When the Showtime series "The L Word" began in January, it showed that — far from being frumps doomed to Manolo Blahnik deficiency — lesbians are a powerful presence in fashion, in both predictable and unexpected ways.
The old stereotypes have not faded. But they have slipped into something decidedly cool. "I have this theory that lesbians start certain fashion things," said Stephanie Perdomo, the creator of a new collection of action figures called Dykedolls, which will be sold on the Internet starting in July. "I used to go around Williamsburg and see guys wearing wifebeaters, wallet chains, gas station shirts and trucker hats, and I would think, `We used to do that five years ago,' " Ms. Perdomo said.
In the mid-90's, at Manhattan all-girl bars like Meow Mix, patrons tended to dress a lot like Ms. Perdomo's $65 Bobbie doll. They got themselves up in ironic homage to a form of masculinity that barely exists outside the World Wrestling Entertainment tour. Bobbie comes with a wardrobe typical of women who dress like long-haul truckers, who look as though they could give masculinity pointers to Ashton Kutcher. But butch girls are only part of the story, as the women on the "The L Word" make plain. The cast, explained Ilene Chaiken, the show's creator and executive producer, is given considerable latitude in dressing the characters, and several of its members, both gay and straight, turn out to be billboards for a sexually flexible style you could characterize as L. A Tomboy.
The unofficial headquarters for that look is Fred Segal
) and I was really impressed... Does anyone know who is the stylist for the show???? He/she does an amazing job!!!!
