For a few of the big glossies, the September issue is still the most important one of the year — the one where they trot out all the shiny new fashion trends for the upcoming season. Vogue’s September issue in 2012 famously swelled to a hefty 916 pages.
dsm also covers style, of course, and even some local swagger. The city has come a long way since the Onion published a (fake) article about a (fake) Iowa Fashion Week, where folks gushed about “the hottest new Iowa looks, from long johns to windbreakers to hooded sweatshirts.” One (fake) fashionista even predicted the new styles would “soon be seen all over the trendiest streets in the likes of Davenport, Sioux City and Algona.”
It still makes me laugh because nobody really expects Iowans to start a trend. When it comes to style, we’re often content to take our cues from other people, in other places. When the Beach Boys spread their surfing craze “across the U.S.Aaaaa.” in the ’60s, my boomer dad in Jefferson wondered how high the Nishnabotna River would need to rise for someone to hang 10.
But in the age of Instagram and TikTok, there’s really no reason a trend couldn’t originate right here in the middle of the Midwest. I mean, why not? Who’s really still waiting for Vogue to tell them what’s cool? (Or slay or fire or bussin’ or whatever the right word is this week.)
My husband and I live downtown in a condo that overlooks an old brick alley. It’s a popular spot for senior portraits this time of year, especially in the early evening when the sun dips below the skyline. So many teenagers have been parading through with photographers in tow that the Onion may want to revisit. My favorite was the kid who leaned against the brick wall with his French horn, the way you’d picture a world-weary saxophonist in a grittier city with more fog.
So leave it to the “kids these days” to come up with some fresh looks. For some especially slay examples, read this story, featuring a member of the Roosevelt High School class of 2038.
