LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 02: In this image released on October 2, Paloma Elsesser attends Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 2 presented by Amazon Prime Video at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California; and broadcast on October 2, 2020. (Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images for Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 2 Presented by Amazon Prime Video)
July may be nearing its end, but summer is still going strong. And model Paloma Elsesser’s new collaboration with indie brand Dos Swim is here to help the masses beat the season’s blazing temperatures in high style.
On Monday, the model announced her new partnership, titled “Heat Wave,” with New York City-based brand Dos Swim. Founded in 2019 by friends Paula Hess and Shay Johnson, the label is known for its edgy, downtown-cool vibe. “To work with @shayferd & @paupauhess from every minute detail of cup, cut, and color means the world to me,” Elsesser wrote on Instagram. “Normalize working with your friends & it being perfect.”
Elsesser first promoted the brand in 2020, posting a photo of a brown bikini set from Dos Swim on Instagram. Ranging from sizes XS to 3XL, the collection is filled with summer’s biggest trends, including floss string bikinis and whale tails, as well as triangle bikinis and skort bottoms, in red, green, and pink colorways. The brand also created three original prints with the help of nail artist Madeline Poole, a backstage mainstay at fashion shows.
For Elsesser, a champion of body inclusivity and diversity, the collection is another way of bringing her message off the runway. Over the past few years, she’s been involved in a handful of initiatives to create spaces for marginalized voices in the fashion industry, such as being on the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund panel that awarded Black designer Christopher John Rogers the honor in 2019. Earlier this year, she became part of the new VS Collective, a set of ambassadors that will help Victoria’s Secret renew its decades-old Angels image with a more empowering approach. “For way too long, the plus-size industry has been all about being extremely sexy,” she told Refinery29 in 2020. “I really feel like instead of all that, we can just be cool, we can have nuance, we can be strange.”
If you thought the cut-out trend would fade out soon, think again. On Sunday, during a coffee break in Manhattan, Katie Holmes was spotted giving the street style trend her stamp of approval. Specifically, the Dawson’s Creek alum wore an off-white, maxi-length skirt with dual hip cut-outs. She paired the garment with a simple black crop top, cat-eye sunglasses, and her signature Birkenstock 1774 Arizona sandals.
Though Holmes should go down in history for managing to make something as statement-making as cut-outs appear totally nonchalant, she certainly isn’t the first stylish celebrity to take the peek-a-boo trend out for a spin. In fact, we’d be hard-pressed to find an A-lister who hasn’t shown up to a red carpet event, glitzy dinner, or star-studded party wearing some sort of cut-out at least once in 2021.
And yet, even with the catalog of celebrities who’ve tested out the cut-out trend being longer than a Costco grocery list, Holmes still managed to take home the gold in this particular competition. Knowing us, it was probably the “ugly” shoes that clinched the deal.
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New York City sidewalks are a constant obstacle race for pedestrians, riddled with cracks, litter, and the occasional rodent. But born and bred New Yorker Lady Gaga has no fear of the treacherous urban runway.
On Monday, the singer stepped out in her hometown wearing a pair of sky-high platform shoes from Pleaser, paired with a black Magda Butrym A-line dress and Mark Cross bag.
Ultra-high platform shoes have been Gaga’s signature look since her “Bad Romance” era. And this particular pair of 10-inch-tall Pleaser boots — currently retailing for $116 — have made a few appearances over the years, as well as other styles from the brand Gaga has favored. Back in May, the singer paired the booties with a white Max Mara suit, while in 2013, she opted to wear a simple black blazer dress and black sunglasses with the shoes. The shoes come with a warning from Pleaser, a brand popular with dancers and sex workers, that reads: “Extreme High Heels. Not Recommended For Walking.”
Yet, the return of the Pleaser platforms is a surprise for many fans (including me!), who’ve witnessed the performer don old Hollywood glamour looks over the past few weeks in New York, including dresses alluding to Dior’s mid-century New Look, chic oversized sleeves, and classic pumps in safer heights.
Still, the singer’s nod to her early days of shocking outfits and impossible-to-walk-in shoes is not a coincidence. After a year dominated by Birkenstocks and Crocs, we’re craving some height. Global fashion search engine Lyst reported a 163% increase in searches for “high heels” in the spring. The fall runways also indulged our love of towering heels, with Versace, Molly Godard, and Schiaparelli showing platform shoes over four inches tall.
If you feel inclined to try this risky trend at home, take a peek at some options (including the same boots worn by Gaga!) below.
At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission.
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Technology has the potential to change the way people with disabilities shop for, think about, and feel about clothing. At its best, tech can offer clothing accommodations that don’t just work, but work better, which is game-changing for a community that’s often left to make do with the least bad among the all-too-limited options offered.
With each new advancement, we’re getting closer to that point. Think: 3-D printed garments that are customized according to a person’s unique shape, or fashionable jewelry that allows people who are deaf or hard of hearing to visualize sounds.
After decades of being ignored, the one in four U.S. adults who have a disability are finally being catered to by the tech and fashion worlds. To be clear, innovators are not acting out of charity. The market share of adults with disabilities is roughly $490 billion, according to American Institutes for Research, a social science research nonprofit. A huge swath of consumers are keen to dress in ways that facilitate their lives, and industries are responding to this market.
In February, Nike made headlines when it announced the release of its first-ever hands-free sneaker, called the GO FlyEase, which was designed using science and technology to allow wearers to slip their feet into stylish sneakers without having to zip, tie, or Velcro the shoes closed. Instead, the brand used a piece of elastic for tension and a hinged sole that, together, remove any stress from taking shoes on and off. According to the design team behind the Go FlyEase sneaker, the product was initially designed for athletes with disabilities. But in the process, they realized that the shoe was much more universal, as expressed by one designer in a “Behind The Design” video. In making the sneaker accessible and desirable for all consumers, as opposed to only marketing it to people with disabilities, Nike paved the way for a less othered shopping experience for people with disabilities. “It’s going to take mainstream adoption in order for [adaptive fashion] to get where it needs to be,” Stephanie Thomas, founder of disability fashion styling platform Cur8able, told Refinery29 at the time of the launch. When people without disabilities suddenly desire disability fashion, there becomes a financial incentive for brands to create more adaptive fashion options.
Dutch designer Pauline Van Dongen’s Vigour sweater is another garment to emerge from the recent boom of tech innovations. Initially created for elder wearers, the cardigan uses stretch sensors made out of conductive yarn that gathers information on a person’s movements which is then used to track the exercises and activity levels of people who cannot easily track them on their own. Because of that, the knit is helpful not only for the elderly, but also for people with a variety of disabilities. Data gathered from the Vigour knit can be sent to doctors or caretakers to understand mobility patterns and determine the next steps in physical therapy. “I like to develop products that can empower people with a certain disability and see how wearables can contribute to human vitality and resilience,” Van Dongen stated in a 2019 interview with FashNerd.
“Instead of hearing sounds, [Ontenna] allows us to feel and see them, and to take in information around us with various senses.”
– Pippi, A model who began experiencing hearing loss at age 16
Ontenna, a new device out of Japan, converts sound information into light and vibration. To cater to the deaf community’s style preferences, Ontenna was transformed into a stylish hair accessory and jewelry item by 2019 LVMH Prize finalist Kunihiko Morinaga’s fashion label Anrealage. To most observers, the piece looks like an avant-garde headpiece or necklace. For people who are deaf, it creates lights that help wearers perceive characteristics of sound — like patterns, rhythm, and volume — as visual information. Pippi, a model who began experiencing hearing loss when she was 16, wore the device for a Japanese video series, titled True Colors Fashion: The Future Is Now!. When the device flickers in response to sound, thin, flexible fibers that allow light to pass through them translate auditory information into visual information. “Instead of hearing sounds, the device allows us to feel and see them, and to take in information around us with various senses,” Pippi tells Refinery29.
There are limitless opportunities when it comes to technology and fashion collaborating. “[Tech-driven] fashion allows for adjustments, edits, and bespoke options,” says Leanne Elliott Young, the Founder and CEO of the think tank The Institute Of Digital Fashion.
Using technology, clothing can be 3-D printed, which means no more long wait times for made-to-order items to be constructed. Sleeves and pant legs can be designed and printed to the wearer’s exact measurements — which could differ from one limb to another. Zippers, ties, and buttons that would be otherwise difficult or uncomfortable for a person with limited use of their hands or fingers can be replaced with some tweaks on the computer. Using technology means that customers with disabilities can create bespoke items that cater to their style preferences and unique needs in a swift manner.
But while the potential benefits to those with disabilities are endless, technology is far from a perfect solution. According to Thomas, many of her clients don’t necessarily want more online, bespoke, or digital-first clothing options, which can be expensive to create and ship, and frequently require returns because items don’t fit the way they appeared in e-comm photos or digital sketches. Instead, many shoppers that have a disability want to shop in person, to be able to enter physical stores and find something that they genuinely like style-wise that fits their bodies — and then leave with their purchases. This barrier holds especially true when, because of a person’s disability, traditional clothing sizes do not fit.
“[Every tech-driven solution] is only going to reach so many people because everyone doesn’t have access to tech.”
Stephanie Thomas, Founder of Cur8able
For this segment of the population, which includes people with muscular dystrophy, who are missing limbs, or who use a wheelchair, many articles of clothing still have to be custom-made. “I’m still currently on the sidelines cheering for old-school fashion opportunities, so people can try on the clothing without having to order [bespoke] things,” Thomas says. Further driving her reluctance to overly rely on custom-made clothing is her understanding that it’s a pricey option available to few. “[Every tech-driven solution] is only going to reach so many people because everyone doesn’t have access to tech, [either for financial reasons or otherwise],” she says.
But Thomas, who was born missing one thumb and three toes, says the issue with most tech companies making adaptive fashion is that they lack a real understanding of the community they’re selling to. She thinks many are not taking the necessary time or effort to get to know disability culture. “Each company should look at their demographic and decide who they are trying to reach,” she says. “Let’s go find our people within our demographic and ask them what they want… [and] learn more about their needs.”
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