In class, we had the option of wearing an Ivy outfit to earn extra points. While I thought I did not have any Ivy clothes, at least at the beginning of the semester, I now have a fuller understanding of what Ivy is that allowed me to piece together an appropriate outfit. In this response, I will show how my clothing, piece by piece, derives from the Ivy style so that the reader can too understand the connections between Ivy and a variety of clothes.

The Shoes

The shoes I picked are a navy-blue pair of vans, a type of sneakers. Sneakers have there history rooted in athletics; some of the first sneakers were marketed for basketball. This athletic-yet-fashionable shoe could easily have been picked up by Princeton students in the early 1930s, whose casual/athletic wear was the origin of Ivy. After all, as Truefelman puts it, “A lot of preppy clothes started as sportswear (What is Democracy 00:16:26-00:16:32).”

The way sneakers were manufactured also played an important role in them becoming Ivy clothes. As fashion historian Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell put it, “the sneaker became one of the most democratized forms of footwear(Crisman-Campbell par. 7)” in part due to their ability to be mass manufactured. This parallels the origins of Ivy in Brooks Brothers, whose mass-manufactured and standardized clothes allowed for the rise of Ivy.

The Shirt

Being a short sleeve but collared shirt, my shirt is in between casualwear and formal wear, as is much of Ivy. Its bright colors and complex pattern is reminiscent of the peacock revolution, a subgenre of Ivy that was notable for its bright, flashy colors, or the flamingo shorts Truefelman mentioned in her podcast. Its lack of long sleeves like a traditional collared shirt allows for more movement and functionality, again something that was common among Ivy/athletic clothes. The shirt is undone to make it more casual while layered with another shirt, a defining characteristic of Ivy, like the image below.

The Pants

Khakis were adopted into the Ivy style after WWII when military members, taking their military clothes with them, began going to college. These shorts are akin to short versions of khakis, having a similar layout of pockets and materials but being blue instead of tan. Beings shorts, they are less restricting and formal than normal khakis, again a key characteristic of Ivy.

Works Cited

Trufelman, Avery. “American Ivy: Chapter 2.” Articles Of Interest, Articles Of Interest, 2 Nov. 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-2.

Chrisman-Campbell, Kimberly. “Sneakers Have Always Been Political Shoes.” The Atlantic, https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/12/sneakers-have-always-been-political-shoes/511628/. Accessed 5 March 2023.

In the late 20th century, the Ivy style was adopted by ‘lo lifes’ and transformed into streetwear. This process is reflective of what had occurred many times over in the previous decades; the adoption and refinement of the Ivy style into different forms, or katas. This versatility stems from Ivy being, as Trufeleman puts it,” a standard. An inoffensive, friendly, legible look (The end 00:15:54-00:15:57).” These differing forms often fade in and out of popularity, and in doing so become associated with a certain era, making the styles more nostalgic. These factors have allowed Ivy to appeal to a wide audience and come back time and time again.

I would agree many of the forms of Ivy introduced on the podcast all shared a certain ‘preppy’ look about them. But as Ivy continues to grow and change, it isn’t too much of a stretch to say that, at some point, these forms of Ivy will become differing styles. If so, when will this happen? Or, has it already happened?

In one of my first responses, I mentioned that, after seeing some recent styles of Ivy, Ivy seemed too vague and ill-defined. I also did not see many people around me wearing what I would think of as preppy clothing, despite Trufeleman claiming that it’s really common. So, after finishing the podcast, I looked at my own wardrobe. And I realized I unknowingly had some kind of preppy clothing.

It has a collared button-down shirt, with bold colors and an intricate flower pattern. It’s somewhat reminiscent of the flamingo shorts that Trufelman referenced as Ivy, while also being a more casual version of a dress shirt. The pants, while less preppy looking, look like a short version of chinos.

Maybe Ivy is more common than I thought, so much so that someone as fashion apathetic as myself even picked it up.  It’s just become so different and varied that takes a trained eye to tell what Ivy is. Or, as said in the first episode:

“there’s a certain section Ivy that’s just clothes. Flat front chinos is just clothes. A Oxford button down is just a dress shirt. It’s just what people wear (What is a trend 00:25:15-00:25:26). “

Works Cited

Trufelman, Avery, host. “What is a trend?” American Ivy, Articles of Interest, 26 October 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-1

Trufelman, Avery, host. “The end” American Ivy, Articles of Interest, 7 December 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-7

Class is a categorization of people by how much wealth they have and/or how they acquire(d) that wealth. It can be divided up based on job occupation, inherited wealth, or non-inherited wealth, among other factors. Notably, class membership is hard to define and can be subjective.

A subculture is an informal group of people that share a set of values, beliefs, and/or cultural items. Importantly, members of a subgroup should be able to identify with one another and find unity within their group. Conversely, those outside the group, or a part of the dominant culture, are often confused about the practices of a subculture.

Trufelman’s discussion begins with Ishizu and his introduction of the Ivy style to Japan. At this point in time, the Ivy style was limited to a few hundred students on the streets of Tokyo. They all read the Men’s Club magazine, all dressed the same way, and were all hated by the police. 

“It was confounding for Japanese authorities -they were like ‘why are young men wearing these outrageous bright pants and boxy jackets?’(What is subculture? 00:05:39-00:05:47) ”

Trufelman jumps back over to the US to discuss Ralph Lauren, who, at around the same time, was beginning his own line of preppy clothing. His company at this point was small, with less than a dozen people. And when Ralph met a young fan of his at a clothing store, they were able to bond over the clothing he sold. 

Trufelman jumps between these two developments because they mirror each other. This new Ivy was understood by a small, closely-knit community. In other words, it was a subculture. 

Flash forward a few years, and the publishing of Take Ivy and its accompanying film by Ishizu brakes the negative stigma of Ivy in Japan. With the stigma gone, its popularity jumps. It becomes sought after because of its perceived eliteness and rarity. And as Ivy became associated with wealth, it became an indication of class.

Over a decade later, Lisa Burnbache writes the Preppy Handbook. This book’s creation made the preppy style’s nuances accessible to all. This, combined with the new idea that culture could be bought, transformed Ivy from a niche subculture into, as emphasized by the book’s cover, an indication of class. 

“Now it was you know, can we buy this idea of class? That we’re sophisticated, that we have moral worth(What is subculture 00:37:00-00:37:10 )”

The development of Ivy from a subculture into a class is mirrored in the US and Japan. The process began in both places with the publishing of a piece of media that subsequently popularized the style. What Trufelman emphasizes here, however, is the times at which these happened. Japan was ahead of the US by 15 years. Now, instead of Japan taking from the US, it is the US lagging behind Japan.

Works Cited

Trufelman, Avery, host. “What is subculture?” American Ivy, Articles of Interest, 16 November 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-4

Trufelman, Avery, host. “What is class?” American Ivy, Articles of Interest, 23 November 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-5

Vilardo, Philip, and Mari Wepprecht, editors. “Social Class in the United States.” Introduction to Sociology: Understanding and Changing the Social World, University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing Edition. 

“What Is a Subculture?” Edited by Rachel Buckner, Subculture and Sociology, Grinnell College, https://haenfler.sites.grinnell.edu/subcultural-theory-and-theorists/what-is-a-subculture/.

In episode 3, titled “Pockets”, Trufelman discusses the history of pockets in western clothes. She recounts how women’s pockets went from a useful, separate undergarment to something that was just for show or simply nonexistent. Men’s pockets, on the other hand, grew more and more numerous into the 20th century. 

Episode 10, titled “Suits”, centers around what Trufelman calls the Great Male Renunciation, or the slow simplification of men’s clothing through the 19th and 20th centuries. This phenomenon resulted in men’s formal wear being largely the same, with differences becoming minute. 

These episodes discuss suits in two clashing manners. Episode 10 labels suits and the end product of the Great Male Renunciation, a simple outfit that has little variation. This happened because, as Guy puts it, 

“The trajectory of what created the suit … has always been the need for more democratic, simpler, dress down, relatable clothes(Suits 00:17:55-00:18:05).”

Yet episode 3 tells a story of suits going in a different direction: “Pockets were getting added, and added, and added over the course of decades. And by the early 20th century it was just getting ridiculous(Pockets 00:11:46-00:11:52).” This needless complexity, or unmodern ness as the episode called it, is the exact opposite direction of what the previous episode talked about. How can both these contradictory claims be true?

This is a suit from the early 20th century. It has a long coat, a vest, a button-down shirt, and long, black pants. To us today it looks like something we may wear to a fancy event; it’s complex and intricate. Its name, however, tells a different purpose. This suit was something that was meant to be worn casually, as a normal outfit. Suits then weren’t considered fancy because they were simply normal clothes. This differing view of the suit comes from a difference in perspective. One from when large, silk outfits were considered the norm, and the other from a time when suits had been left behind in the journey to simplify the wardrobe.

Works Cited

Trufelman, Avery. “Pockets: Articles of Interest #3 .” 99% Invisible, 99% Invisible, 2 Oct. 2018, https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/pockets-articles-of-interest-3/transcript. 

Trufelman, Avery. “Suits: Articles of Interest #10.” 99% Invisible, 99% Invisible, 26 May 2020, https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/suits-articles-of-interest-10/transcript. 

Kensuke Ishizu revolutionized the Japanese fashion scene in the 1960s by importing the Ivy style whilst targeting the youth of Japan. Uniquely, his company made all parts of an outfit made them to go together. He is the central figure in Avery Trufelemans’ argument as to why the Ivy style will continue into the future. 

According to Truefelman, the Ivy style was borne out of the mass-produced clothing started by the Brooks Brothers and English youth influence. Its origin lies at Princeton University, which unique situation allowed this style to flourish. After world war 2, the influx of college students caused the style to shift, adopting some clothing from the military. In the 1960s it was co-opted by black civil rights activists, who further adapted the look to themselves.

By the time of its popularization in Japan, the Ivy style in America was on the decline. This resurgence helped to keep the style alive and, eventually, produced the Take Ivy book, the cornerstone of this podcast. Without Ishizu, the style would not have been kept alive past the 1960s when it faded in the US, and may never have rocketed back to popularity in the US in the 80s.

Timeline

By introducing the Ivy style to Japan, Ishizu simultaneously preserved a part of American History, while forever changing the culture of Japan. 

Works Cited

“The Man Who Brought Ivy To Japan.” Ivy Style, Ivy Style, 9 Dec. 2017, http://www.ivy-style.com/the-man-who-brought-ivy-to-japan.html. 

Trufelman, Avery. “American Ivy: Chapter 2.” Articles Of Interest, Articles Of Interest, 2 Nov. 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-2.

In episode 1 of American Ivy, Avery discusses how companies like WGSN predict fashion trends in an increasingly trend-filled modern landscape. She then talks about the origins and evolution of the fashion style called American Ivy. She touches on what it means to be a trend and how they come about.  

“An outfit is a sentence that says This is what I am doing today, this is what the weather is, this is who I am (American Ivy 00:23:50-00:23:57).”

“ Colorless Green Ideas Sleep Furiously- That’s what its like if youre wearing a fireman’s jacket and a feather boa. You can wear clothes but sometimes they dont make sense together (American Ivy 00:25:10-00:25:19).“

Questions

Research Question 1: Do forecasting companies truly predict trends or do they create them?

Research Question 2: Has the Ivy style shifted away from being a rich look?

Research Question 3: What clothing will be popular in the future?

Research Question 4:Is using WGSN something everyone is doing?

Claims

Claim 1: Clothing has to be coherent and make sense, like a sentence.

Claim 2: The desire to both stand out and fit in is what creates trends.

Claim 3: Clothing nowadays is more about the overall feeling they give, not the individual articles of clothing. 

Claim 4 (Preliminary Thesis): American Ivy is the style everyone will be wearing in the future

I still don’t understand what the American Ivy style is. On one hand, there is a lengthy segment in which Rachel describes how the style is less about the individual pieces of clothing, but about the layering of the pieces. However on the substack post, Avery describes an image of a man wearing a collared shirt and a hat as preppy, yet there are no layers to be found. Either then the definition of the Ivy style is a bit loose, or it’s less of a clothing style and more of a clothing genre.

Works Cited

Trufelman, Avery. “American Ivy: Chapter 1.” American Ivy: Chapter 1 – by Avery Trufelman, Articles Of Interest, 26 Oct. 2022, https://articlesofinterest.substack.com/p/american-ivy-chapter-1.

Avery Trufelman is the director/host of the podcast Kids’ Clothes. In this episode, she discusses how punch cards, an invention used frequently in early computers, had their origins in clothing. She then discusses children’s clothing in depth: its origins and evolution and why it looks the way it does today.

Roman Mars, in speaking to Avery, states “… around and around. The loom inspires the computer, the computer changes the way we buy, order, and think about clothes. Clothing and culture impact each other (“Kids’ Clothes 00:06:45-00:06:56).” The episode makes this claim by visiting the evolution of children’s fashion over time; first with the introduction of children’s clothing in the 18th century and then to safety guidelines for clothing in the 21st century. What intrigues me, and what the episode somewhat glosses over, is the rate at which this cycle occurs.

The inventions or influences the episode mentions during the early period of children’s clothing seem to span over several decades. This stands in contrast to the later part of the episode, where they talk about how children’s clothing is updated constantly in response to incidences, trends, and so on. I assert that, as time has passed, this cycle has sped up. My first reaction was to attribute this cycle to the exponential growth of technology. 

This seems to be the case early on when the demand for fancy clothing led to the invention of the Jacquard loom. But for changes made today, Avery says this: “Every time an item is recalled, or a clothing company gets sued for endangering a child, the guidelines get revised or tightened (Kids’ Clothes 00:18:02-00:18:07)” So safety and litigation, not the advancement of technology, seems to be the driving cause in this case.

So my question is, what is it that has led to the acceleration of this cycle? Is technology not necessarily the cause, but perhaps what enables this change to happen?

Works Cited

Trufelman, Avery. “Kids’ Clothes: Articles of Interest #1.” 99% Invisible, 99% Invisible, 25 Sept. 2018, https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/kids-clothes-articles-of-interest-1/.