [[Nuremberg]] (left) with her counterpart from Venice. The Venetian lady's high [[chopine]]s make her look taller.]]<!-- This image is referenced in the article. Please don't remove.-->

In the [[16th century]], national differences were at their most pronounced. Ten 16th century portraits of German or Italian gentlemen may show ten entirely different hats. [[Albrecht Dürer]] illustrated the differences in his actual (or composite) contrast of Nuremberg and Venetian fashions at the close of the 15th century (illustration, right). The "Spanish style" of the late 16th century began the move back to synchronicity among upper-class Europeans, and after a struggle in the mid-17th century, French styles decisively took over leadership, a process completed in the 18th century.<ref name=Braudel/>{{Rp|pages=317–321}}

Though different textile colors and patterns changed from year to year,<ref>Thornton, Peter. ''Baroque and Rococo Silks''.</ref> the cut of a gentleman's coat and the length of his waistcoat, or the pattern to which a lady's dress was cut, changed more slowly. Men's fashions were primarily derived from military models, and changes in a European male silhouette were galvanized in theaters of European war where gentleman officers had opportunities to make notes of different styles such as the "Steinkirk" [[Cravat (early)|cravat]] or necktie. Both parties wore shirts under their clothing, the cut and style of which had little cause to change over a number of centuries.

Though there had been distribution of dressed dolls from France since the 16th century and [[Abraham Bosse]] had produced engravings of fashion in the 1620s, the pace of change picked up in the 1780s with increased publication of French engravings  illustrating the latest Paris styles. By 1800, all Western Europeans were dressing alike (or thought they were); local variation became first a sign of [[province|provincial]] culture and later a badge of the conservative peasant.<ref name=Braudel/>{{Rp|page=317}}<ref name=Laver/>{{Rp|page=62}}

[[File:Cover of Marcus Clarks' spring & summer catalogue 1926-27.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Cover of [[Marcus Clark & Co|Marcus Clarks']] spring and summer catalogue 1926–27]]

Although [[tailor]]s and dressmakers were no doubt responsible for many innovations, and the textile industry indeed led many trends, the [[history of fashion design]] is generally understood to date from 1858 when the English-born [[Charles Frederick Worth]] opened the first authentic ''[[haute couture]]'' house in Paris. The Haute house was the name established by the government for the fashion houses that met the standards of the industry. These fashion houses continue to adhere to standards such as keeping at least twenty employees engaged in making the clothes, showing two collections per year at fashion shows, and presenting a certain number of patterns to costumers.<ref>Claire B. Shaeffer (2001). [https://books.google.com/books?id=e3Sd_mikSP4C&q=charles+frederick+worth+haute+couture&pg=PA7 Couture sewing techniques] "Originating in mid- 19th-century Paris with the designs of an Englishman named Charles Frederick Worth, haute couture represents an archaic tradition of creating garments by hand with painstaking care and precision". Taunton Press, 2001</ref> Since then, the idea of the fashion designer as a celebrity in their own right has become increasingly dominant.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Parkins|first1=Ilya|title=Poiret, Dior and Schiaparelli: Fashion, Femininity and Modernity.|date=2013|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |location=London |isbn=9780857853288|page=10|edition=English|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kT-Xcu-aWxQC&pg=PA10|chapter=Introduction: Reputation, Celebrity and the "Professional" Designer}}</ref>

[[File:Claudia_Schiffer_Cannes.jpg|right|thumb|[[Claudia Schiffer]] became one of the most iconic models in Europe, representing major brands like Chanel, Versace, and Valentino.]]

Although fashion can be feminine or masculine, additional trends are [[androgynous]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Undressing Cinema: Clothing and identity in the movies |page=196 |author=[[Stella Bruzzi]] |year=2012}}</ref> The idea of [[unisex]] dressing originated in the 1960s, when designers such as [[Pierre Cardin]] and [[Rudi Gernreich]] created garments, such as stretch jersey tunics or leggings, meant to be worn by both males and females. The impact of unisex wearability expanded more broadly to encompass various themes in fashion, including androgyny, mass-market retail, and conceptual clothing.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GVRL In Artemis – Document – Unisex Clothing |website=go.gale.com|url=https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX3427500609&v=2.1&u=fitsuny&it=r&p=GVRL.xlit.artemisfit&sw=w&asid=6f171eb2ab8928b007d0495eb681099c}}</ref> The fashion trends of the 1970s, such as sheepskin jackets, flight jackets, duffel coats, and unstructured clothing, influenced men to attend social gatherings without a dinner jacket and to accessorize in new ways. Some men's styles blended the sensuality and expressiveness, and the growing gay-rights movement and an emphasis on youth allowed for a new freedom to experiment with style and with fabrics such as wool crepe, which had previously been associated with women's attire.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GVRL In Artemis – Document – Clothing for Men|website=go.gale.com|url=https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX3468303033&v=2.1&u=fitsuny&it=r&p=GVRL.xlit.artemisfit&sw=w&asid=096fa3676c226cf3c8ae864724bcfa1d}}</ref>

The four major current [[fashion capital]]s are acknowledged to be [[New York Fashion Week|New York City]] ([[Manhattan]]), [[Paris]], [[Milan]], and [[London]], which are all headquarters to the most significant fashion companies and are renowned for their major influence on global fashion. [[Fashion week]]s are held in these cities, where designers exhibit their new clothing collections to audiences. A study demonstrated that general proximity to New York's [[Garment District, Manhattan|Garment District]] was important to participate in the American fashion ecosystem.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://hbr.org/2014/02/new-yorks-fashion-industry-reveals-a-new-truth-about-economic-clusters|title=New York's Fashion Industry Reveals a New Truth About Economic Clusters|author=Elizabeth Currid-Halkett and Sarah Williams|journal=[[Harvard Business Review]]|date=February 10, 2014|access-date=May 8, 2023}}</ref> ''Haute couture'' has now largely been subsidized by the sale of [[ready-to-wear]] collections and perfume using the same branding.

Modern [[Western culture|Westerners]] have a vast number of choices in the selection of their clothes. What a person chooses to wear can reflect their personality or interests. When people who have high cultural [[Social status|status]] start to wear new or different styles, they may inspire a new fashion trend. People who like or respect these people are influenced by their style and begin wearing similarly styled clothes.

Fashions may vary considerably within a society according to age, social class, generation, occupation, and geography, and may also vary over time. The terms ''fashionista'' and ''[[fashion victim]]'' refer to someone who slavishly follows current fashions.