Fashion and Trends when East meets West

How many of us enjoy eating sushi Or even wonton soup for that matter? These adopted commonplace takeout meals have become as American… well as pie. Now how about this, have you ever thought which zodiac animal or element you were? If you grew up with lunar calendar celebrations sure it is commonplace for you, but what about the rest of us that aren’t born with that tradition in our backgrounds? The diversity of Asian tradition, culture and art doesn’t stop at cuisine, sharing zodiac horoscopes or cinema. Many of us alike, no matter our ethnicity, live a lifestyle influenced by pure Asian trends never knowing that its origins are from the orient.

Now more than ever the US and Europe are affected by many things that stem from Asia such as clothing, accessories, body art, media, language, technology, and other various goods.

We can easily go to any name brand dept store and see the plethora of trendy styles that include kimono sleeved styles. Personally I can’t get enough of these ultra awesome lush and stylish tops. Some can even double as dresses and they flatter all types figures. Whether you are petite or plus, they are easy to wear from day to evening or from work to play. You can belt it, sash it, wear it alone with hosiery, or over jeans, leggings,

skirts or capris. Pair it with some chunky jewelery and a awesome bag and you have a complete outfit. The ultra designers of today like Kimora Lee, Betsey Johnson and Luca Luca all had their kimono styles in top fashion magazines for several years now. Infamous designers like Karl Lagerfeld and Versace have been putting kimono styles on the runway for over two decades just by playing with the fit. Now this kidnapped style is from Japan first, for it is their traditional style.  

 A comfortable and easy trend for men that has Asian Pacific roots is the Hawaiian button down shirt. Also known as the bowling style, camp or club shirt this style goes along way back. Elvis and Don Ho may have made the Hawaiian shirt a celebrity itself, but its the comfortable flow of the style that makes it a classic to be worn by men all over. At first, the colorful shirts with wild prints representing lovely Hawaii and worn by those who exist in hot climates. Recently with Asian inspired comic art or martial artist designs, they have taken on a new life and can be seen in Urban Areas of the biggest cities. Now of course it depends if it looks good or not.. how the shirt is worn (over a tee or as oversized shirt) personal style comes into play.

But Asian calligraphy, anime characters and samurai on clothes don’t stop with bowling shirts. Asian letters and phraes in Japanese hiragana, Japanese katakana, Chinese hanyu pinyin, and Korean hanguel, find their way onto stylish tees, jackets, boxer shorts, baseball caps and more. Japanese words like Gaijin (foreigner) and Otaku (nerd) are worn proudly by westerners. In both the east and west, people wear the words Genki Otaku proudly. Chinese Pinyin words like Pretty, Dog, Respect can be seen on clothing in stores like department stores like KidsRuS, Target and Kohls.  My Beagle loves my Pucca Slippers that are just like these below! More so clothing items like boxer shorts, purses, baseball Caps, skirts and socks all have these Asian symbols and writing printed, embroidered or sewn on them. I know because I own and wear most of the girlie ones. My own collection of Pucca, Hello Kitty and Nana Clothing fits into my personal taste.

My bag with the manga band “Trapnest”, my Hello Kitty in hanbok earrings, My Chococat wallet and my Pucca fuzzy slippers (which goes with my pucca robe and alarm clock) are some of my favorite items in my closet. Mostly these items are more so apparent in my vision as what I want to wear, fun items that are cute and help me express myself. Yes I need to be aware these are not American symbols by far. 

 For me the item being orient-based is not what I notice, but does it make a difference that they are Asian inspired or from Asia to me? When someone asks me where did I get that shirt or where did I get that purse and I say well I bought it from a Hong Kong importer and their reaction doesn’t seem so strange anymore. It is just apart of everyday style that is my own, my peers and people that I notice on the street! I am sure if we look around we will see the influence and appreciate it a little more!

Please look for my second part to this article entitled “MY TATTOO SAYS WHAT!?!?!?!”