This past weekend I finally ventured to the garment district.The “garment district” is geographically defined as the area between Fifth Avenue and Ninth Avenue, from 34th St. to 42nd St. Since I ‘m not a design major this was uncharted territory for me, and was my first expedition to the Garment district. It was simply entrancing. The streets seemed to be sparkling, probably from glitter that had fallen off the hundreds bolts of sparkly fabric in the fabric stores.The store windows felt like permanent Christmas displays, with each store displaying their most alluring, soft, fiercest, velvety, shiny, sequencey ( ignore the fact that isn’t a word), stretchy fabric to entice us fashion students. I know several classmates who are magnetically drawn to sparkles, so this plan seems pretty solid. The telltale sign that you’ve arrived is when you see the statue of the giant needle & button, you. (Seriously, where else would there be such an odd statue?)
Not another city in the world can boost that they have such a concerted amount of fashion businesses and talent in one single area. The Garment District rose to the top of the clothing manufacturing in the 19th century by making clothes for slaves down south. It proved to be cheaper to buy clothing from the North than having the slaves making their own clothes, which could be time-consuming. Then, during the Civil War, the uniforms for the soldiers also came from the Garment District. With so much work, the Garment District supplied thousands or working class people, immigrants in particular, to make a living. Many of these new immigrants were already skilled craftsmen, seamstresses and tailors. By 1910, approximately 70% of women’s garments throughout the country were produced in the garment district. This particular area was such an interval part of the city’s economy that in 1960, when John F, Kennedy ran for president, he stopped by the Garment District. There, he addressed tens of thousands of union workers along 38th Street, accompanied by Tallulah Bankhead and Janet Leigh (famous actresses of the 30’s and 40’s).
Even though the rate of production in the district has decreased significantly, a large number of New York’s showrooms and major fashion label remain. Even if you aren’t a design or textile major I think all fashion students should go the garment district at least once. Even if you aren’t interested in fabric of manufacturing, the world’s only Fashion Walk of Fame is located there. It’s just a fifteen minute walk from campus and is a historical monument for the entire fashion industry, New York city and the nation’s history.
If you’re interested in the past, present and future of the Garment District I have attached some links below.
All things Color, Love & Fashion,
Ayanna L.
http://www.gothamcenter.org/garment/
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/02/opinion/long-live-the-garment-district.html