A man who has made his mark in the world of fashion, Christian Lacroix was born in the year 1951 in Arles, France. The favorite son in a family of engineers, Lacroix studied Art History and wanted to be a museum curator. Blessed with a fashionable father and grandmother, his taste for fashion was tuned from his childhood though it manifested into his design skills at a much later stage.
It was his wife who slowly lured him into sketching designs for dresses. In the year 1980, he joined a firm that designed clothes and his rise to stardom started from this point. This was a time when people had formed an opinion that the haute couture was a declining field with little hope for a good future.
Lacroix survived and soon made a mark in the year 1986, when he was awarded the ‘De d’or prize by the Paris officials. The next year he won the Oscar for Best Foreign Designer, an award he received from the Council of Fashion Designers of America. The same year saw him launching his own salon in 1987. He also got involved in other accessories like footwear, hats, handbags, eyewear, jewelry, belts etc.
It didn’t take much time for him to get noticed. He ventured into even military uniforms and flight attendant uniforms. He became the favorite for the rich and the famous. He designed a red satin for Princess Diana on her visit to Paris once.
Christian Lacroix has a very unique style. He uses bright color combinations very often. It is said that the sun he used to see in his native province influenced him to use his trademark bright colours so often.
For now, Christian Lacroix has ventured deep into amalgamation of Information Technology into the world of fashion. He also won the coveted Legion of Honor from the French Government for his contributions in this field.
He has been credited with a number of different projects. He has been contacted to design aircrew uniforms for Air France, interior decoration of French National Railway high speed cars etc: With the rate at which he is progressing now, there is little doubt that there is nothing stopping this man of style.
Designing your own jeans is the best way to express your personality and sense of style. Have you ever tried on jeans that fit great, but aren’t what you are looking for? Have you ever found the perfect style of jeans, but they don’t fit well? Here is the answer; find the jeans that fit right and make them into the style that screams your personality. I have a sure way to make any jeans look the way you want, as long as they fit. Take your old jeans that you love and revive them with your current style. Its easy and it is actually fun!
To start customizing your own denim you only need one tool. It is called a Dremel, and it will change your life. Trust me, I am not affiliated with this company but it is an amazing tool for many different applications. It is a high speed, ,low torque drill that has many different attachments for grinding. These attachments are important because these let you customize how your jeans will look. You can use anything that is a substitute of this tool as well, but a Dremel is the industry standard. With this tool I will take you through the steps to make the most fashionable jeans that cannot be bought for any price. I have altered many pairs of jeans and I get asked all the time “Where did you get those jeans?”
First, find a brand that you love…that fits perfectly. It should be designer, but you can use any brand you like. The more custom a jean is, the more expensive. So we are going to target buying a designer jean like Seven or Diesel in their most basic form. This may cost $80-$120 but it is well worth it if you are fashion conscious. Gap jeans are still a great alternative. When you have a color and fit that you like you can begin the process of elevating you look.
Next, is your research. Look at jeans that you love and study what makes them fashionable. Where are they faded and ripped? This is important because you will be doing this yourself. Also keep in mind what you would do differently when you look at a pair of designer jeans. You will be in control of your exact look. Designers have to make a line to fit many different tastes. You are making clothes to fit your taste, which is unique.
Take the jeans that you love and make sure you launder them first. Laundering you clothes ensures that the fit is correct. Now you can take your Dremel and use a wide sandpaper attachment. Turn it on to about 2000-3000 rpms and start roughing up the front pockets edge. This is a great place to start because you always want a distressed look on the pockets, and it will give you a feel for how the tool distresses your denim. Be very light as you touch the fabric with the Dremel. You can always distress more, but you cannot undo what is done already. Then you are ready to distress the back pockets. Go around the edge of the back pockets to give them a worn feel. Make any distresses around the back that you may like.
It is important that you remember to be light with you pressure. A Dremel works because it spins so fast. Let the tool do the work. When you are pressing on an open area like the knees, go though until you see the horizontal threads. You can open up more at the knees, but most areas you still want coverage. Also remember to do the edges of the bottom of your jeans. This is very important because any distressed denim is first faded at the bottom of the leg unless it is cropped to a shorter length. The key is to have high impact areas distressed first and then to add the touches that you see fit. This is a great way to save money, have fun and to have clothing that is unique as your style.