Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Thrift Off #1: African-Themed Print Dresses: The Response

THIS OFF IS OFFICIALLY ON!!!

I present my Response to Holly's challenge. It is an equally African-themed*, mock turtlenecked, backless, knit dress!

Exhibit A:


Exhibit B (backlessness):


Exhibit C: African-Themed Print


Rather equally matched, I would say! I am sure that most women would feel blessed to have either garment gracing their closets.

It is my feeling, that the equally myriad gifts of both Holly and I--which are readily on display on this blog--are also, equally matched. The true test of this initial OFF will most definitely be of our heretofore unseen rhetorical gifts (who has a collegiate debate coach for a live-in boyfriend!? Watch out, woman)! And can only be judged by you, our readers.

In our next two posts, we will unleash on each other, and we invite you to unleash your votes!

*In acknowledgment that "African-Themed" is an insufficient, blanket term to describe the commonality of these prints. "African-Themed" seemed to be the least insufficient, and blanket, compared to the other alternatives of common design parlance--i.e. tribal, primitive, and worst of all (in my opinion) "ethnic"--which are, at best, reductive, and at worst, just plain offensive. Without knowing the more precise origin of the style of print seen in my dress, yet knowing it is indeed continentally African in original aesthetic, and the animals in the print of Holly's dress also being natives of various parts of geographical Africa (with the exception of the implication of the presence of a tiger, which are Asian, and were similarly thoughtlessly assembled in a presumably African collage), these semantics were thoughtfully chosen.

4 comments:

  1. The first off is sometimes the toughest off...and in this case, it's certainly true. Let the debates begin!! Woot Woot.

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  2. I don't think it's a contest. I like Holly's because of the cat print and the cap sleeves and the single giant hole in the back. Laurie, I am sorry to say but the two giant holes on the back of your dress scream that you are hiding your bra when going braless in a backless dress is the only real option.

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  3. cortney--i already scolded you personally, but now i will scold you publicly, to make an example of you--wait until we make our arguments to vote! you MIGHT be persuaded otherwise!

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  4. Laurie is just saying that because she thinks that having a debate coach for a boyfriend will allow her to persuade everyone that her far less superior dress is somehow better than mine (CATS!).

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