Racked: All Posts by Micaela Marini HiggsThe National Shopping, Stores, and Retail Scene Bloghttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/52809/32x32.0..png2018-04-18T09:30:01-04:00https://www.racked.com/authors/micaela-marini-higgs/rss2018-04-18T09:30:01-04:002018-04-18T09:30:01-04:00How Your Snail Slime Mask Is Made
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<figcaption>The common garden snail. | Photo: Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Mucin is a popular ingredient in K-beauty products like sheet masks. But how do they get the slime?</p> <p id="zAgltR">I’d arrived at a snail farm an hour outside of Bangkok to interview the four Thai researchers who founded Siam Snail, and instead found myself reluctantly posing for pictures as snail cream was applied to my face, no closer to learning how exactly the snail slime had been extracted. </p>
<p id="yWC37O">Instead of the private interview and viewing of the mucin extraction process I’d been promised, I was surrounded by at least 25 members of the Thai media, listening to a presentation in Thai with the occasional translation whispered my way. As we walked through the small farms — dense clusters of vegetation where snails are left to roam freely — the PR rep assured me I’d be able to return later to ask all my questions and photograph slime being collected from the snails, as I’d originally arranged.</p>
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<cite>Photo: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pg/siamsnailofficial/photos/?tab=album&album_id=779945732090495">Siam Snail Facebook</a></cite>
<figcaption>Siam Snail’s product.</figcaption>
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<p id="IN91MT">The tour ended with a group lunch by the river, complimentary jars of night cream, and encouragements to post on social media. After a month and a half of trying to schedule a follow-up visit, I received a text late on a Friday night saying that the board had decided to keep its processes confidential. </p>
<p id="WLRh16">It was slowly starting to become clear why snail creams have become a topic of confusion and debate among skin care devotees. Weeks later, with emails to snail specialists gone unanswered, it was certain: This is a thorny subject. The question of how snail slime is extracted — and the related concern of whether it can be done humanely — is a difficult one to answer, but maybe not for the reasons you think.</p>
<p id="wxorrB">As K-beauty products have become more visible in the US, sold at a variety of price points in places like Sephora, Target, CVS, and Nordstrom, so too have snail creams. Made using snail mucin, the slime is collected, typically processed into a filtrate, and then formulated into the final product (though there are<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/jan/28/snail-mucus-facials-thailand"> spas where snails directly crawl across your face</a>). </p>
<p id="ocRlWv">In ancient Greece, snails were used as a topical treatment for inflammation, and today snail mucin is also harvested in places like France and touted as <a href="https://www.elle.com/beauty/makeup-skin-care/advice/a31336/italian-beauty-guide/">one of the secrets</a> to the effortless beauty of Italian women.</p>
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<p id="egW6UB">The snail beauty boom as we know it today was <a href="http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/317e4925a9b68149e7fea2932b3f7201">kicked off in the early 1980s</a> when Chilean farmers, who were producing escargot for the French market, noticed that handling their slimy livestock led to softer hands and cuts healing more quickly. </p>
<p id="KGr3Je">“Koreans are really good at picking up what they’ve heard somewhere else and running with it,” says Janice Kang, the senior director of marketing and new business development in the Americas and Europe for DKCOS, whose beauty products are sold in places like Walmart, Target, and Ulta. </p>
<p id="ZTlOXS">She believes Korea’s position as a snail cream superpower is in large part because “snails are a <em>big</em> part of the [Korean] diet and drinking culture,” which made it easy for many farms to quickly transition from the food industry to the beauty industry. Michelle Wong, a science educator and chemistry PhD whose blog <a href="https://labmuffin.com/">Lab Muffin</a> explores the science behind beauty products, adds that in South Korea “consumers are more likely to try out novel ingredients even if they seem a bit ‘gross’ [since] they’re a bit more results-focused.” </p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="lPk4G0"><q>South Korean “consumers are more likely to try out novel ingredients even if they seem a bit ‘gross’ [since] they’re a bit more results-focused”</q></aside></div>
<p id="tIPoEU">The snail’s role as food source can obfuscate its role in the beauty industry. In the absence of images of how snail mucin is collected, <a href="https://www.carolinehirons.com/2017/03/snail-madness.html">it’s not uncommon for blogs to use images of snails being cooked</a>. Taken from cooking shows or demonstrations of how to scrape a snail from its shell, these images of snails literally being killed aren’t a good approximation for the process of mucin collection — to produce mucin, snails need to be kept alive. </p>
<p id="eMuG0B">Chel Cortes, who runs the K-beauty-inspired online store <a href="https://www.holysnailsshop.com/">Holy Snails</a>, thinks “that a lot of the scrutiny” in the West around snail creams “is due to the animal itself,” tapping into “an innate bias against” what is not a particularly beautiful creature. Blog posts theorizing about how snails are treated can also focus on the <a href="http://www.vivawoman.net/2012/07/snail-slime-in-skincare-will-you-use-it/">“weirdness”</a> of the ingredient. </p>
<p id="ZuGuJP">On her own blog, Racked contributor Tracy E. Robey <a href="https://www.fanserviced-b.com/caroline-hirons-snail/">offers a humorously NSFW post</a> about how just because something, like snail slime, sounds gross, it doesn’t mean there’s anything inherently wrong with it. Complete with a Whitney Houston GIF asking for receipts in response to blogger claims that snails are being harmed, Robey writes that the history of the West denigrating Asian people based on the consumption of certain animals means there are “real life implications of once again calling Asian stuff weird and cruel with ... in this case, zero evidence.” </p>
<p id="LLP50g">What there is evidence of, according to Dr. Joshua Zeichner, the director of cosmetic and clinical research at the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, is that “snail slime has been shown to have many benefits on aging skin [and is] rich in hyaluronic acid,” giving it hydrating properties. </p>
<p id="h0dwMO">While it’s “unclear whether [snail creams] are truly better than traditional moisturizers or ingredients like retinol,” they have been shown to “stimulate collagen production and enhance wound healing,” which is one major reason they’ve become so popular among skin care devotees. </p>
<p id="PqKDuN">According to Wong, “snail slime also seems to have whitening properties,” and since it “contains allantoin (an anti-irritant) and a number of moisturising ingredients, it’s likely to help ... counteract the irritation caused by many [other] whitening” agents, tapping into a “huge market in Asian countries.”</p>
<p id="2Zwm2n">According to the brand representatives I spoke with, though there are many ways to collect mucin, popular techniques usually involve leaving snails in a dark room and having them crawl on a surface like mesh, specially made glass, or a tarp, and then collecting the slime afterward. </p>
<p id="bLapqy">Brands like Mizon and CosRX use mucin collected through some version of this method. DKCOS sources from multiple suppliers that use different methods. Snail8 collects slime by stimulating snails by hand, and techniques involving a steam bath or salt water also exist. </p>
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<cite>Photo: AFP/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>An employee of a cosmetic laboratory prepares a product for Jeanne M, a cosmetic brand that uses snail slime.</figcaption>
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<p id="VN2LwN">Whether because of the <a href="https://www.racked.com/2016/8/29/12698288/sheet-mask-sanitation-scandal-k-beauty">2016 discovery</a> that certain companies were outsourcing the folding of beauty masks to private homes, or the reminders that <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=VdLf4fihP78">certain clothing manufacturers have continually employed child labor</a>, shoppers today have good reason to ask critical questions about where products come from. That there are so few images online of the actual collection process can be troubling, and in the absence of clear supply chains and manufacturing procedures, it can be easy to worry that some wrongdoing is being covered up. </p>
<p id="iZvqQT">But according to various brand representatives, it’s less that suppliers are trying to hide what they’re doing wrong. They’re trying to hide what they’re doing right. </p>
<p id="k5AwZo">Alicia Yoon, the founder of <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.peachandlily.com%2F&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2018%2F4%2F18%2F17244972%2Fsnail-slime-mucin-extract-how-kbeauty-humane" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Peach & Lily</a>, an “online portal” for K-beauty products, credits supplier evasiveness, whether it’s about their process for collecting “snail mucin or even botanical extracts,” to the fact that having “the most cost-effective and highest-quality ingredients [is a company’s] secret sauce in a highly competitive industry.” </p>
<p id="mTYVu5">That’s why CosRX’s supplier won’t allow filming at its facilities, out of “concern that their refinement technique [could] be leaked,” says team manager Hye-Young Lee, who says that “with the K-beauty boom,” there’s a real concern that domestic and international competitors might be trying to “take note of their [supplier’s] valuable technology.”</p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="jzdouO"><q>It’s less that suppliers are trying to hide what they’re doing wrong. They’re trying to hide what they’re doing right. </q></aside></div>
<p id="MStQ6p">The secrecy around proprietary information means that only designated CosRX staff are allowed to visit and regularly inspect their supplier’s facilities. Kang says that a few of DKCOS’s suppliers won’t allow anyone from the brand to visit at all. </p>
<p id="eGFZYK">So when PR reps for beauty brands didn’t answer my questions, there was a chance it was because they didn’t have any answers themselves. The process of getting those answers, and having English-speaking reps contact their Korean offices and suppliers for sensitive industry information, can stretch the process for weeks or even indefinitely. </p>
<p id="r3suS3">Even Lee, who has previously fielded similar questions and provided redditors with <a href="https://imgur.com/a/NjEKC">documents</a> broadly outlining the mucin collection process of CosRX’s supplier, still took weeks to answer as she waited on information and translations from other teams within the company.</p>
<p id="PNDGq9">Because of these barriers, South Korea’s ban on animal testing in cosmetics, which went into effect fully in February 2017, is often pointed to as proof that animals in the industry are being treated well. “The topic of animal abuse across various industries has sparked controversies in Korea, and Korean consumers are quite vigilant and vocal about what they’re consuming,” says Yoon. Though there’s a distinction between animal testing and using animal byproducts, she, along with Lee and Kang, point to these laws as a reason customers can feel confident that snail farms are following humane standards. </p>
<p id="pthYIZ">“Looking away from the emotional standpoint, it just doesn’t seem cost-effective” to harm them, adds Cortes, pointing out that snails, which produce mucin throughout their lives, are moneymakers. “I have not personally come across brands that work with snail mucin ingredient suppliers that harm the snails,” says Yoon, and given “that there are varied cost-effective options that do not harm snails,” she finds it “hard to imagine” suppliers choosing to harvest mucin in a harmful way.</p>
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<cite>Photo: Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Snails crawls on a woman’s face in a beauty salon in Japan.</figcaption>
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<p id="d3o6Gi">Because beyond all the perceived weirdness of snail slime and the usual questions about whether any specific beauty product truly holds the answer to ageless or “perfect” skin, one question remains the most contentious: Are the snails suffering? And if they are being treated poorly, can they even feel pain?</p>
<p id="moGnyB">Snails aren’t the cutest or sexiest of the animal rights causes, which might be why so few resources about their treatment in the beauty industry are available online. Apart from beauty blogs featuring images of snails being cooked, or forums with people talking through allegations of cruelty, the only easily accessible information from a major animal rights organization comes from a PETA <a href="https://www.peta2.com/news/snail-slime-beauty-products/">article</a> and <a href="https://www.peta.org/living/personal-care-fashion/may-putting-vomit-crushed-beetles-face/">beauty product roundup</a>. </p>
<p id="t0xtkF">Though the article is correct that some companies <a href="https://www.cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/Article/2013/07/24/First-EU-industrial-scale-snail-mucus-plant-to-create-cosmetics-revolution">use salt in the process of collecting mucin</a>, its claim that this is “known to harm” snails conflicts with its linked source, which assures “those concerned about the animal rights issues” that “the snails are left unharmed by the process.” (When I first reached out to the organization in February for comment, I was told this would be looked into, but as of publication, the article has not been amended.)</p>
<p id="ThZcvH"><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Health/PainManagement/story?id=722163&page=1">Many researchers looking at animals with simple nervous systems</a>, like lobsters, snails, and worms, argue that because these animals cannot process emotional information, they cannot experience suffering, a claim that PETA has challenged. “Any time that animals — no matter their size — are raised for their body parts or secretions, you can bet that cruelty will be involved,” says Jason Baker, PETA’s vice president of international campaigns. </p>
<p id="lxpNzT">“Given all we know about their capacity to experience pleasure and suffering, it’s inexcusable to treat them callously like pieces of laboratory equipment to be manipulated, used, abused, and discarded for any reason.” </p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="EWBaFt"><q>“Any time that animals — no matter their size — are raised for their body parts or secretions, you can bet that cruelty will be involved”</q></aside></div>
<p id="eCEUMX">Baker also says that because these products aren’t vegan, Korea’s animal testing ban isn’t enough of an assurance that snail creams are cruelty-free, pointing out that “since the early 1980s, experimenters have documented that snails and other gastropods detect and will try to escape from painful stimuli.” </p>
<p id="rlAUnr">The cited studies do show that snails retreat from certain painful stimuli, though they also concede this could be a reflex rather than the more complex emotional response and pattern of behavior we associate with suffering. One source also cites the controversy over whether anesthetized invertebrates’ slowed response to painful stimuli is proof of dulled pain or simply because their muscles are too relaxed to react. </p>
<p id="uLQM0m">Intended to better inform laboratory procedures when dealing with invertebrates, many of these studies note the physical reactions of these animals while still acknowledging that we cannot draw definite conclusions about how they process pain. </p>
<p id="xdgwPF">While researchers and animal rights activists are still debating the highly subjective definition of suffering and trying to find ways of testing and measuring it, some authorities, like Canada’s Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs, have concluded that <a href="https://sencanada.ca/content/sen/committee/372/lega/witn/shelly-e.htm">“the balance of the evidence suggests that most invertebrates do not feel pain.”</a> “There’s a lot of debate about the extent to which animals feel pain and suffering, even amongst biologists,” says Wong, so if you haven’t made up your mind yet, you aren’t alone. </p>
<p id="C6t0iG">Snail slime remains a contentious, as well as popular, outcome of the K-beauty boom in the US. And while many of the brands I spoke with admitted that snail mucin receives more scrutiny than most other ingredients in the beauty industry, there still aren’t many easy answers about how each company gets its snail mucin or how invertebrates process the sensation of crawling over mesh or being put in salted water. </p>
<p id="1U40V9">“Unfortunately, the beauty industry is shrouded in mystery. I think it’s been that way since it was first created,” says Cortes of Holy Snails, who thinks the “beautifying” of products and the importance of brand stories have in many cases led to “marketing [getting] in the way of information.” </p>
<p id="diFJRI">In the face of barriers presented by marketing and proprietary information, it’s good to question the products we purchase and what we know about them. The shopping decisions you make, with the information that’s available, are up to you. </p>
<aside id="Ox2uv1"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"racked_national"}'></div></aside>
https://www.racked.com/2018/4/18/17244972/snail-slime-mucin-extract-how-kbeauty-humaneMicaela Marini Higgs2018-03-27T09:30:01-04:002018-03-27T09:30:01-04:00How Time Moved From Our Pockets to Our Wrists
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<figcaption>A close-up of the workings on the inside of a wristwatch. | Photo: Fox Photos/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>A brief history of timepieces. </p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="JNqRLf">Like the Apple Watches of today, early wearable tech had multiple functions, and keeping time wasn’t always the top priority. </p>
<p id="0QMNGG">Though many sources <a href="https://www.deutsches-uhrenmuseum.de/en/museum/knowledge/clock-facts/peter-henlein-and-the-immortal-heart.html">cite German clockmaker Peter Henlein’s “Nuremberg eggs” of the early 16th century</a>, which were worn on a chain around the neck, as the first wearable timepieces, it’s believed that that the original examples actually appeared in <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/watc/hd_watc.htm">Italy in the late 15th century</a>. Despite the debated origin of the watch, there’s consensus that they often served more as decoration than as accurate timekeepers, and were worn around the neck, fastened to clothing, or embedded into jewelry. Made portable thanks to the invention of the mainspring, they needed to be regularly wound, and <a href="http://mrwatchmaster.com/mrwatchmaster-visits-the-british-museum-time-in-reserve/">watches that kept count of minutes were extremely rare</a>, with many instead tracking things like the month or phase of the moon.</p>
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<cite>Photo: Bettmann Archive/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>17th century Nuremberg Egg Watch.</figcaption>
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<p id="MHk3NB">In the 17th century, the introduction of waistcoats popularized the pocket as the new place to wear and display watches, changing the shape of timepieces into the pocket watches we think of today. Flattened so that they could more easily slip into clothing, watch faces began to be covered in glass in part to protect their fragile inner mechanisms from catching on fabric. Often elaborately decorated and made out of expensive materials, they were still as much a fashion accessory as a reflection of their owner’s access to the latest technology. </p>
<p id="vVMkC8">But besides their obvious function as a status symbol, “watches often became like a bank account,” says Alexis McCrossen, author of <em>Marking Modern Times: A History of Clocks, Watches, and Other Timekeepers in American Life</em>, and a popular source on the topic of wearable time. “They were portable and made of precious metals. If you look at items that [were] pawned or sold up through 1900, pocket watches tend to be 30 percent of the inventory.” <a href="https://www.esquire.com/uk/style/watches/news/g7190/10-watches-to-invest-in-today/">The perception of a watch as an investment or future heirloom</a> remains popular today, though it’s arguable that the value of a modern watch is determined more by brand than how much it literally weighs in gold. </p>
<p id="66qMo4">Because early watches had unreliable timekeeping mechanisms and there were “no established time standards until the 19th century,” McCrossen points out that for much of history, owning a watch was like “having a cellphone without a network.” In a society where circadian rhythms and clock towers offered a rough structure for people’s lives, watches worked best as a way to display and invest wealth. </p>
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<cite>Photo by Museum of London/Heritage Images/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Watches, late 17th to early 18th century. Pocket watches, one of which shows a man and woman flirting.</figcaption>
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<p id="fcIzyF">And then the Industrial Revolution happened and suddenly “being on time” was really important. Train schedules were impossible to understand without standardized timetables, and the shift from agricultural to factory labor introduced the concept of time sense and clocking in. </p>
<p id="336laX">As time became a commodity to be measured out and capitalized on, factories pushed workers to maximize their output and enforced time discipline with harsh and often disproportionate fines for anyone who arrived late. <a href="https://elevenththing.wordpress.com/post-industrial-revolution/">Time-oriented factories sought to squeeze maximum productivity out of every minute</a>, and the more flexible and task-oriented style of pre-industrial labor was replaced with routine and mechanized monotony. <a href="https://books.google.co.th/books?id=Y84YxYynWb0C&pg=PT57&lpg=PT57&dq=did+factory+workers+own+pocket+watches+industrial+revolution&source=bl&ots=lNTp3qzB9u&sig=HKMGZ-UO3poX5sqzjp17Osedx9E&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjqucTn55XZAhVMRo8KHV0WBJIQ6AEIQzAD#v=onepage&q=did%20factory%20workers%20own%20pocket%20watches%20industrial%20revolution&f=false">Some factories even slowed down their clocks</a> so that they could stretch the length of a work day. </p>
<p id="DK2AxK">In his writing, scholar David Landes observes that these strict systems of time discipline led many workers to view “<a href="https://books.google.co.th/books?id=TUzXAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA1&lpg=PA1&dq=factory+to+be+a+kind+of+jail,+with+the+clock+as+the+lock.+revolution+in+time+thomson&source=bl&ots=X2kJbt-FM3&sig=dvw_2Upi5BQlduEJ230ZAYSJaQI&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwifl42B9dbZAhUMp48KHY0LCGAQ6AEILzAB#v=onepage&q=factory%20to%20be%20a%20kind%20of%20jail%2C%20with%20the%20clock%20as%20the%20lock.%20revolution%20in%20time%20thomson&f=false">the factory to be a kind of jail, with the clock as the lock</a>,” echoing contemporary sentiments that the clock, and watch, had become tools of worker oppression. Amazon’s recent <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2018/02/02/technology/amazon-employee-tracker/index.html">patent of a controversial employee wristband</a>, designed to track movements and give haptic feedback to help improve efficiency, could be viewed as the descendent of these Industrial Revolution management systems that sought to maximize time efficiency and worker output. </p>
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<cite>Photo: E. O. Hoppe/Hulton Archive/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Workers pack medicine in the packaging room of the IG Farben-Bayer factory, Leverkusen, Germany, 1928</figcaption>
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<p id="kfF6xp">The pressure to be time disciplined could be felt throughout society during the 1870s and 1880s, but according to McCrossen, the proportion of watch owners in the early years of the Industrial Revolution didn’t increase significantly. Clocks, clock towers, and <a href="https://www.interestingshit.com/history/the-industrial-revolutions-peashooting-human-alarm-clocks/">professional wake-up callers</a> remained cheaper solutions, and contemporary accounts show that in some cases, workers simply guessed at the time their shift started based on the sounds of the street.</p>
<p id="eAbJEE"><em>Marking Modern Times</em> argues that despite watches’ role as a status symbol, the secondhand market was large enough that poor and low-skilled workers also owned timepieces. What contributed to keeping watches outside of certain environments was something as simple as clothing — McCrossen writes that since pocket watches were designed for the “trouser- and- jacket-wearing classes,” manual laborers typically didn’t have a safe place in their uniforms to hold a timepiece. Rather than being a tool at work, the watch was worn as a public item of clothing, a deliberate symbol that communicated something about its wearer’s modernity and efficiency.</p>
<p id="RhR4a5"><a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/pocket-watch-was-worlds-first-wearable-tech-game-changer-180951435/">Ambitious people earned the nickname “stemwinder” because they were constantly winding their watches</a>, and timeliness became viewed as a moral attribute. The watch showed that its owner was literally keeping up with the times and offered a sense of control and independence. Because watches remained expensive, this moral test was easier for certain groups in society, and in Horatio Alger’s rags-to-riches stories <a href="http://d.lib.rochester.edu/cinderella/text/alger-archetypes-and-themes">the protagonist receiving a watch</a> was a motif that was frequently used to reflect their social ascension. </p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/wKqeJI9YGnufxBlbtyThDDL54oU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/10433311/GettyImages_485664353.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Jay Paull/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Advertisement for Ingersoll Dollar Watches.</figcaption>
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<p id="0lMrql">In the 1880s, watch manufacturers recognized that their sales numbers were being held back by pricing and began to develop cheaper models. In 1892 the first dollar watch hit the wider American market for the equivalent of $27.78 in today’s money. The <a href="https://www.ingersoll1892.com/history">Ingersoll Watch Company sold over 1 million of the product</a> it would later dub “<a href="https://books.google.co.th/books?id=UqcyDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT131&lpg=PT131&dq=%E2%80%9Cthe+watch+that+made+the+dollar+famous.%E2%80%9D&source=bl&ots=NdaPBfD0m9&sig=fU-U4-gxXLAqX_QvyTW-eWK_Qvo&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiMzOyOkNfZAhUBOY8KHR8JB4cQ6AEIczAO#v=onepage&q=%E2%80%9Cthe%20watch%20that%20made%20the%20dollar%20famous.%E2%80%9D&f=false">the watch that made the dollar famous</a>.”</p>
<p id="lEkjW6">Built to stand up to regular use, the inner mechanism of the dollar watch was made without a jewel and the parts were out made of stamped metal, drastically cutting down on production costs. Typically cheaper to replace than fix, it didn’t offer the full investment value of the timepieces that had come before it, but it still had the power to communicate ideas about its owner. The brand used patriotic imagery like flags and soldiers to market its “Yankee” watches, and publicized the story of how during a hunting trip in Africa, Theodore Roosevelt was referred to as “<a href="https://www.ingersoll1892.com/history">the man from the country where Ingersoll watches are made</a>.” That timepieces were being used as a reference point for the US during an era of expanding globalization demonstrates their effectiveness, or at least perceived effectiveness, in communicating a specific type of desirable identity. </p>
<p id="e8FvgT">The modern perception of wristwatches as symbols of masculinity — <a href="http://fortune.com/2017/09/24/patek-philippe-luxury-watches-women/">reflected in recent coverage that brands are “finally” taking female buyers seriously</a> — contradicts the early history of what was once perceived as an exclusively feminine object. The first wristwatch was made in 1868, and these “bracelets,” as they were called at the time, were primarily considered fashionable jewelry. Like nearly every example of female fashion, <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/pocket-watch-was-worlds-first-wearable-tech-game-changer-180951435/">they faced criticism</a> and snickers up until the 20th century, when they were eventually adopted by men. </p>
<div class="c-wide-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/jfkq1e2XiyVEitWCkv4SdGcilHM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/10433349/GettyImages_558653801.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Keystone-France\Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>A wristwatch and a bracelet, side by side. </figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="E9eIGJ">In 1912 <a href="http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9F07E0D7113AE633A25755C0A9669D946396D6CF"><em>The New York Times</em> declared</a> the bracelet watch “the fashion of the hour” in Paris and “the most useful piece of jewelry that has been invented,” wondering if its practicality might help it become “universally fashionable” across genders. By this point, soldiers in the Boer War had already strapped watches to their arms to better coordinate tactical movements and attacks, but the military application of “trench watches” in the World Wars were what truly solidified the wristwatch’s macho cred. In <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/05/history-wristwatch-apple-watch/391424/">Uri Friedman’s 2015 <em>Atlantic</em> article</a>, McCrossen describes how World War I transformed the watch into an accessory for “the most modern of all heroes... the aviator.” In response, manufacturers began to design wristwatches with “the promise that [they] could make a man more soldierlike... [and] more masculine.” Though the focus in advertising shifted away from aesthetics and toward efficiency, watch marketing never abandoned the themes of symbolic power and modernity. Owning a watch was still about more than just telling time. </p>
<p id="XRK876">These values span the history of wearable tech. The mass popularity of calculator watches during the 1970s wasn’t just because people suddenly had to crunch numbers on the go, but because they served as a new vehicle for communicating ideas about efficiency, status, and modernity that we have always sought to express with our wardrobes and accessories. By the mid 1980s, Casio’s Databank calculator watch could also store appointments, names, addresses, and phone numbers — all the things that a busy and productive person might need. The PDAs that followed the calculator watch and the workaholic-friendly reputation of Blackberries during the mid-aughts all played on the ideas of efficiency and ambition that made pocket watches popular with “stemwinders” over a century earlier. </p>
<div class="c-wide-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/gbSVykxxgG8C7V5h_6cN0YzH-gQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/10433327/GettyImages_530840314.jpg">
<cite>Photo by George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Aviator Glenn Martin wearing a wristwatch.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="sHJcoK">Today’s smart watches continue to play on these ideas, speaking to the person who constantly needs to be plugged in. By moving notifications to the wrist, where you can easily monitor them without having to spend time on your phone, the idea is that users can more efficiently spend time managing their tasks and receive and react to important updates in the moment. While smart-watch wearers can’t be described by a single demographic, the price point of these devices (and the fact that people who own them already need to have a smartphone) makes them a luxury product linked to perceived efficiency. </p>
<p id="5ct6O1">Throughout history, watches have played various roles in people’s outward expression of how modern, manly, womanly, rich, or industrious they are. They have been financial investments, tools of war, and a reflection of the ways that clothing can shape technology and our lives. The dichotomy watches have had as luxury objects and utilitarian tools reflects the dual purpose of clothing itself — something that has practical usefulness and also a unique ability to communicate something deeper about ourselves. What makes the wearable technology and smart watches of today different is that they’re competing with our smartphones. McCrossen doesn’t think that’s a fight that they can win, standing behind her 2013 statement that “anything attached to the wrist is more likely to fail than thrive.” “If anything, the wristwatch is a blip,” in history, she muses, less useful than a smartphone and more vulnerable to damage. And while the design and materials of a luxury wristwatch can communicate specific ideas about its owner and their taste, standardized-looking smart watches just don’t offer that same kind of symbolic power. </p>
<p id="LGSTsM">Despite her own adoring description of her favorite wristwatch, McCrossen thinks that the smartphone will continue to overshadow other forms of wearable tech, making use of the innovation that first made technology truly wearable: pockets.</p>
https://www.racked.com/2018/3/27/17126050/watch-historyMicaela Marini Higgs2017-11-16T09:32:02-05:002017-11-16T09:32:02-05:00Etsy’s Evolution Strains Sellers
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<figcaption>Photo: Richard Levine/Corbis via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>After a lackluster IPO, longterm shopkeepers notice shifts. </p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="qboPWY">When it set up digital shop in 2005, Etsy felt like the antithesis of eBay. Back then, online shopping was still very new, and with its offerings of vintage clothing, handmade jewelry, and crafted goods, Etsy’s boutique chic contrasted well against the auction site, which dominated peer-to-peer selling but felt more like a cluttered yard sale.</p>
<p id="ROCAVZ">Now, two and a half years after <a href="http://fortune.com/2015/06/08/etsy-ipo-worst-2015/">a lackluster IPO</a>, Etsy looks and feels much different, with one former Etsy loyalist, who used to rely on the site for every gift-giving occasion (and, disclosure, my personal friend), calling it “a slightly more curated eBay.” The number of active sellers has increased from 2016 to 2017, per Etsy’s earnings reports. But with <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fteams%2F7722%2Fdiscussions%2Fdiscuss%2F18282817%2Fpage%2F1&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">65-page threads</a> in forums of sellers chronicling their declining sales, which many blame on Etsy’s search algorithms and the fact that mass-produced goods are clogging results, it’s clear that long-term sellers are noticing massive shifts.</p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="ifqzf3"><q>She calls discussions about the site’s changes “exhausting” because they’re “like talking politics, there are always people with different views.”</q></aside></div>
<p id="11J3uP">“Etsy has grown bigger than I think anyone expected,” says Staci Egan, who joined in 2007 with her shop <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fshop%2Fcontempojewelry&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Contempo Jewelry</a> and has been selling handmade earrings and necklaces full time for six years. She calls many of the discussions about the site’s changes, held in Etsy forums and Facebook groups, “exhausting” because they’re “like talking politics, there are always people with different views.”</p>
<p id="AmtmwG">Etsy’s desire to expand makes sense from a business standpoint, but for the people who have spent years on the site and feel emotionally invested, both in their shops and the community fostered on Etsy’s forums and groups, its shifting priorities can feel like a betrayal.</p>
<p id="YS9FVm">“There has definitely been growth among more ‘manufactured’ goods, and from what Etsy has communicated, that's been by design,” says Emily Popek, who began selling vintage clothing through her shop <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fshop%2Fbreadandrosesvintage&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Bread and Roses Vintage</a> in 2012. She notes that vintage and handmade clothing has been drowned out by options that can be produced “in volume.” </p>
<p id="cdoxk5">“I do not think Etsy is an independent marketplace, but you can still find independent artists — you just have to dig deeper,” agrees Leigh Kelsey, who started <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fshop%2Frhymeswithtwee&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Rhymes With Twee</a> in 2005, selling screen-printed goods and wearables. Popek believes that Etsy “has been working very hard,” both to attract new customers and to “combat an image that once existed of Etsy as a place for quirky, weird, or even ludicrous goods.” The weird crafts and bizarre offerings were lovingly mocked by the popular, but now defunct, blog <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/0345523180/?tag=w050b-20" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Regretsy</a>.</p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="PFDHJz"><q>“I do not think Etsy is an independent marketplace, but you can still find independent artists — you just have to dig deeper.”</q></aside></div>
<p id="hrbRNX">One reason for shifting away from the weird and the wacky is Etsy Wholesale, a program where sellers are able to sell in bulk to businesses instead of individual customers. Rather than making customized one-offs, sellers now have to think about what products could sell in high numbers at physical retail shops. Amy Stringer-Mowat, whose shop <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fshop%2FAHeirloom&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">American Heirloom</a> went viral in 2010 with its customized cutting boards (<a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Dstate%2520shape&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">helping to kick off the trend of state-shaped everything</a>), says the program has been invaluable in courting new customers, streamlining her product line, and balancing out the declining number of sales in her Etsy shop. </p>
<p id="Isd7Wz">Egan, whose sales are also down, agrees that Wholesale has been a great step in expanding her business. She’s less enthusiastic about Etsy Studio, a new part of the sales platform that lets customers buy materials to make their own handicrafts. Studio is another example of Etsy experimenting with how to attract new kinds of customers, but many sellers complain it has pulled focus and resources away from normal Etsy shops, <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fteams%2F31311%2Fetsy-studio%2Fdiscuss%2F18367391%2Fpage%2F1&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">adding clutter to the site and cutting sales.</a> </p>
<p id="2W3jkf">When you speak to Etsy sellers, it’s impossible to avoid talking about the impact that Etsy Studio and Etsy Wholesale have had on their businesses, even if they don’t sell through either platform. Because they allow sellers to outsource parts of production, <a href="https://www.wired.com/2014/04/why-etsys-future-depends-on-leaving-behind-the-simply-handmade/">further blurring the criteria around what counts as “handmade,”</a> they represent a shift away from the distinguisher that set Etsy apart from other online-shopping rivals. Highly successful shops can’t fill orders without adding people to their team, and Wholesale’s expanded definition of “artisan-made” helps solve that problem. Etsy wants successful and growing shops to stay on the site, rather than transition to independent platforms, so there’s a big incentive to support shops that generate high sales and hire multiple employees or even outsource some work. But according to even the sellers who use Wholesale, many copycats and resellers buy cheap factory goods and sell them with a markup, taking advantage of loosened restrictions in order to flood the market. </p>
<aside id="mPcn18"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"racked_national"}'></div></aside><p id="ijJP6C">Just search for an <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fsearch%2Fhandmade%3Fexplicit_scope%3D1%26order%3Dmost_relevant%26q%3Doctopus%2Bpendant%26ref%3Dauto2&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">“octopus pendant”</a> and you’ll see the problem — the same product pops up again and again. While some have been altered, and thus arguably count as handmade, others are identical to what you can find <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.alibaba.com%2Fproduct-detail%2FAntique-bronze-alibaba-octopus-pendant-metal_60207756380.html&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">for a fraction of the price on Chinese sites like Alibaba</a>. Figuring out the search-engine algorithm that determines if your product is on the first page or buried on the 200th is essentially impossible, says Stringer-Mowat, who agrees with Kelsey’s judgement that “keeping up with the ever-changing keyword updating” is a full-time job. </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/c5U7pj-xsmSf1f9kWyAS-dGPCCA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/9601169/il_570xN.354086307_ks2o.jpg">
<cite>Photo: <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Flisting%2F103741645%2Foctopus-necklace-brass-octopus-necklace%3Fga_order%3Dmost_relevant%26ga_search_type%3Dhandmade%26ga_view_type%3Dgallery%26ga_search_query%3Doctopus%2520pendant%26ref%3Dsr_gallery_2&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Etsy</a></cite>
<figcaption>The octopus pendant all over Etsy.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="XILrMt">While Etsy’s cut of sales hasn’t changed, it does offer services like <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fseller-handbook%2Farticle%2F3-ways-to-make-the-most-of-promoted%2F22423534249&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">promoted listings</a>, which began in 2014, that eat into already-tight profit margins. Now, <a href="https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2017/08/04/etsy-marketplace-sales-increase-12-q2/">more than half of the site’s revenue now comes from services used by sellers</a>, a shift concurrent with individual artists noticing their own sales slow, even though Etsy’s gross merchandise sales are up 13.2 percent year-over-year in Q3. Still, Stringer-Mowat says, these services are worth it, “because the SEO is so tough to crack.” </p>
<p id="6QT3um">Those interviewed said that other online platforms are still much more opportunistic when it comes to taking advantage of independent sellers, but many fear that Etsy will try too hard to mimic more corporate platforms like Amazon. </p>
<p id="2Y2h01">These are the “growing pains of being an investor-backed company,” says Kelsey, with the push for larger, and hopefully more profitable, manufacturers spurred by the company’s new obligations to stockholders. “Unfortunately [Etsy does] not do a whole lot to protect artists,” she adds, speaking both from observation and experience. Historically, Etsy has been “slow to act, or worse, not [acted] at all,” when designs have been stolen. According to site policy, if you discover a copyright infringement, you can file a claim for Etsy to remove the listing. Offending shops are allowed to remain open, and <a href="https://artlawjournal.com/etsy-store-stole-art-can/">sellers are the ones who have to continue checking if their work has been re-copied.</a> Etsy says that <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Flegal%2Fip&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">the accounts of repeat copyright infringers can be terminated</a>, but sellers are dubious about how often this happens since there have been <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2015/2/18/8059835/how-to-make-money-on-etsy-buy-wholesale">high-profile cases where Etsy did not enforce its reselling policies</a> until it received massive press attention. As the site has expanded, and the logistics of monitoring listings has gotten even more complicated, <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Etsy/comments/2wcrsa/how_to_make_a_million_dollars_on_etsy_buy_from/">many an annoyed seller has theorized</a> that Etsy has little incentive to crack down since it makes a cut of sales either way. </p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="YKdt3v"><q>As some artists notice their own sales slow, more than half of the site’s revenue now comes from services used by sellers.</q></aside></div>
<p id="WGCYDi">According to Kelsey, now that larger manufacturers are involved, it’s even more difficult for independent designers to defend themselves, especially without a lawyer. She cites this as one reason artists say they’ve begun pulling away from the site. Other sellers shared similar stories of having their designs ripped off, resigned to the fact that getting copied, and competing against cheaper knock-offs, has become an increasingly inevitable part of doing business on the site. </p>
<p id="wxRqyh">Etsy’s responsibility to stockholders has resulted in more than tweaked SEO algorithms and aggressive pushes to grow the site’s offerings — <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/21/etsy-to-cut-15-percent-of-its-workforce-in-addition-to-ongoing-cuts.html">since May, 22 percent of the company’s staff have been laid off,</a> including then-CEO Chad Dickerson, who’s since been replaced by Josh Silverman. This taps into the deeper feeling of unease many sellers are experiencing — after spending years as part of a smaller site that prided itself on its strong community and forums, seller services are being streamlined, and having one-on-one relationships with staff just isn’t feasible. Lucky to have had her shop “directly supported” and promoted by the Etsy team when she first began, Stringer-Mowat notes that the members of staff she worked with were all let go during the layoffs. </p>
<p id="4ro8dO">Etsy hasn’t abandoned its sellers — on forums, you can still see staff answering questions — but the highly personalized and time-consuming process of building relationships with individual sellers is not sustainable. Plenty of sellers back in the day didn’t have the same opportunity to work with Etsy’s CEO, as Stringer-Mowat did, but there at least was a greater chance of it happening. While people don’t expect as much relationship-building from competitors like <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Handmade/b?ie=UTF8&node=11260432011">Amazon Handmade</a>, because Etsy is a site that differentiated itself by focusing on its small and independent sellers, it is often held to a higher standard. </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><div id="Apgf1T">
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="7" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:8px;"> <div style=" background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:50.0% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;"> <div style=" background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;"></div>
</div> <p style=" margin:8px 0 0 0; padding:0 4px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BbAy-delyGP/" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">When was the last time you sent a handwritten note? ✍️✨ Tap our link in bio to shop these fox note cards from @EtsyIT seller @abstractales.</a></p> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by etsy (@etsy) on <time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime="2017-11-03T00:09:19+00:00">Nov 2, 2017 at 5:09pm PDT</time></p>
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<p id="eQsT3s">So is Etsy harder to break into than it once was? The slowed growth witnessed by some sellers suggests that <a href="https://www.inc.com/alex-moazed/etsy-looks-to-boost-growth-with-its-new-craft-marketplace.html">the market may be reaching its saturation point</a>. Thanks to the sheer amount of stuff on the site, and the time-consuming task of making sure your listings are the first that customers find, those interviewed say it’s definitely more work. </p>
<p id="edI5mC">For those hoping to build their brand and find new customers without having to rely on Etsy’s SEO, cross-promotion on social media has become hugely important, says Popek, with Kelsey agreeing that “having a presence across social media is imperative, but likes do not always guarantee sales.” For customers who’ve drifted from Etsy, social media is also an easy way to stay up to date with their favorite shops. </p>
<p id="kUdJy8">New features, like guest checkout, show that Etsy is paying attention to how its sellers are branching out to different platforms, making cross-promotion easier by allowing customers to visit and buy from shops without having to make an account or engage with the larger site. This feature has been <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.etsy.com%2Fteams%2F7722%2Fdiscussions%2Fdiscuss%2F18442483%2Fpage%2F1&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F11%2F16%2F16602692%2Fetsys-sellers-ipo" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">enthusiastically praised</a> by sellers, and based on her interactions with guest buyers, Egan suspects it has tapped into a new market by attracting older shoppers. </p>
<p id="L3CDsp">“People have to realize that Etsy is only one [albeit important] tool in a toolbox,” advises Stringer-Mowat. It’s not 2005 anymore, and Etsy, whether people like it or not, is a company that now answers to stockholders more than sellers. But “one huge strength” of the platform remains, says Popek: its “very strong, very active community of sellers,” which is enabled by Etsy’s various networking tools. According to the sellers we spoke with, this key feature continues to set Etsy apart from its competition and preserves some of the original camaraderie that made the site so special to begin with. They say that’s worth holding onto. </p>
<p id="hyTio9"><em>Correction: November 16th, 2017</em></p>
<p id="k7avhE"><em>This article previously misstated that Etsy’s IPO was a year and a half ago; it was two and a half years ago. It has also been update to clarify that Chad Dickerson was replaced as CEO in May 2017; that while individual sellers have seen drops in sales, gross merchandise sales are up year-over-year; and that the number of active sellers on Etsy has grown from 2016 to 2017.</em></p>
https://www.racked.com/2017/11/16/16602692/etsys-sellers-ipoMicaela Marini Higgs2017-10-31T09:32:01-04:002017-10-31T09:32:01-04:00Why We Still Call Them Bodice Rippers
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<figcaption>A still from <em>Outlander</em>. | Photo: Starz</figcaption>
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<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>Derision for the genre might have as much to do with the bodice as the ripping. </p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="iiRzt8">Before the first season of <em>Outlander</em> aired, outlets like <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2014/07/starz-outlander-more-than-a-bodice-ripper"><em>Vanity Fair</em> wondered</a> if the show had "what it takes to be more than just a bodice-ripper.” The implication was that while “women [were] already in the bag,” it was a “huge mistake” for the show to market itself to a female audience. Despite <em>Outlander</em> books having topped<em> New York Times</em> bestseller lists, apparently female interest is inherently too niche. </p>
<p id="FC40iP">While <em>Outlander</em>’s continued success has proven otherwise, even managing to attract male fans, the misconceptions around historical romance and the skepticism aimed toward the genre are nothing new.</p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="81WRdD"><q>“In the popular imagination, the term [bodice ripper] is used very loosely, I would dare say promiscuously.”</q></aside></div>
<p id="z03hXD">“In the popular imagination, the term [bodice ripper] is used very loosely, I would dare say promiscuously,” laughs Jayashree Kamblé, a professor of English at LaGuardia Community College and author of <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.palgrave.com%2Fus%2Fbook%2F9781137395047&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F10%2F31%2F16507794%2Fbodice-rippers" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank"><em>Making Meaning in Popular Romance Fiction</em></a>.</p>
<p id="8cyhkH">While historical romance remains a major part of the romantic fiction genre today, experts agree that bodice rippers describe a short and specific moment in American publishing history that lasted only between the early 1970s and mid-1980s. Replacing shorter and serialized novels with more sexually explicit books inspired by the popularity of <em>The Flame and the Flower</em>, released in 1972, bodice rippers met reader demand and flooded the market with mass-produced romances. This was where the cheesy book covers we associate with romance novels (and later Fabio) came from. </p>
<p id="uvCGZL">While the content and style of romance books has evolved, the term “bodice ripper” has hung around, largely as a joke made at the expense of romance novels, partially in homages made by contemporary romance writers, and in large part because there’s just something so evocative about the term. The bodice ripper moniker has followed the <em>Outlander</em> series since the first book was released in 1991, and author <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2016/06/diana-gabaldon-outlander-isnt-really-a-romance.html">Diana Gabaldon publicly distanced herself</a> from the romance community, likely in an attempt to appeal to audiences scared away by the genre’s lowbrow reputation.</p>
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<cite>Photo: Avon</cite>
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<p id="lo6v9w">Cover art is in large part to thank for this enduring reputation. While books were written for voracious female audiences, it’s largely agreed that covers were designed for men. As male cover artists transitioned from working on the pulp novels of the 1940s and 1950s, they carried over a style and artistic point of view that focused on how female characters looked. Before female readers could buy books, stores had to stock them, and it’s widely understood within publishing that salacious covers were made to appeal to male booksellers and their expectations of the genre. Featuring women with chests heaving out of their tight dresses, clutched in the muscled arms of men with open shirts, scantily clad characters quickly became a visual shorthand that appealed to the male gaze and signaled to readers what kind of storyline they could expect. These were the only books available for voracious romance readers, and publishers interpreted high sales numbers as a sign that formulaic and camp book covers worked.</p>
<p id="hD1ylt">“The cover art, which was absolutely about period clothing, was probably where the term [bodice ripper] originated,” says Kamblé. By 1979 the<em> New York Times </em>and <em>Chicago Tribune</em> were using the term dismissively. </p>
<p id="qI1A8y">The connotation, that bodice rippers are stories about “passive women having titillating sexual experiences for people to giggle at,” has remained, says Maya Rodale, <a href="http://www.mayarodale.com/">best-selling romance novelist and author of <em>Dangerous Books for Girls: The Bad Reputation of Romance Novels Explained</em></a>. Rodale says that before she began reading romance she had the same impulse to laugh at the genre, which Kamblé suggests is a reaction to deep-rooted American puritanism and why critical reception to romance novels remains so limited and shallow. The word “bodice” is suggestive enough to inspire pearl-clutching and awkward titters, but it still dances around frank terminology and clear conversations about female sexuality. Saying “bodice” is preferable to naming what the covers are really showcasing: boobs. </p>
<aside id="ZzeGs9"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"racked_national"}'></div></aside><p id="COnjgF">Representing some of the problematic politics of the 1970s, rape is a major plot device in many bodice rippers, meaning that in most cases the ripping and removal of clothing isn’t consensual. With heroines eventually falling in love with their rapists, the books offer an uncomfortably sanitized glamorization of rape and romance that modern readers understandably find difficult to contend with, says Bea Koch, who has a master’s degree from NYU in fashion history and co-owns the romance bookstore <a href="https://www.racked.com/2016/4/11/11345866/romance-novel-bookstore-the-ripped-bodice-california">the Ripped Bodice</a>. </p>
<p id="lvksYs">One common theory mentioned by Koch was that this plot device was popular because of the era’s repressive sexual attitudes, appealing to women who wanted sex but didn’t feel like they were allowed to openly express those desires. </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/mgoVhwDtG7SwqY1LMtlgfqFtafE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/9502047/626f96c9d449c959a0db50dcd0d99933__the_mistresses_house_party.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Pocket Books</cite>
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<p id="6OrFR2">Kamblé doesn’t agree with this theory, postulating that these stories deeply address another cultural issue of the time, where “rape was a real part of women’s lives and a constant threat,” but victims of sexual assault were saddled with the stigma of being tainted or “second-hand goods.” By incorporating romance, and having a woman marry the man who took her virginity, a heroine avoided having to find someone else who would want a “ruined” woman. The plot device <a href="https://pictorial.jezebel.com/the-sweet-savage-sexual-revolution-that-set-the-romanc-1789687801">largely disappeared during the 1980s</a>, suggesting that “forced seduction” might not have been as titillating and popular among readers as publishers assumed.</p>
<p id="insigF">This is a legacy that romance authors and readers have had to contend with says Koch. “It’s something I think about a lot,” she says when explaining why her store’s name uses the past tense. “We didn’t want to evoke rape and sexual assault, but we did want to pay homage to the history of the genre.” Some authors, like Rodale, engage with these themes in books like <em>What a Wallflower Wants </em>(which she wanted to call <em>The Flame and the Wallflower</em>), which offer non-glamorized portrayals of sexual assault, tackling the topic for “modern audiences with modern values.” </p>
<p id="HKIXr9">Besides grappling with these heavier themes, many modern historical romance authors also include Easter eggs and fun homages to bodice rippers in their stories, often through references to clothing. <a href="http://tessadare.com/2015/11/16/ripping-the-bodice/">Tessa Dare includes a ripped bodice in each of her novels</a> and hands out bodice repair kits at book signings, while in <em>Lord of Scoundrels</em>, Loretta Chase subverts the cliché by having her male protagonist’s shirt ripped open. Today’s historical romance writers use ripped clothing as more than a sign that characters are in a hurry to get naked; they’re winking at readers and making fun of a stereotype that for decades has been used to disparage the romance industry. </p>
<p id="paiFSz">“The funny thing about bodice rippers is that bodices are hard to rip! They’re made with bones of steel!” laughs Rodale. Koch also points out that before mass production, clothing was expensive and difficult to replace, making ripped clothing more fantasy than historical reality. </p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="PL1JhC"><q>“Bodices are hard to rip! They’re made with bones of steel!”</q></aside></div>
<p id="QYr3QA">While some of the authors who founded the genre may not have have focused on historical accuracy, contemporary authors take these details seriously. There are workshops where historical authors can watch how each layer of clothing is put on and taken off, and Pinterest has given writers like Loretta Chase a platform to <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/lorettachase/">share boards featuring the fashion research and reference images</a> she uses to dress her characters. </p>
<p id="VPHMKy">Historical romance readers care about authors getting these details right, according to Koch and Kamblé, because period clothing communicates so much more about a person’s class, marital status, and position in society than a contemporary outfit like jeans and a T-shirt ever could. Unbalanced class and power dynamics are an easy way to create sexual tension and can place barriers between lovers that heighten their desire and a novel’s drama. The various figurative and literal layers of clothing also push sex scenes to be more inventive, creating opportunities for prolonged stripteases and requiring “a maid or a man who knows his way around woman’s clothing,” says Rodale. She wryly adds, “you [always] want some historical accuracy in your sex scenes.”</p>
https://www.racked.com/2017/10/31/16507794/bodice-rippersMicaela Marini Higgs2017-08-22T10:58:01-04:002017-08-22T10:58:01-04:00What Does It Actually Mean to Shop Ethically?
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<figcaption>A Raven + Lily artisan in Pakistan. | Photo: Raven + Lily</figcaption>
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<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>Ethical-shopping experts explain what to look for in a brand. </p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="3yOvHi">In case you missed the memo: <a href="https://www.racked.com/2017/5/11/15471482/ethical-shopping">Ethical shopping is hard</a>. Production chains are so complicated that major companies often can’t guarantee what conditions their products were made in, and even alternatives like the Salvation Army aren’t always ideal because of their anti-LGBTQ track records. </p>
<p id="9hSEBT">That doesn’t mean we should give up hope. <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nielsen.com%2Fus%2Fen%2Finsights%2Fnews%2F2015%2Fgreen-generation-millennials-say-sustainability-is-a-shopping-priority.html&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F8%2F22%2F16055532%2Fshop-ethically" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">A Nielsen report</a> shows an increase in the number of people willing to pay more for products from companies they consider to be socially responsible, with <a href="https://www.npd.com/wps/portal/npd/us/blog/2016/sneakernomics-predictions-for-the-sports-business-in-2017/">a consumer trend report for 2017 published by NPD</a> forecasting that, “given the highly charged political atmosphere [consumers will be] giving their business to brands and retailers that share their values and shunning those who do not.” These are encouraging steps that show we want to do better, and <a href="http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/consumers-care-about-sustainable-ethically-made-apparel-and-these-brands-are-providing-it/">with reports that brands are embracing transparency,</a> it seems that retailers are starting to listen.</p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/e-IKV6PDEyIlBdb8ReUepDICJbw=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8952809/Artisan_Daniela_in_Nicaragua_from_Living_Thread___attribute_to_Living_Threads.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Living Threads/ Global Shokunin</cite>
<figcaption>Living Threads artisan Daniela in Nicaragua.</figcaption>
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<p id="8iOGmx">One popular solution for shoppers hoping to make a difference is breaking away from fast fashion and buying from smaller brands that stock artisanal goods, often from abroad. “Many studies have reported that consumers like the uniqueness [of artisanal products],” says Anupama Pasricha, the executive director of <a href="http://www.esrapglobal.org/">Educators for Socially Responsible Apparel Practices</a>, who explains that “people feel a sense of good” when they buy things made by artisans.</p>
<p id="BOaTHV">But<strong> </strong>if something is artisanal, does that automatically make it ethical? Like any industry, there are brands that excel, brands that could do better, and no 100 percent foolproof formula for getting it right<strong>.</strong></p>
<p id="tYXje3">“Brands are in the business of selling you products,” says Jacinta FitzGerald, the head of research at <a href="https://projectjust.com/">Project Just</a>, a community that works to “change the way that people shop” by providing impartial research on the impact and practices of different brands. “As consumers, [many of us] want to make the best decision about the way we spend our money,” she says. “It can be difficult to get the true intention of something when you’re reading a brand website.” FitzGerald reminds us of the importance of “looking beyond” marketing in order to understand a brand’s practices. </p>
<p id="ixSLqJ">“Just because something is ‘artisan made’ does not mean that the artisan was paid a livable, fair-trade wage,” says Kirsten Dickerson, founder and CEO of <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ravenandlily.com%2F&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F8%2F22%2F16055532%2Fshop-ethically" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Raven + Lily</a>, a socially responsible fair-trade brand that received <a href="https://projectjust.com/brand_ravenandlily/">Project Just's seal of approval for partywear.</a> This kind of disingenuous marketing that she references can be seen <a href="https://helloanou.wordpress.com/2015/01/06/making-anous-expenses-publically-accessible/">in the case of a fair-trade business owner bullying artisans</a> into discounting their rugs, only to sell them at an 813 percent markup with claims that shoppers would be directly supporting an artisan and her family. </p>
<p id="ZEaX2p">“I’m not opposed to markups, I’m opposed to people negotiating discounts and then making markups,” clarifies Dan Driscoll, the founder of <a href="http://www.theanou.com/">Anou</a>, an artisan-run community in Morocco whose artisans set their own prices, upload photos of their wares, and sell directly to customers across the world. </p>
<aside id="11vdXZ"><div data-anthem-component="actionbox" data-anthem-component-data="{"title":"Like what you're reading?","description":"Get the Racked newsletter for even more great stories, every day.","label":"SIGN UP","url":"http://newsletters.racked.com/h/d/C4595F1D5E0088D6?_ga=1.36581730.373041903.1487623315"}"></div></aside><p id="e1orp4">Fair wages are a vital part of ensuring an ethical supply chain, but what’s “fair”? Pasricha’s standard definition of a fair wage is one that “supports the decent living of an individual and his or her family,” though she’s quick to note that “fair wages vary regionally based on the cost of living.” Since answers vary depending on the people, places, and work arrangements involved, and different organizations define it slightly differently, it unfortunately means there isn’t a tidy number that we can hold up as a gold standard. </p>
<p id="bftTYi">One common way to decide if prices are fair is to look at who is setting them, and if artisans are being given a voice. As with other aspects of the artisanal market, there isn’t just one approach, and Driscoll warns that in some cases artisans undervalue their work. That’s one reason why FitzGerald believes NGO partnerships can be valuable, since they provide artisans with third-party advice including information about how much they should be charging.</p>
<div class="c-wide-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/e6FBFcdqvJd7-UbjxizJytyaiIo=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8952857/Sabahr_artisan_from_Ethiopia___attribute_To_Sabahar.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Sabhar/Global Shokunin</cite>
<figcaption>A Ethiopian artisan for Sabhar. </figcaption>
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<p id="HoaV5R">Anou’s approach to setting prices has been to have artisans, who can be individuals or members of co-ops, decide on a price, often with input from mentors in their community. A 20 percent fee is added to pay the artisans who are running site operations and to cover training expenses. Two years ago Anou committed to making its <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1nO9tgl3hM4b2tGFKuA8siIsxwLeVOkPPPHp0IO0l1xs/edit?pref=2&pli=1#gid=1748647658">financial expenditures public</a>, and though Driscoll admits it needs to be updated and will be overhauled soon, this decision still demonstrates an uncommon amount of transparency.</p>
<p id="CA8sDf">Artisanal marketplace <a href="https://www.globalshokunin.com/">Global Shokunin</a> deals with this issue by dealing exclusively with artisans who belong to co-ops that are transparent about who is working for them and willing to share data on their workers. Founder and former product development director for Eileen Fisher Richa Agarwal explains that, by their nature, co-ops give artisans “more say in how things run,” as well as “more negotiating power, and often profit sharing” opportunities, which is important in giving them a voice. </p>
<p id="ec6tW1">Raven + Lily’s tactic is to have artisans quote how much designs will cost them to make, with Dickerson stressing that they “never ask [artisans] to compromise on labor costs,” and will instead find different raw materials or simplify the design if the cost is too high. With annual audits to ensure that “artisans are earning livable ‘fair trade’ wages,” it doesn’t matter how much a customer pays for a product: Even if it’s heavily discounted, “artisans always get their full, fair price.”</p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Dcl3QmMutS7RwNJHLvvHlnXynDI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8952881/India_9.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Raven + Lily</cite>
<figcaption>Raven + Lily artisans in India.</figcaption>
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</div>
<p id="rPSBF9">But fair wages are only part of the equation.<strong> </strong>“Other issues are keeping artisans poor; it’s not just a fair price,” says Driscoll. “You’ve got to tackle other issues [as well, like] governmental policy and regulation.” </p>
<p id="Sx3HNg">FitzGerald agrees that transparency around things like wages is “a step in the right direction… [but] there’s a huge amount of other steps that need to be taken,” in areas such as social and labor practices and environmental impact. </p>
<p id="MHfeqN">Many brands market artisanal clothes as eco-friendly because artisanal products draw from local craft traditions, so in many cases “artisans are sourcing from other local artisans,” says FitzGerald. “Cotton might be grown in a neighboring village, hand-woven by an artisan, and then embroidered by another artisan.” </p>
<p id="1tk6AB">Agarwal points out that in these situations, since materials don’t need to be shipped across the world and production typically involves manual labor instead of machinery, “artisan goods are low carbon, as opposed to mass-produced carbon-intensive products.” </p>
<p id="OHDOcw">Tracing the origin of an artisanal brand’s materials reveals more than their ecological impact, offering insight into their involvement at different levels of the supply chain and their treatment of artisans. “Maybe the workshop where the clothing was sewn was fair trade and the workers were treated well, but what about the place where the fabric was woven? Or the farm where the cotton was harvested?” asks Dickerson when explaining why Raven + Lily is so concerned with understanding where its materials come from. The scarcity and uncertainty of quality material in Morocco, as <a href="https://helloanou.wordpress.com/2017/05/15/the-atlas-wool-supply-co-building-a-modern-craft-material-market-in-morocco/">evident in the practice of dying wool with formaldehyde to cut costs</a>, resulted in Anou founding <a href="https://atlaswoolsupply.co/">Atlas Wool Supply</a> to provide artisans with safe material, demonstrating why nonprofits and brands working with artisans need to look beyond labor to also address material issues, which can impact the health of individual artisans and their local economies.</p>
<p id="DvwzJ9">If you need help thinking of other questions to ask that go beyond fair pay and the ethical treatment of workers, take a look at the <a href="https://projectjust.com/research/">eight categories</a> Project Just uses to appraise brands and the World Fair Trade Organization's <a href="http://www.wfto.com/fair-trade/10-principles-fair-trade">10 principles of fair trade</a>.</p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Vvey7kXG9HfVZpCBVisG2BdTBhg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8952889/Guatemala_2.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Raven + Lily</cite>
<figcaption>Guatemalan artisans share a laugh. </figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="q5pERl">If you don’t have the time, or ability, to deeply research each brand, certifications can offer a shortcut — but “there are a number of certifications, and a consumer’s understanding of [each kind] could be murky,” says FitzGerald. Having “a fair-trade certification is different from being a fair-trade federation member, and that’s different from being a world fair-trade organization member.” Because each category has slightly different standards and requires different levels of independent oversight, when you’re shopping, it’s important to look up what they actually mean. </p>
<p id="5euqLP">When shopping for themselves, FitzGerald, Pasricha, and Agarwal all mention the comfort that a fair-trade certification gives them. FitzGerald says that third-party nonprofit involvement from organizations like <a href="http://www.buildanest.org/">NEST</a> and <a href="http://ethicalfashioninitiative.org/">the Ethical Fashion Initiative</a> give her “a degree of faith.” </p>
<p id="dR9Fom">That being said, “I don’t think being fair-trade certified is the be-all and end-all, and there are definitely other factors involved,” says FitzGerald. Certification can be an expensive process, and many businesses choose to invest their limited capital in other ways. So while certification can provide a level of assurance that certain standards are being met, a lack of certification doesn’t automatically make a brand unethical. </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/z-NcQIEGxriFjTVc0fCxOHpY9XM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8952955/Anou.png">
<cite>Photo: Anou</cite>
<figcaption>Kenza of Association Tithrite, with a rug she sketched and designed on her own.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="gUKivt">“The challenge of working in a socially conscious area is that everyone has an opinion of what’s socially good,” Driscoll explains. In many cases, he sees organizations who he thinks are “really shitty… but from their perspective they’re doing really good work.”</p>
<p id="1OrkJQ">That’s because many times brands aren’t working maliciously, just inefficiently. In Driscoll’s opinion, many repeat the same mistakes by visiting a country for a week, thinking they understand how the industry functions there, and “unwittingly working with [exploitative] middlemen despite marketing their work as fair trade.” </p>
<p id="AVBoBT">Agarwal agrees that issues in the supply chain are usually caused not by a company’s desire to cheat artisans, but by “the way the system is set up.” Since the logistics of setting up production and on-the-ground support for artisans abroad can be expensive, many brands outsource these tasks to other companies who hire national agents, regional agents, local agents, and master artisans, who in some cases contract work from locals trying to supplement their incomes. </p>
<p id="45Vn5d">At each step people need to be paid, and the longer the supply chain is the less money there is to pay artisans for their work. That means one of the easiest first steps companies can make in order to pass on a larger cut of the profit to the artisan is to minimize the number of middlemen. They can do this by working directly with co-ops and artisans themselves, remembering that middle men can take on many forms — whether as a co-op president leveraging his or her position or a tour guide collecting referral fees from artisans they visit with their tour groups. </p>
<aside id="29ZiVB"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"10 Things You Can Do to Shop More Sustainably","url":"https://www.racked.com/2017/8/22/16179784/sustainable-shopping-how-to"}]}'></div></aside><p id="NbRQzF">There are different ways that organizations can set out to monitor their supply chain — Anou’s solution has been to cycle artisans through its office, making it so that one single person can’t monopolize operations, with Driscoll himself having no legal authority in the organization, meaning that the artisans have the power to fire him. Raven + Lily’s answer has been to secure B Corp certification and work directly with artisan partners and suppliers, staying involved “every step of the way” in order to monitor how materials and labor are being sourced. Global Shokunin’s approach has been to work with nonprofits and be "highly selective" when determining if co-ops are upholding fair-trade practices, drawing on Agarwal’s experience working with co-ops on projects funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for <a href="https://www.brac.net/enterprises?view=page">BRAC</a> social enterprise <a href="http://www.aarong.com/about-aarong/">Aarong.</a></p>
<div class="c-wide-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-Q8epQuYmV4DVolE1YWbA2K0xpY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8952985/Kenya_4.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Raven + Lily</cite>
<figcaption>Kenyan artisans line up for a photo.</figcaption>
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</div>
<p id="e1Emg1">Agarwal, who encourages customers to call organizations with questions about their supply chains and methods of sourcing labor, says, “There is no substitute for due diligence.”</p>
<p id="766bt4">So again, there’s no shortcut for research. Research to see if, like Raven + Lily, brands are building up communities — even if by strengthening supply chains and offering microloans they are giving artisans the opportunity to become independent and work with other organizations. Research to see if a brand, like Anou, is training artisans to become businesspeople who receive the bulk of the profits for their work. Research to see how organizations, like Global Shokunin, work directly with co-ops, and are doing their due diligence in making sure fair-trade standards are carried out across the board. </p>
<p id="IngNho">An ethical shopper is an educated shopper, and with more online resources and a growing interest in conscious consumerism, we can start to rebuild our wardrobes, piece by piece. </p>
https://www.racked.com/2017/8/22/16055532/shop-ethicallyMicaela Marini Higgs2017-08-11T11:32:00-04:002017-08-11T11:32:00-04:00A Jumpsuit You Can Wear From Summer to Fall
<figure>
<img alt="A model in a black sleeveless culotte jumpsuit" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/lACNQNY2J_j0Qv65IHtwtCucxc4=/2x0:1639x1228/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/56150541/gap_culotte_jumpsuit.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Gap <a href="http://www.gap.com/browse/product.do?pid=718927012">Sleeveless Culotte Jumpsuit</a> ($69.99)</figcaption>
</figure>
<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>Culottes are year-round.</p> <p id="wQ2jOq">I’m the proud owner of this Gap <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gap.com%2Fbrowse%2Fproduct.do%3Fpid%3D718927012&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F8%2F11%2F16119492%2Fgap-culotte-jumpsuit" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">culotte jumpsuit</a>, an item of clothing that combines two things I strongly dislike into one I absolutely adore. </p>
<p id="rm1HuM">How did I end up here? I was playing a private game of retail dress-up, in which I try on outfits specifically because I think they’ll look terrible. Slowly but surely, I’m building an impressive collection of unflattering photos of myself wearing everything from illusion mesh to a velour bodysuit.</p>
<p id="Y7cB8o">But instead of giving me a monster wedgie and drowning the lower half of my body in fabric, as I’ve come to expect from jumpsuits and culottes, this culotte jumpsuit looked good. Like, really good. So good that I would probably live in it if I didn’t feel societal pressure to change my clothes once in awhile. </p>
<p id="xGkRfR">The structured bodice means the small-chested among us can comfortably go braless, and the nipped waist and loose fit of the pants made a chic contrast, not clownish proportions. With all the benefits of a dress — a look instantly created with just one piece of clothing that makes me look polished and like I tried — it also has all the benefits of sweatpants, in that I can go home, collapse on the sofa, and contort into my weird Netflix-watching position. Now that it’s on sale some sizes are dwindling, <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gap.com%2Fbrowse%2Fproduct.do%3Fpid%3D813583012%26vid%3D1%26locale%3Den_US%26kwid%3D1%26sem%3Dfalse%26sdkw%3Dzip-front-jumpsuit-P813583%26sdReferer%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.gap.com%252Fproducts%252Fone-piece-outfits-for-women.jsp&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F8%2F11%2F16119492%2Fgap-culotte-jumpsuit" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">but this similar version</a>, with a zip down the front, is still fully stocked. </p>
<p id="3gy02t">I’m confident I’ll also be able to wear it in the colder months with ankle boots and a cardigan. Oh, and it has <em>huge</em> pockets. Why would I ever want to wear anything else? </p>
<aside id="kLr9O4"><div data-anthem-component="actionbox" data-anthem-component-data='{"title":"Like what you’re reading?","description":"Get the Racked newsletter for even more great stories, every day.","label":"Sign up","url":"http://newsletters.racked.com/h/d/C4595F1D5E0088D6?_ga=1.36581730.373041903.1487623315"}'></div></aside>
https://www.racked.com/2017/8/11/16119492/gap-culotte-jumpsuitMicaela Marini Higgs2017-05-11T09:32:01-04:002017-05-11T09:32:01-04:00Ethical Shopping Is Nearly Impossible
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<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9XoXbmWiYeyVvELz-tWm5RD4kEQ=/306x0:5195x3667/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/54511533/GettyImages_608166799.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo: Thomas Barwick/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>Plenty of people boycott restaurants or gas stations they don’t agree with. Why is it so hard to do the same for stores?</p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="VXjv4P">Last month marked the four-year anniversary of the Rana Plaza building collapse that killed 1,138 garment workers and injured nearly 2,600. The news grabbed headlines, tugged heartstrings, and inspired outrage. Then most of us forgot about it, with the <em>Today</em> show <a href="https://youtu.be/VdLf4fihP78?t=12m35s">reporting on the tragedy and only a few months later promoting the same brands that had been pulled from the rubble.</a></p>
<p id="1D72nj">In an informal survey, I found few people who could tell me what Rana Plaza was or what happened there, but every American clearly remembered the 2012 Chick-fil-A controversy, when company President Dan Cathy spoke against gay marriage. While it's easy to find people who still boycott Chick-fil-A five years later, or who cut meat out of their diet for ethical reasons, or who recycle religiously, it's harder to meet anyone who has successfully boycotted major clothing retailers because of their manufacturing processes.</p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="abxg2O"><q>Ethical shopping is even more complicated, and difficult, than you might assume.</q></aside></div>
<p id="7098si">Why is that? It’s not like there aren’t enough news stories and investigative reports that unveil the uncomfortable truth about some of our favorite brands. No boycott or lifestyle change is entirely effortless, but how come it’s so easy to find people who boycott companies like Stripes, <a href="https://www.pressreader.com/usa/houston-chronicle/20161122/281492160912895">a gas station that supports the Dakota access pipeline</a>, and Hobby Lobby, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/11/hobby-lobby-transgender_n_5575696.html">a craft store with discriminatory practices</a>, but not <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/aug/21/hm-factories-myanmar-employed-14-year-old-workers">H&M for its employment of child laborers</a>? </p>
<p id="RFlqY2">As it turns out, ethical shopping is even more complicated, and difficult, than you might assume.</p>
<p id="IrvGFq">The most obvious reason we find it hard to break up with fast fashion is that we’re addicted to, and reliant on, low prices. Recently, I stared myself down in a dressing room mirror, unable to justify spending $270 on an ethically made dress. As much as I wanted to buy it, I couldn’t afford to, so I sulked back to H&M to try to find a consolation prize. The five women who I interviewed about their shopping habits all confirmed that their “loyalty” to brands like The Gap, H&M, and Primark boils down to pricing and the difficulty of finding ethical brands that fit their budget. “I try to buy less of what I already feel guilty for purchasing,” explains Kelsey, a legal researcher whose focus is on illicit trade, “[but] I’m usually not in a position to choose a more expensive, more sustainable option.”</p>
<aside id="BAaInG"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"racked_national"}'></div></aside><p id="zST8d2">What does shopping sustainably even mean? According to the experts and shoppers I spoke with, ethical shopping begins with knowing where, and how, our clothing was made. </p>
<p id="qxQ5tW">That sounds straightforward enough, except, “there is not a single retailer out there that can definitively claim that they really understand their complete supply chain,” says Richa Agarwal, former product development director for Eileen Fisher and the founder of artisanal marketplace <a href="https://www.globalshokunin.com/">Global Shokunin</a>. Mass subcontracting, which outsources production to other factories, makes it difficult to track how and where our clothing is being made. Each piece of your clothing, from the zipper on your pants to the buttons on your dress, has a different and complex supply chain. According to Chad Autry, the department head of supply chain management at Haslam College of Business, mapping the origins of each piece, and the conditions under which they were assembled, is a necessary next step in improving accountability, but it isn’t a standard practice because it’s difficult and “defeats some of the cost effectiveness of outsourcing.”</p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="iu1H5u"><q>“There is not a single retailer out there that can definitively claim that they really understand their complete supply chain.” </q></aside></div>
<p id="UEhDRA">Agarwal also warns that shopping at more expensive stores isn’t a shortcut for research, since “even when a company has all the right certifications and they tout best practices, there is still very little guarantee that what consumers are purchasing is actually ethical,” since factories, not companies, receive certifications from third-party auditors that often have incentives to look the other way. These companies can also outsource orders to second-tier producers that haven’t received any certification. “There is a lot of corruption in the system in order to keep up the appearance of certification,” Agarwal says. “At the end of the day, when things go wrong, the retailers can simply wash their hands of the whole thing by saying, ‘we thought we were at a certified facility, what went wrong?’” </p>
<p id="WawttB">In a <em>Last Week Tonight</em> segment on fast fashion, John Oliver demonstrated the lenient regulations on clothing manufacturing, as compared to food manufacturing, by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdLf4fihP78&feature=youtu.be&t=14m8s">offering suspiciously cheap sushi platters and rotisserie chickens of murky origins to the executives of companies who use sweatshop labor.</a> If we are what we eat, then it’s clearly in our best interest to avoid food made in unhygienic factories. The clothes we wear, and the conditions in which they were made, can be easier to ignore: While you might find sweatshop labor abhorrent, wearing a sweatshirt made in poor conditions is unlikely to make you physically ill. Agarwal believes that “standardized labeling [for clothing], just like there is for food,” is the necessary next step in regulating the fashion industry. </p>
<p id="uVJqyL">Because of FDA regulations, we’re getting way more information when we pick up a box of cereal than when we pick up a pair of jeans. Food labeling comes with an ingredient list, allergen information, and an address of where it was manufactured, licensed, or distributed from. Though kosher certification standards vary between groups, and we might not know <em>where </em>the spinach in our frozen pizza comes from — or if it’s really organic — getting some basic information up front lightens the burden of research.</p>
<div class="c-wide-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/L3iAd2IrIZANmpKU3r0JQu8b310=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/8426983/GettyImages_470780584.jpg">
<cite>Photo: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>The Rana Plaza building collapse on April 24th, 2013.</figcaption>
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</div>
<p id="5meTdk">This isn’t to say ethical eating is always easy. Food deserts restrict access to fresh foods and provide lower-income areas with limited options. Factory farming <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/commissioner-points-to-factory-farming-as-source-of-contamination-1.239571">has negative environmental impacts</a> and is subject to <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/12/12/north-carolina-authorities-investigate-alleged-pig-abuse-by-supplier-for.html">allegations of animal abuse</a>. Organic food typically costs more, restaurant menus aren’t always inclusive of different diets, and companies like Chick-fil-A might donate to groups that go against your personal beliefs. Despite all this, thanks to regulations that enforce transparency, the food industry, and its manufacturing methods, are still more regulated than the factories that make the clothing we wear. </p>
<p id="QuupUL">The traditional call to action against clothing brands has been a boycott. But according to Autry, boycotts “can harm workers if the company decides to shift production away from the region as a response.” This PR move, with <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/guest-voices-sweatshops-hurt-the-bottom-line-1439841604">companies distancing themselves from the factories and countries that caused public outcry, doesn’t mean that their new factories are any better</a>, and Autry believes that major corporations have other economic incentives, unrelated to consumer boycotts, to eventually fix production chain issues. </p>
<p id="FS0RF4">While it can be hard to imagine that your Zara purchase is supporting workers, Katilyn, an expat in Bangkok, points to a <a href="https://www.ted.com/talks/leslie_t_chang_the_voices_of_china_s_workers/transcript?language=en#t-822389">TEDx talk given by Leslie Chang</a> as having shifted her understanding of factory labor. “Chinese workers are not forced into factories,” Chang says, suggesting that factories offer some an opportunity for upward mobility. “The factory conditions are really tough, and it's nothing you or I would want to do, but from their perspective, where they're coming from is much worse, and where they're going is hopefully much better.” </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="XAlO8A"><q>Boycotts “can harm workers if the company decides to shift production away from the region as a response.”</q></aside></div>
<p id="ERYkUr">Determining what counts at ethical shopping gets even more complicated when you start thinking about who is selling you clothing and how. “It is extremely rare to find a place to shop that 100 percent matches your code of ethics 100 percent of the time, [so you have to choose]: which hypocrisies can you live with?” says masters student Amanda, echoing the sentiments of everyone I spoke with. It turns out that while many of us can endure the hypocrisy of mourning factory tragedies while still buying the clothing made in them, a retailer’s politics and brand identity are often where we draw the line.</p>
<p id="hOmlGC">Though their clothing was made in the U.S. and they paid their workers a fair wage, I always steered clear of American Apparel because of their culture of sexual harassment, and most recently my friends stopped shopping at “fempowerment” brands <a href="http://www.racked.com/2017/3/21/15001870/thinx-sexual-harassment-miki-agrawal">Thinx</a> and <a href="http://www.racked.com/2015/6/16/8790517/nasty-gal-layoffs-lawsuit-sophia-amoruso">Nasty Gal</a> after allegations of discrimination and harassment by the company founders surfaced. Though a <a href="https://medium.com/indian-thoughts/what-we-uncovered-about-ivanka-trumps-fashion-line-98f962b76fbd">Project Just report turned up a troubling lack of information about where, and in what conditions</a>, Ivanka Trump’s fashion line was made, her political involvement was the reason <a href="http://www.racked.com/2017/2/3/14497280/ivanka-trump-neiman-marcus-boycott">the brand was boycotted and dropped from retailers like Nordstrom</a>. Even thrift stores, a popular option for people looking to break the fast-fashion cycle, aren’t always innocent. The Salvation Army has a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zinnia-jones/the-salvation-armys-histo_b_4422938.html">history of discrimination against the LGBTQ community,</a> and <a href="https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/10/25/goodwill-industries-omaha-ugly-wage-ratios-define-nonprofit-business/">Goodwill pays its disabled employees less than minimum wage</a>.</p>
<p id="2yB0UQ">Otti, who confesses that she makes an effort not to think about how her clothing is made, points to social desirability as one motivation for why people feel more empowered to challenge social issues rather than industry regulation. “I appreciate this is ludicrous,” she says when explaining how she would immediately boycott an anti-LGBTQ brand. “Why are gay rights more important than kids suffering in a sweatshop?”</p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="8cIqnW"><q>“It is extremely rare to find a place to shop that 100 percent matches your code of ethics 100 percent of the time.”</q></aside></div>
<p id="U82rca">Taking on unethical fashion can seem like a Herculean task, especially when guilt makes it easier to look the other way. Shopping ethically takes time, energy, and the ability to compromise and consciously decide which practices are deal breakers. Even then, we can never be totally sure that our favorite brands don’t have skeletons in their closets.</p>
<p id="YMusxL">The appearance of more online tools and resources to help shoppers make educated decisions is slowly making informed shopping easier, with sites like Project Just seeking to increase transparency in the fashion industry, and fashion sites creating roundups of brands that sell social messages along with ethical products. Improving awareness of these brands is important, says Morgan Davis, the founder of black artist marketplace <a href="https://www.shopblkgold.com/">BLK GOLD</a>, since she believes that with a bit of searching “you can find affordable, fashion-forward pieces that [are] just as convenient, if not better, than big-box retailers.” </p>
<p id="I4EBa7">So even though ethical shopping can be hard, really hard, there’s hope. We’ve just got to keep reading, keep researching, and keep paying attention. </p>
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https://www.racked.com/2017/5/11/15471482/ethical-shoppingMicaela Marini Higgs2017-03-30T09:32:01-04:002017-03-30T09:32:01-04:00The Entirely False History of Women Tricking Men With Makeup
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<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/nmLcz0msiHNvg3ubk-XyR6cYEwg=/301x0:4841x3405/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/53791233/GettyImages_184892626.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>That <em>might</em> not be this model’s natural lip color. | Photo: WIN-Initiative/ Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>Old wives’ tales, fake news articles, and apocryphal laws have bolstered the idea that cosmetics are intended to fool men. </p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="uJ2zeW">In various <a href="https://books.google.co.th/books?id=3XTxs-X-gSwC&pg=PA408&dq=britain+hoops+and+heels+divorce+makeup&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYz_utrOTSAhVGu7wKHeT6CacQ6wEIGzAA#v=onepage&q&f=false">books</a>, <a href="http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/printed/number10/swords.htm">academic articles</a>, <a href="http://bizarrevictoria.livejournal.com/20892.html">blogs</a>, <a href="https://books.google.co.th/books?id=I6swAQAAIAAJ&q=britain+cosmetic+divorce+1770+spanish+wool&dq=britain+cosmetic+divorce+1770+spanish+wool&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiUkL6fq-TSAhXCu7wKHW0wDHsQ6AEILTAE">legal notes</a>, and <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1uz8af/til_in_1770_the_british_parliament_passed_a_law/">social-media posts</a>, you can find references to a law passed by England in 1770 that made it legal for a man to divorce his wife if she tricked him into marriage using witchcraft, such as makeup, to enhance her looks. Called the Hoops and Heels Act, it stated that any woman who tried to “seduce and betray into matrimony” a man using “scents, paints, cosmetic washes, artificial teeth, false hair, Spanish wool, iron stays, hoops, high-heeled shoes, [or] bolstered hips” would be tried for witchcraft and have her marriage voided if found guilty.</p>
<p id="QFSdx6">Except it never happened. But generations of researchers have been fooled, some stating that the law was passed in 1774, others saying that it was voted down by Parliament, and another group claiming that under the counsel of their mistresses and wives, members of Parliament decided not to vote on it at all. </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="mARImA"><q>Though generations of researchers have been fooled... these stories are all urban legend. </q></aside></div>
<p id="nmnBzr">Law librarian Dean Willard tried to chase down the original bill and ruling and found no mention of it in notes or documents from Parliamentary sessions. The first reference he could find was in an 1879 copy of <em>Art of Perfumery</em>, which was then cited by Encyclopedia Britannica, and the reputation of these two texts gave the story the legitimacy that would sustain it for the next 150 years.</p>
<p id="l1Y5kt">Just because the law is fake doesn’t mean that everyone in the 18th century would have been opposed to it. A 1711 letter written to the<em> Spectator</em>, a British daily paper, detailed the plight of an “injured gentleman” who had just married what he called one of the “women who do not let their husbands see their faces till they are married.” He referenced a play called <em>Silent Woman</em>, in which a character receives a divorce because of “error personae” — discovering his new wife was not the woman he intended to marry — and asked if this law could be used to “be rid of [his] wife.” The paper responded sympathetically, recalling secondhand stories of women tricking men for the pleasure of tormenting them, and agreed that true justice would be a swift separation, though they weren’t sure if the law would support his case. </p>
<p id="R0bEJI">Three hundred years later and newspapers are printing the same stories. At the end of 2015 and 2016 two similar accounts hit the news, republished in outlets from <a href="http://emirateswoman.com/arab-bride-jilted-after-husband-sees-her-without-make-up/">Emirates Women</a> to <a href="http://www.marieclaire.co.za/hot-topics/groom-sues-bride-seeing-without-makeup"><em>Marie Claire</em></a>. In the first, an Algerian man woke up the morning after his wedding horrified at the sight of his wife’s bare face, fearing a thief had broken into the apartment. He felt betrayed at the discovery that she was not as beautiful as she had looked before the wedding, and immediately divorced and sued her for $20,000, citing psychological suffering. </p>
<p id="5XvAba">In the second case, a just-married Arab couple went to the beach, where the man saw his wife’s “features change” as the water washed her face. Apparently she had undergone cosmetic surgery and worn fake eyelashes, intending to eventually tell him the truth. As in the story from 2015, the man felt betrayed that his bride had been prettier before the wedding. He, too, divorced her, and both articles breathlessly explain that the women sought psychological counseling to deal with the trauma of the situation. </p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="iR8D6S"><q>In the second case, a just-married Arab couple went to the beach where the man saw his wife’s “features change” as the water washed her face.</q></aside></div>
<p id="WsmxPD">These stories were predated by the extensive 2012 news coverage of a Chinese man divorcing his wife <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/10/29/chinese-man-divorces-ugly-wife_n_2037141.html">after discovering she’d undergone extensive plastic surgery</a>, her deceit exposed when she gave birth to ugly children. This story <a href="http://www.snopes.com/media/notnews/uglybaby.asp">first started circling the internet in 2004</a>, with the husband suing on the grounds of false pretenses and supposedly being awarded anywhere between $67,000 and $120,000, depending on the source.</p>
<p id="PT3Ypi">Besides superficial husbands, these stories have a few major things in common: They’re all fake, as <a href="http://www.snopes.com/kiss-no-makeup/">confirmed by Snopes</a>; they’re found on <a href="https://twitter.com/el_manchar/status/629409883885060096/photo/1">sites taking credit for planting stories</a>; and they suffer from an overall lack of sources and additional information about the results of each lawsuit. They all feature women intentionally using cosmetics or surgery to lie, and involve either psychological trauma, witchcraft, or the shame of having ugly kids. Because these stories were difficult to verify since they took place far in the past or in foreign countries, news outlets rushed to recycle the same handful of quotes and failed to fact-check each story as it spread across the internet, with only a few adding caveats about taking the news with a grain of salt until more information could come to light.</p>
<p id="SuDCMu">These salacious stories of cosmetic trickery are entertaining because, despite their absurdity, they seem plausible. The use of womanly wiles and feminine trickery have been blamed for many things since the Garden of Eden, and makeup is seen as an extension of this inherent dishonesty. Women, we imagine, are willing to lie to get what they want, even if that involves trapping men through the long con of contour and lipstick. </p>
<div class="c-float-right c-float-hang"><aside id="HEg4eB"><q>Makeup is seen as an extension of this inherent dishonesty, with women willing to lie to get what they want, even if that involves trapping men through the long con of contour and lipstick.</q></aside></div>
<p id="685cQH">Online forums feature men bemoaning before-and-after pictures of makeup, advising a trip to the pool on the first date, and calling makeup a “trick” since women <a href="http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/women-are-cheating-in-the-natural-selection-game.453991877/">“are cheating in the natural selection game.”</a> In each photo set, “after” pictures feature thick eyeliner, expertly applied smoky eyes, and brows clearly filled with product. These women aren’t hiding the fact that they wear makeup. In fact, they’re even posting photos of their bare faces for comparison. How much of a trick can it really be when someone is upfront about their cosmetics usage? </p>
<p id="RUm0kD">Artist Megan Nicole Dong’s <a href="http://sketchshark.tumblr.com/post/129154657435/ive-been-doing-a-series-of-comics-about-men-being">delightful comic strips</a> illustrate this point, showing lipstick tricking men into bees’ nests, mascara lying about the weather, eyebrows pointing someone off a cliff, and a bit of eyeliner and lipstick tricking a man into kissing a pig’s ass. They’re ridiculous, kind of like the idea that shimmery gold eyeshadow is part of a malicious attempt to deceive people. </p>
<p id="47BltF">The photos used in these sensationalized stories of dishonest brides show women blatantly wearing a full face of product. The shock toward their bare faces reflects a kind of wishful thinking — do we really believe that women spend time, energy, and money to paint their faces so they’ll look exactly like they did before they started? These stories imagine that the goal of these women’s makeup routines is to get the man and, eventually, get married, but in what ways are they benefited by linking themselves to partners too naive to imagine what lies beneath their smoky eyes and pink lipstick? The worth of their male protagonists is inflated in these scenarios: The men are framed as so desirable that they are the target of makeup manipulation, reaffirming to a male audience that it’s reasonable to have high aesthetic expectations for their partners — expectations that many women are unable to meet.</p>
<div class="c-float-left c-float-hang"><aside id="QFK69n"><q>When someone’s view of a woman is so removed from reality that they can praise her for going bare-faced even if she is clearly wearing makeup, it shows a fundamental misunderstanding on the viewer’s end.</q></aside></div>
<p id="nZdEch">The core issue, one we see repeated in our favorite magazines and across popular media, is the extreme divorce between what women look like and what we want them to look like. When someone’s view of a woman is so removed from reality that they can praise her for going bare-faced even if she is clearly wearing makeup, it shows a fundamental misunderstanding on the viewer’s end. Just think back to the <a href="https://www.wonderlandmagazine.com/2014/11/17/cover-story-taylor-swift/"><em>Wonderland</em> magazine cover of Taylor Swift</a>, or the images of countless other celebrities in editorials or on the red carpet who were <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1514733&xs=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegraph.co.uk%2Ftechnology%2F2016%2F03%2F20%2F10-people-who-have-no-idea-what-no-make-up-actually-looks-like%2F&referrer=racked.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.racked.com%2F2017%2F3%2F30%2F14988124%2Fmakeup-trickery-viral-news" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">mistakenly praised for wearing no makeup</a>. While “natural” makeup looks are applauded, they are still part of a longer makeup routine involving time, energy, and plenty of products. There’s a skewed perception of what a fresh-faced woman looks like, and not even celebrities, the professional pretty people, are able to pull that off. </p>
<p id="8rn6TR">Even if makeup is subtle, it’s not invisible. People use these products for a reason: They change how you look. Few people have perfect skin, many have darkness under their eyes, and some have barely-there eyebrows. These facial features are not malicious weapons that cause psychological trauma worth suing over, and women certainly don’t hide them as part of a master plan to marry someone superficial enough to be disgusted and seek a divorce when they discover the the obvious “truth.” </p>
<p id="cneZEp">Women do use makeup to cover up and transform themselves, but their goals are much more personal and far less conniving than these articles suggest. A strong cat eye can make you feel invincible, and a bold red lip can shift a gloomy mood. Makeup can change a person, altering their face as well as their mental and emotional state. But when a woman washes off her face and shows it to a man, it’s not a “gotcha” moment. No one is being trapped and no one is being tricked. </p>
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https://www.racked.com/2017/3/30/14988124/makeup-trickery-viral-newsMicaela Marini Higgs2017-03-22T09:32:01-04:002017-03-22T09:32:01-04:00Literally Nobody Throws Out Their Makeup When They Should
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<figcaption>Photo: Vinod Kumar/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p class="c-entry-disclaimer"><i>Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods">The Goods by Vox</a>. You can also see what we’re up to by <a href="https://vox.com/goods-newsletter">signing up here</a>.</i></p>
<p>Cosmetics have an expiration date, but who follows it?</p> <p id="ZY0AQu">All things must come to an end, even our makeup. Whether it’s the perfect tube of lipstick that’s four years old or an eyeshadow palette you’ve had even longer, it can be hard to let go. Though <a href="https://www.bustle.com/articles/9165-when-to-throw-away-old-makeup-and-why-you-should">many</a> <a href="http://www.byrdie.com/makeup-expiration-dates-mascara-foundation-lipstick/">articles</a> warn of the <a href="http://www.racked.com/2016/2/11/10951192/makeup-cleanup-old-eyeliner-lipstick-blush">dangers</a> of using old makeup, complete with the <a href="http://www.today.com/style/germs-lurking-old-makeup-it-isnt-pretty-2D80556139">advice</a> of doctors, helpful <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/augustafalletta/its-time-to-start-throwing-out-the-makeup-youve-had-for-year?utm_term=.puRXbJw96Z#.psZ5z68j2D">infographics</a> showing when things expire, and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/buzzfeedtopknot/videos/1423539064385473/">evidence</a> of how much bacteria is living on our products, most of us still have a few old pieces in our collection. </p>
<p id="hWvl1A">Even Dr. Sonam Yadav, a cosmetics dermatologist, admitted to having a five-year-old stash of eyeshadows and creamy lipsticks stored in her fridge. Still, as the medical voice of reason, she reminded me that “expired products may cause serious skin and eye infections [and] allergic reactions [that] need lengthy complicated treatment.” She also recommended discarding “all liquid, gel, and cream products at the earliest sign of a change in consistency, even [if that happens] before expiry dates.”</p>
<div class="c-float-right"><aside id="pk4cPV"><q>I have an Urban Decay eyeliner I bought eight years ago, while still in high school, that should have gone in the trash after two years.</q></aside></div>
<p id="4zWpyZ">So how long are we ignoring expiration dates? I interviewed five people with very different makeup routines and skill levels, from a makeup artist to someone who only wears it on special occasions, to ask what their oldest pieces were. </p>
<p id="cLHjbJ">My own confession: I have an Urban Decay eyeliner I bought eight years ago, while still in high school, that should have gone in the trash after two years. It followed me during my teen years, through my degree, and into adulthood, where it gathers dust at the bottom of my makeup bag. While I wasn’t the only person holding onto something old, if this were a competition, my ancient eyeliner definitely won. </p>
<p id="QwdpYV">Second place would go to Josh, a makeup hobbyist and PhD student who owns a handful of used lipsticks given to zir five years ago by drag queen friends. Even though they should have been tossed after two years, the lipsticks’ true age are a mystery, since ze has no idea how long they were used for before being given away. Before our conversation, Josh hadn’t fully realized that makeup could go bad. </p>
<div class="c-float-right"><aside id="adqkXD"><q>Amanda has a six-year-old lipstick and various containers filled with bits of product she keeps intending to scrape out.</q></aside></div>
<p id="97xQ0p">Amanda, a daily makeup wearer and 24-year-old masters student, describes herself as “not very good at throwing makeup away.” Her last major purge cleared out her high school makeup collection, and she has a six-year-old lipstick and various containers filled with bits of product she keeps intending to scrape out. </p>
<p id="A38zvL">Fareena, a researcher who wears professional makeup daily and does “the whole nine yards” when she goes out, has held onto an Urban Decay palette for three years, one year longer than recommended, and her mascara for two years, though it should be tossed after three months. And — despite two years of daily use — she still hasn’t managed to finish her MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pots, which expire after a year and a half of use.</p>
<p id="Sib3f0">Da’Shante, an English teacher in Thailand who only wears makeup on special occasions, has had her CoverGirl foundation for just over two years, six months longer than doctors recommend, and can’t remember the age of her mascara. </p>
<div class="c-float-right"><aside id="56QWwF"><q>Da’Shante, an English teacher in Thailand who only wears makeup on special occasions, has held onto her CoverGirl foundation for just over two years.</q></aside></div>
<p id="hDNPoK">And lastly, Miracle, a color consultant at Sephora and a body painter, wears a full face of makeup each day. Because she goes through makeup quickly and is always getting free samples at work and testing out new products, she has less incentive to keep old stuff around. Her favorite palettes, whose lifespan she tries to extend by using them sparingly, are two years old. </p>
<p id="Vvso1j">So why do we keep old makeup? One obvious reason is that makeup is expensive and people want to see a return on their investment, even if that return is spread out over four years. Are we all happily living in denial, risking potential eye infections to save a few dollars, or do we even realize the dangerous game we’re playing? I noticed a few themes: </p>
<h3 id="JmPag4">Bad things rarely happen </h3>
<p id="q0iGla">Other than Miracle, who attributed a painful stye to old mascara, and Josh, who applied eyeliner in close proximity to jalapeños and managed to get juice in zir eye, no one could remember ever having side effects from old makeup or hearing their friends complain about it. Everyone said that if their eyes itched or their skin reacted strangely, they would assume another culprit — allergies, dried-out contacts, the weather — not their makeup, was to blame. Miracle now has a strict three-month rule for mascara, the only product she’s really cautious about, and we can only hope Josh avoids the kitchen while people are making salsa. </p>
<h3 id="yU4uMC">You won’t throw away what you can’t replace</h3>
<p id="FbM5cb">For those who use skin products, finding the right shade can be difficult. Depending on where you live, it can become even harder. Da’Shante has held onto her foundation for just over two years. She’s unable to find a replacement or powder to set it because she lives in Thailand, where whitening creams abound but shades for people with darker skin are scarce. In the US, some regions also have limited options, as Miracle found when she moved to Seattle and could no longer find Black Radiance, a line of products designed for people of color. On a recent trip to North Carolina, she made sure to stock up. Though Fareena has had luck finding foundation that matches her darker skin, the brands with more diverse skin products also tend to be the most expensive — for $36, she is willing to be forgiving of her old MAC foundation. </p>
<h3 id="5YDAyd">Bright colors: hoarded or hated</h3>
<p id="t9vHMs">When it comes to the chopping block, bright colors can go both ways. While Amanda and Josh are more likely to be forgiving of their fun pigmented pieces, Fareena is less apt to hold onto eccentric colors since she rarely wears them and they take up space. Products that aren’t worn as part of a daily look tend to sit around longer, and following their expiration dates can feel wasteful — Dr. Yadav told me she avoids buying fad colors for that exact reason: They’re impossible to use up before they expire. No one else seemed too concerned about the hygiene of old brightly colored makeup. Sending it to the trash generally signaled “outgrowing” neon eyeshadow and blue eyeliner. </p>
<h3 id="5yuJP2"><strong>Reviving makeup isn’t always worth the work</strong></h3>
<p id="6Q6bag">For the truly money-conscious, reviving makeup involves finding ways to bring unusable products back to life. Josh, a self-declared “drag on a dime sort of queen,” will Google and YouTube ways to save makeup, only tossing products when they become so dried out or cracked they are unsalvageable. Before Miracle took a professional interest in makeup, she also tried to stretch her investments by reviving old liquid eyeliners using water. </p>
<p id="asbm7C">Meanwhile, my other interviewees never bother reviving makeup — not for hygiene reasons, but because it feels like more effort than it’s worth. They’ll wipe away a crusted piece or lightly shake a container when liquids separate, but they’d rather replace it with something that will stay on their face better and take less hassle to apply.</p>
<h3 id="fhmGiI">What does it actually take to toss? </h3>
<p id="uaypbc">With the exception of Miracle and her mascara, everyone had the same thing to say about old makeup: “If it works, looks good, and is usable, I’m willing to put it on my face.” The amount of forgiveness for separated liquids, cracked palettes, and clumpy mascara varied from person to person, but everyone was flexible about most expiration dates if their makeup still functioned as makeup. And there was always one product they were willing to ignore all the rules for. Just because you know something is wrong doesn’t mean you want to make it right, especially when it comes to your favorite $30 lipstick. </p>
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https://www.racked.com/2017/3/22/14861372/throw-out-makeup-cosmetics-oldMicaela Marini Higgs