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When Serena Williams stepped onto Arthur Ashe for the final tournament of her career, cheers from a sold-out crowd rumbled across the U.S. Open stadium as her daughter Olympia looked down from the stands. Olympia had white beads braided into her hair—a callback to her mom’s first U.S. Open, over two decades ago.

Those white beads have become a symbol of sea change and the women who wore them international icons. From the moment Serena and her older sister Venus entered the world of tennis, it was abundantly clear they were something extraordinary—in 1997, Serena became the lowest-ranked player (No. 304) to upset two top-10 opponents in one tournament, and Venus became the first unseeded player to reach the U.S. Open women’s final since 1958. The record-setting would only keep coming. With Serena’s career at its close, there is nothing she deserves more than celebration for both her accomplishments and what she means to people—and that recognition can only start back in Compton, California when three-year-old Serena first picked up a racket.

Serena and Venus’ father, Richard Williams, was the lead architect behind their meteoric rise. Spending hours with his daughters on Compton’s public courts, Richard used his own coaching philosophy, incorporating drills developed from watching hours of tennis while simultaneously preserving their education and a relatively normal childhood. 

In 1991, the Williams’ family relocated to Palm Beach, Florida where…

Between the flocks of photographers, hoards of well-dressed individuals and increased number of minivans around central it would be hard to miss the fact that London Fashion Week has made its return this September. While the news of the Queen has altered a few plans, many designers have respectfully continued on with their scheduled shows, paying homage to her Majesty in their own individual ways.

From British fashion favourites like Molly Goddard and Rixo, to designers-on-the-rise like Masha Popova and Nensi Dojaka, the city has been a buzz with creativity as brands debut their Spring/Summer 2023 collections. Of course, we’re here to fill you in on all the happenings, so keep scrolling for the highlights from London Fashion Week S/S23.

1. Molly Goddard

It was all neon, stripes, ruffles and tuille at Molly Goddard – and, we will take it all, please. Goddard’s vision for SS23 is full of get-up-and-go. As models walked in zag zag patterns around the Seymour Leisure Centre in Marylebone, London, a rousing soundtrack of Kele Le Roc’s ‘Things we do for love’ fused the energy of Garage with the classicism of violins – the mood was palpable. It’s all about having fun with getting dressed. Wearability was key, with some models ducking behind the curtain swapping items previously worn with other separates – these are pieces that can fit seamlessly into your wardrobe and can be worn time and time again. All of this culminated in a…

By Sarah Stone

Every fall, industry icons from around the world descend on New York City for Fashion Week.

They travel from every international fashion hub: Milan, Paris, London, Tokyo …

and Raleigh, North Carolina, home of the Wilson College of Textiles. 

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for a college student to go to New York Fashion Week [NYFW],” senior Ankitha Gurram says. “It was insane.”

She spent four days immersing herself in the industry – and the city – through U of NYFW. 

The all-expenses-paid program gives about 25 college students from around the country access to the event every fall and spring. NC State’s Trademark Licensing office made it possible for the Wilson College to send one student this semester. Gurram won the joint competition that determined who would go.  

Inside Fashion Week

Unique, exclusive experiences defined Gurram’s time in New York City. 

She attended a fashion show off-limits to the general public: Son Jung Wan. A tour of Spring Studios, the headquarters for NYFW, allowed her to take in the frenzy backstage as models prepared for the runway.

“Being in person and seeing a new line for the first time with my own eyes was definitely the coolest experience,” the brand management and marketing student says.

There are some mother-daughter memories that are priceless. For Ella Travolta—the daughter of John Travolta and the late Kelly Preston—one of those moments for her circles back to the family’s love of fashion. SheKnows caught up with the 22-year-old at Kate Spade’s NYFW Presentation on Sept. 9 to discuss why the brand holds a special place in her heart and how her family is honoring Grease star Olivia Newton-John, who passed away last month. 

“My parents have always been fashion icons, for me, and for I think many people,” she tells SheKnows. “So, it’s been really interesting getting to see over the years how it’s changed and evolved and also stays the same.” For the event, hosted at the World Trade Center 3, Ella wore a white lace dress accompanied by a reimagined mint green Sam bag from Kate Spade. The brand unveiled its spring 2023 collection, which exaggerated florals, oversized polka dots, spring stripes, and rain motifs.

“A lot of different fashion styles and iconic things have come back but I think Kate Spade, New York has been able to just really keep that throughout the years and really appeal to younger audiences up to whatever age,” Ella says, sharing that she still remembers shopping…

Many NBA players gave gravitated towards becoming fashion icons. Stars such as Russell Westbrook and Kyle Kuzma have made headlines with their dapper looks. However, the revolution was originally started by Dennis Rodman. A hardcore party animal, the Worm lived way ahead of his time. While his brave decisions might not have been welcomed back then, Rodman wasn’t afraid.

A huge part of Rodman’s legacy was made outside his five-championship career. Notably, he was arguably a ladies’ man. The Chicago Bulls legend had an electric lifestyle. Not caring about the noise, Rodman carried himself with his outlandish style.

The two-time Defensive Player of The Year was one of the first to popularize cross-dressing in an era it wasn’t accepted. During an interview, he revealed where it all started. Unsurprisingly, it was the influence of women.

Dennis Rodman explains groundbreaking fashion choices

As a child, Rodman didn’t have a father to look up to. Hence, the influence of his mother and sisters shaped him. The Bulls legend spoke about times his two siblings would dress him up. With no real fashion sense as a child, Rodman blindly followed in the footsteps of his sisters. In addition, as time went on, the bad boy looked up to the women in his life. And that in turn laid the foundation for his cross-dressing era.

DIVE DEEPER

Fans can tell a lot about an anime character from the way they dress. Fashion allows anyone to express themselves any way they’d like, and anime characters often convey their personalities to the audience through their attire. Most anime characters are pretty fashion-forward, and their iconic looks make them stand out in the best way. However, not all characters are nicely dressed.

RELATED: 10 Best Outfits In Shonen Anime, Ranked

Some anime characters even have some of the worst fashion sense imaginable. Whether they’re trying to be as unique as possible or they simply just don’t care about looks, many characters have committed some heinous fashion crimes over the years and become infamous for their disastrous outfits.

10 Haruhi Doesn’t Care About Fashion Much

Ouran High School Host Club

With all her iconic looks throughout the series, it almost feels wrong to call Haruhi Fujioka poorly dressed. However, fans shouldn’t forget her introduction in the first episode of Ouran High School Host Club. She appears before the boys looking completely disheveled, to the point where they initially mistake her for a boy herself.

Haruhi has no time or patience for fashion, with her focus completely on her studies instead. As a result, she leaves outfit picking to the hosts and her dad, which is really the only reason she looks so cute most of the time. If it were up to her, she’d probably still be wearing that awful sweater from the beginning.

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