Hop on Instagram, and you’ll find on the “Explore” page alone a heavy roll of highly edited photos that look just too good to be true. You’ll read stories on how some users spend hours shooting just for a single, tiny square post. Imagine the time spent taking 200 photos to just pick one.
It’s a game. Even I have to upkeep social media for my writing—the ultimate love/hate relationship. I’m much more shy about the selfie or selca trend and prefer to hide behind something if I can, but every once in awhile I’ll step in front for an independent brand I purchased and really support.
Then Japan’s popular WEAR app fell into my lap when a good friend and journalist for Harper’s Bazaar China, Stacy Fan, told me to just give it a go. I highly trust her opinion based on her approach to fashion with intricate reviews of designers and in-depth interviews on Eurasianvogue.com.
She explained WEAR was image based as well, but much more approachable with very little editing and filters. It truly is. I get a view of every day style from Japan to China to Europe. There’s no heavy photoshop or flawless product shots. It’s simply what people wear right as they’re heading out the door. Eclectic to polished, there’s really something to appeal to anyone with a semi-interest in street style.
Though recently launched in the United States, I still find a decent amount of unfiltered, raw images. At the same time there’s stylized shots now. I still give them a nod for creating a crisp, clean image, though my heart is chasing after those more realistic photos.
Trends vary by country, and you can pick this up quickly on the app. What we might favor in the United States, won’t be happening in Taiwan. I spend a couple hours a day on there looking for inspiration and also out of sheer curiosity. I find the Japanese are as shy about photos as I am. Many block their face with cute emoticons or graphics so the focus rests solely on their outfit. This is how I feel clothing really is meant to be, just another necessary aspect of our lives, but we still find some way to express our individuality.
Ultimately, WEAR’s lookbook style platform is Instagram from fashion only, but without all the fuss of numbers and engagement percentages.
To learn more, visit wear.net.
While you’re at it get ready to participate in hashtag challenges across some of the major media platforms Vogue, Refinery29, W, T Brand Studio for the New York Times and Teen Vogue. Here are a couple to show you how WEAR has made their recent splash into the U.S. Markets and to motivate you to take a peek at why this app has been downloaded 8 millions times:
Min A. Lee 