GLAM - how do you define this term?

[softgrey]

and does it also mean LOTS OF MAKE UP...???...!!!......

 

[tott]

I don't think "slick" if someone says glam. Like goose says, it's one foot in the gutter. Glitter, extravagance, rock'n'roll. And it doesn't have to mean lots of make-up, or any make-up, although at least a touch of lipgloss or something goes hand in hand....

Glam is like a tackier and edgier version of glamourous, isn't it?

 

[i_<3_chanel]

agree w/tott + goose !
there's always some 'edge' to anythn glam . .
it's the opposite of virginal for sure

 

[softgrey]

ok...
agreed...an edgier ...dirtier version of 'glamourous...

**what about the make up though??...
i think there is DEFINITELY lots of make up...
like fff said...
the 'way too much lipgloss syndrome'...
*or something like that anyway...


maybe even sparkly make up..
and lots of GOLD...!!!

 

[adorefaith]

i dont necessarily think slick....
but i wouldnt count it out, now that you mention it......

i see the HAIR more as slick.....
slapped with product....almost slimey.....

lots of sparkle....glitter....gloss.....

 

[VICTIM]

like someone said before the new york dolls

dressed here by vivienne westwood and malcolm maclaren
dior homme f/w 05

 

[i_<3_chanel]

urbandictionary.com
has some interesting definitions . .
similar to wht's been said . . !

two tht stood out to me . .

glittery, shimmery, chic and imperfect
glam is, by nature, inaccesable to the masses... it is an esoteric art twisted and manipulated by so many and understood by so few, rant rant rant

A movement that which erupted in the 1970s promoting vanity, copiousness, surreality, narcissism, campness and hauteur. A spin-off of the word 'glamourous'
"Glam is about femme girls and femme boys and girls who look like femme boys and boys who like like butch girls."

Glam individuals usually dress in outrageous fashion: jumpsuits, 3-inch platform space boots and heavy amounts of makeup.

David Bowie was best known for his involvement in the Glam Movement of the 1970s.

 

[adorefaith]

"Women liked to wear black while the men experimented with colour... so it was cross-dressing in a really light fun kind of way. One favourite was outsize men's suits, like pinstriped gangster suits with massive ties. All those silk jackets with the huge Tulip collars, light green or metallic blue."

"One big thing was sewing patches on, or embroidery. there was a lot of that. I had one pair of jeans with a few daft badges on, parrots and things, and I wore them for years and years, loved them. People would put studs in denim too. Not just Rocker type studs, all kinds of studs. Heart shaped studs, strawberry shaped studs, everything. There were those bizarre patchwork denim jeans made up from all kinds of old Levi's and cheaper denim...and they would sell for immense amounts in London. they looked incredibly scruffy too, like old tramps trousers, and people would wear them with the white clogs with thick wooden soles that fell off if you walked too fast. "

"It's difficult to compartmentalise that era. It wasn't just a question of going from wearing denims to wearing really silly clothes - it wasn't like that at all. It segued in slowly from the sixties psychedelic era and went right through the punk thing and beyond really. Because the early 80s was another Glam boom. Also, nobody wore Glam stuff all the time. You would dress to suit the occasion."

****http://www.nostalgiacentral.com/features/glamfashion.htm

 

[softgrey]

thanks for the definitions guys...

but do they apply to the world TODAY???...
especially when so many 20 somethings don't remember the 70's and have never heard of the ny dolls et al...???

does it still mean the same thing now...?
hipster means something different from what it used to mean...

maybe now GLAM means POSH SPICE and PAMELA ANDERSON???...
and LIL KIM???......
they do sort of look like cross-dressing DRAG QUEENS...imo...

...

 

[tott]

^ Good question, softie...

I said glam is like a tackier and edgier version of glamourous, but maybe it simply refers to a trashy and excaggerated party-girl glamour nowadays?

In any case, it certainly is not elegant.

 

[fashionista-ta]

Agree with what everyone's said ... glam and glamorous are almost opposite ends of a spectrum. Like adorefaith said, it immediately puts me in mind of Viva Glam, which puts me in mind of drag queens. That's why I'm so interested to see Catherine Deneuve be the next face of Viva Glam

PS I disagree with definition above ... I think glam *is* accessible to the masses. Glamorous, however, probably isn't.

 

[VICTIM]

i asked my sisters (who are juicy clad ugg boot wearing "trendies") and they replied "The Darkness or Goldfrapp"

 

[softgrey]

funny how the term always seems to be associated with music....
both now and in the past...

 

[goosemaster]

yeah, what I see coming from everyone is it's sort of opposites of the same idea...
And opposites are always inspiring and infusing each other. If you look at hollywood the glamour I see is a real mix of way overdone tacky and really conservative glamour. Probly more so now then in the past.I think this era is both very conservative and anything goes vibe at the same time.
I was half joking about hip hop but yeah kids today probly are probly getting their cues from the overdone 'ghetto fabulous' style paraded by most mtv urban music stars.
A really dumbed down version is the marlyn mansion goth thing you see once and a while. But this is still 'glam'.
yeah I think it's still about drag.
and as far as slick goes... maybe not.
I dont think I've ever seen a slick drag anything.
But, I thnk people use elements of glam and end up lookin VERY cool. Very chic. So...
cool pix everyone... Lets see more.
fun thread softie. B)

 

[Sonnytsunami]

oh brett...

i thought glam died when brett anderson started wearing jeans..

oh my... some years ago i would have hated anyone who ignored who brett anderson was!!! these days none can be more disappointed with him than myself.. not only for his boring looks (even my father dresses better) but also for the fact he sings/wrotes the same song again and again...

still it made me smile to see him mentioned in this forum... i am such a nostalgic b*tch, i suppose...

 

[goosemaster]

Lou Reed.
One of my all time fav album covers.
But not my fav album of his. Def a big dude in the glam haze that was going on. Amazing artist.

lou reed - rock and roll animal

 

[goosemaster]

Iggy Pop
Another US glam rocker. Amazing performer, (sometimes make-up sometimes no make up btw)
iggy Pop random photos (?)

 

[goosemaster]

David Bowie...very visual as well. Pushed fashion, theateric, etc.
alot of really fun photos of him on the web.

David Bowie.. random photos

 

[laurlaur]

I think of Glam Rock, like David Bowie or the Movie Velvet Goldmine. Not really 'glamourous' but more like glittery and crazy. I think things like dyed fur, tight pants, lots of make-up, platforms, and sequins.

 

[softgrey]

laur laur...i think that is what a lot of people think...

i was actually thinking more along the lines of studio 54...
**jerry hall and bianca jagger and HALSTON...
lots of long hair set in hot rollers and tons of lip gloss...
tight shiny bodyuits and tight designer jns...
diane von furstenburg wrap dresses
maybe with gold heels and a fur chubby...
lots of real gold jewelry and long red nails...
and TONS OF MAKE UP...

very DISCO...

-so i SAID...jerry hall...slightly 70's...glam....
and what i GOT...was posh spice...
...
stuff with beads and rhinestones all over it...
more BLING than GLAM...imo...