the Adventure Lifestyle magazine

fash.ion\'fa-shan\ n b (1): the prevailing style (as in dress) during a particular time. WEBSTER'S DICTIONARY human ·wearYhyii-m ;)n'war\ n 2000 (1): apparel that facilitates movement, action and freedom, which naturally adapts to the physical needs of the human body. Performance + style. For active men + women who want to wear clothes and feel free. blue, I'AGE 52 The word fashion has always been controversial around here. Back when blue was just starting, I remember meeting with a leading outdoor apparel company, working .toward getting them to advertise. I described blue and the Adventure Lifestyle: ,\ new way of looking at the world, for a generation '"I'ho wants to explore globally, via mountains, rivers and seas. For people who also want to bring adventure home with them, maintaining an active lifestyle in their daily lives. "blue will cover outdoor recreation, action sports and adventure trav- el ," [ said, "and all the lifestyle interests surrounding those core interests: global politics, per- sonalities, the environment, books, music, technology, style, apparel ... " "Wait. 1 hope you don't mean FASHION! If you cover fasbion, we don't want anything to do with your magazine! " Funny. When people criticize "fashion," they are really talking about their disdain for clothing with superficial and pretentious connotations, sexist limitations. Clothing that, at best, communicates meaningless fads. Or, at worst, confines OLl[ bodies to uncomfortable and unnatural states, ilia high heels and ties. Even suits. These clothes have generally dominated the apparel mar- ket for at least the past century. The definition of the word fashion is "the prevailing style during a particular time." If this is the case, shouldn't we adventure seekers be happy that society overall is shifting toward choosing comfortable, technical performance wear that will enhance Ollr ability to move from work to play to expedition? Clothing that is more akin to a second skin) Shouldn't we all be ecstatic about this change? Every minute we live, we are a part of moving history. Time never stands still. Neither does fashion. The Chinese used to bind women's feet. In Europe during the 1700s, men wore high shirt collars. In Victorian times, women wore corsets and men wore top hats. These former "fash- ions " became outdated as the consciollsness around them outgrew them. I see a future where we look back at high heels, ties, pantyhose and other restrictive apparel trends as similarly backward. Anyone who has ever seen a \\'oman wear sneakers on the subway and change to high heels in the office lobby knows the absurdity of which I speak. Other fashion critics, who are trekking in fleece on the weekends, harbor high heels or three-piece suits in their closet. There's a better way, a more integrated approach. blue promotes a world view in which our choice of apparel is as free and inspired as our lifestyle itself. In this issue, we present our inaugural apparel section that we've named: HUMANWEAR. Amy·Schrier Founder

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