Democracy in Style

FREE DAILY TRENDS

14 JUN 2013

Sink or Swim

New men’s swimwear labels are upping the ante on beach style

7 JUN 2013

First Fridays: Sarika Doshi, Co-Founder/CEO of Rank & Style

Q+A with the entrepreneur behind the next big resource for female shoppers

24 MAY 2013

Tree of Life

Reclaimed wood makes its way into high design

17 MAY 2013

The Age of Incense

A whiff of an old-fashioned home fragrance trend has entered the air

6 MAY 2013

Pajama Party

Bedclothes get fashionable

22 APR 2013

Mass Appeal

Nascent fashion ventures look to the masses for designs and dollars

8 APR 2013

Look Sharp

Knives get the design object treatment

5 APR 2013

First Fridays: Michelle Goad, CEO and Co-Founder of PS DEPT.

Q+A with the customer service innovator

22 MAR 2013

Memphis Woos Again

Memphis design is on the verge of a comeback

19 FEB 2013

Boy Meets World

Tomboy style becomes a fashion mainstay

15 FEB 2013

Where the Wild Things Are

Progressive personal care startups go into the woods for ingredients

11 FEB 2013

Growing Panes

The art of stained glass is being cast in new light

5 FEB 2013

Remote Control

Mobile and video platforms bring online shoppers personalized customer service

9 JAN 2013

Cycle Chic

Designers are tailoring garments for stylish cyclists

20 DEC 2012

Problem Salvers

Natural salves heal what ails you

5 DEC 2012

A Fair Share

Style startups adopt the Netflix subscription model

17 SEP 2012

Secondhand News

Luxury consignment shops flood the Web

3 AUG 2012

First Fridays: Bri Emery, Co-Founder of Blogshop

Q+A with the woman leading the blog design revolution

30 JUL 2012

(Do) Try This at Home

Digital tools facilitate better fitting apparel purchases online

14 JUN 2012

Shape Up

Geometric shapes and patterns are inspiring contemporary design

The practice of crowdsourcing has infiltrated everything from music videos to fundraising. The latest category to leverage the Gen Y “We-volution” mindset is fashion. Though it seems unlikely that luxury brands are going to turn the reins over entirely to their fans, the fashion industry, from retail to design, is starting to make a point of showing that they too can listen to what the people want.

Fashion Stake: Community-based shopping site Fashion Stake was founded out of frustration among aspiring designers who, historically, have had limited means of connecting directly with consumers. Though the original concept for this venture, founded by a Harvard Business School grad, was to give users a chance to invest in designers they wanted to support, it has evolved into an e-commerce bazaar that’s stocked by the same people who make the purchases, allowing them to view collections from new designers and vote on which items they think would fly off the rack. Prices max out around $200, making it a hit with a cost-conscious crowd, as well as some notable investors.

Wrangler Next Blue Competition: Sure, denim companies can guess what styles their customers want…or, as Wrangler figured out, they can ask them. With the help of Strutta, the heritage brand recently consulted their customers directly through a competition called Next Blue in which participants uploaded videos explaining the concept and name behind the denim design of their dreams. Five finalists were selected, based partly on the number of votes received from the community, to work with the Wrangler team in North Carolina to produce their designs. After a final week of voting, the winner received $5,000 and the prestige of having their design made available for purchase by the public.

Continuum Computational Couture: If more teens knew about this service, there’d likely be less anxiety over trying to find the perfect prom dress. Continuum’s Mary Huang and Jenna Fizel are as tech-savvy as they are design-inclined, and they have created custom coded software to transform user-generated dress designs into the real thing. Once sketched, a dress is fit to the wearer’s measurements and an authentic garment or basic pattern can be made, all of which end up in a crowdsourced gallery. The future of this democratized version of haute couture currently lies within Kickstarter, so those who want to see their triangulated designs realized had best throw a few bucks their way.