FASHION REPORT de PERU
Part Tres - Gamarra

Right before we left Peru, we visited the Garment District in Lima (Gamarra) -- a very sketchy and bedraggled area that consisted of a few blocked off streets brimming with clothing stalls and fabric shops.

There were people dragging huge bolts of fabric and old sewing machines up the roads in wooden carts, and shop windows stuffed with sooty manikins lined the streets.


I would have loved to have checked out the fabric stands and some of these other mysterious nooks, but we were in a hurry (we were catching a plane back to the US in a few hours). Our primary mission was to get tee shirts. These tees are incredibly soft, well made, and CHEAP (about $4 American a piece). They're sold to the US to Guess, The Gap, and Banana Republic. My mother-in-law brings them when she visits so I decided I needed to see the place where they're sold and buy myself some more.

This brought us to the bottom floor of a shoddy building crammed with clothing stalls. It was hot as a crotch and there were people swarming around the tiny kiosk where the shirts were sold. Guess the secret is out about these cotton treasures.

It was a struggle to get the tee-shirts. The woman behind the counter was digging through piles of shirts that reached the ceiling. A lot had cheesy logos on them and we were after the plain ones. My mother-in-law and a slew of other shoppers barked out orders to the lady. I worked up a sweat just watching her go and felt really bad for making her work so hard for a few lousy tee shirts.

Finally, two other clerks came in to help her and things got a little easier. In the end, we ended up with a pile of sweet, soft tees and were relieved to get out of the stuffy place and back into fresh (sort of) air. I don't know how those people spend all day in that oppressive, dark place. Huge kudos to them for all their hard work so stingy tourists like me can get the tees on the cheap.

FASHION REPORT de PERU
Part Dos - cirugía plástica y estetica

Plastic surgery is huge in Peru. In the cities, there are signs everywhere advertising fat-sucking and boob jobs. My mother-in-law told me she has her sun spots fried off in ten minutes. This intrigued me, but scared me as well. Of course, the procedures are cheaper down there than in the US, but I'm not signing up to have a brow lift anytime soon, thanks.

Plastic surgeons are doing very well right now. Loads of tourists are heading to Peru to get things "done." Brazil was always the go-to place in South America for this kind of stuff, but lately Peru is right on Brazil's butt implants.

While browsing in this department, I came across this surgeon's website. Check it out. Hilarious. Love the intro with Kenny G playing in the background, and his art gallery.

An interesting fact: Miss World from Peru, Maria Julia Mantilla, who won the crown in 2004, attempted to sue her plastic surgeon, Dr. Cesar Morillas, when he tried to take credit for her beauty and thus her win. He claimed he did many things to her besides the nose job and "breast augmentation" that she admitted to, including her ears, chin, and lips - all of which she denies. Escandal!



Hair extensions are also big in Peru. I was actually planning on having them put in (for the sake of this blog, of course) because they're cheaper, but I ran out of time.

There are giant signs all over one area of Arequipa (maybe the hair district?) that advertise beauty procedures including hair and makeup that promise to make you look like Marilyn Monroe. Marilyn's name is in huge letters over the top of photos of women made up to look like her.

Marilyn Monroe, Peruvian beauty icon.

Which brings me to this: Most of the models and mannequins used to advertise beauty products and fashion are white or very light skinned and pale-haired. I saw a disturbing television ad for toilet paper depicting a little girl who was potty training. She had skin whiter than mine (think ambulance-white) and bright red hair. She looked Irish.

Discrimination based on skin color is rampant in Peru, especially in urban areas. It's said that president, Alan Garcia, is working to change things and I can only hope that this kind of prejudice will be history one day.

In addition, there is discrimination against the large Japanese population in Lima. In response, Alan Garcia has Named April 3rd : Day of Japanese-Peruvian Friendship. Japan and other Eastern Asia countries have a huge influence on style and culture in Peru. Korean cartoons like Pucca Funny Love and my favorite, Monokuro Boo, are huge in Peru and can be found on everything from handbags to slippers. I picked up a few goodies, but missed out on a fabulous Monokuro Boo bag in an Arequipa market because I thought I could find it cheaper in Lima.



Japanese street fashion and Cosplay also seems to be a hit in Peru. Apparently there are cosplay competitions in the cities. Walking down the street in Arequipa, I came across this flyer.

FASHION REPORT de PERU
Part Uno
Let's Go Fu$*ing Shopping

I've been away in Lima visiting my husband's family for the past two and a half weeks.While I was there, I kept a keen eye on the fashion scene. Like most Latin American countries, Peru is rife with cleavage and muy short skirts. And HIGH heels. I saw a woman teetering on a pair of heels one day that threatened to double as stilts.

One nice thing about the style scene here is that despite the fact that there is a large eating disorder problem in Lima, there are few women that look startling thin. In fact, butts and boobs are la sopa del dia.

The advertising in Peru, particularly in Lima, is proof of this. Everything, from ice cream to beer to shoes, is caliente in Peru. On TV, I saw a game show featuring a "sing off" between pairs of lingerie models.

I also saw a variety show hosted by a drag queen in a traditional Peruvian dress and seven inch fetish heels. Behind him a group of salsa musicians dressed in Hawaiian shirts shook marracas while scantily clad models shook their gold-tipped tatas and thong-choked butts at the screen. This almost beats the game show I saw a few years back that involved stripping housewives.

My son and the Brahma Beer girls.

The mannequins here have a little more meat on their bones and by that I mean more cheek on the butt and more boob on the chest. I saw one shirtless female form in a shop window that had painted-on nipples. This was a very middle-of-the-road women's clothing store, mind you, not a trashy lingerie shop. I got my camera ready but before I could get a photo, the clerk pulled a top over the mannequin's torso.


A while back while she was visiting us in the U.S., my mother-in-law discovered the word "fuck" and began using it as an adjective to modify everything. . . including shopping. So as she says,
"Let's go fucking shopping":

First stop: The mall. It's a place in Lima called Jockey Plaza and looks like anymall USA, filled with Payless Shoes, Steve Madden, and Starbucks. I did find a few must-haves there, however. Case in point: the top I bought at a store called Joaquim Miro. It beckoned to me from the shop window -- all cute rosettes adorning a boat neck and cap sleeves (not as cheesy as it sounds). When I went in to inquire about it, the sales clerk apologetically informed me they didn't have any more in red, but they had one left in black. SCORE.


They don't wear black the way we do. It's considered a little bit morbid. Also, they only had a size Large. Normally I wear a medium, but this shirt fits like a glove. The fit has more to do with the fact that clothing runs smaller down there than in the US. Either that or I've eaten one too many papas rellenas. In any case, I've added one more to my collection of a gazillion black tops for only $22 (on sale).

Another stop was at TopiTop. It's like Forever 21 for Limonions. Lots of cheap trendy finds. I found a pale blue shirt that I decided would break up the black for only $15 soles, which is about $5 American.


After that we went to the South American rip-off of the MNG brand store, called Marquis. I liked their collection better than the MANGO by MNG store we have in the US, but it was equally as expensive. Pretty much all of the clothing there is as expensive or more pricey than the clothing in the US. I guess that's why my mother-in-law always buys mountains of clothes here when she visits.

The big department stores there are the Chilean owned Saga Falabella (I love to say that) and Ripley. There is an ad campaign going on right now for the Saga store featuring numerous billboards donning models with the words "HOT en tu closet." I don't know why that made me laugh so much, but every time we passed one of the billboards, it had me in stitches.


I was certain to visit the Indian Market in Mira Flores. I go to this place every time I visit Peru in order to visit one specific store called Joyas Vivac, which carries beautiful sterling silver jewelry at very reasonable prices. I had a mother of pearl ring made for me this time. The setting is about the size of a half dollar and the ring itself is thick sterling. It only cost about $30 to have it made specifically for my finger.

A trip to Peru would not be complete without visiting an Alpaca shop. Luckily, my mother-in-law is in the know and took my sister, her husband, and I to two Alpaca outlets in Arequipa. This is the primo stuff. No mixed alpaca-wool-whatever here. All baby alpaca.

As I was milling around the shop, I noticed the overwhelming smell of horse crap. I followed my nose to an area out back where they have actual alpacas, vecunas, and llamas grazing. Now that's advertising. My sister and her husband both bought beautiful winter coats made of pure alpaca for roughly $100 each. My sister's husband's coat was even reversible. I didn't buy anything as I have alpaca up the ass at home. I just love to pet the clothes; they're so creamy and delicate.

PACKIN' IT UP TO ALPACAVILLE

I'm off to Peru and will be there for the next two and a half weeks. I'll be keeping a close eye on the fashion scene (there really is a fashion scene) and reporting back. I'll also be posting as regularly as I can.

Ciao!