We don't mean to get existential on you, but Otto von Busch shares some great thoughts on fashion in his talk, Hacking Design: Folly, theft or a new democratic dawn?  He discusses the larger meaning of designer labels, different ways of looking at copying them and the affect of these labels becoming readily available to the masses (i.e. Karl Lagerfeld for H&M.) 

The most interesting part to us is his reference to a NY based designer who hosts events called Pass it On:  Connecting Contemporary DIY Culture.  She helps people understand the DNA behind a designer label and gives us a deeper appreciation for these brands beyond being just a specific style, color, logo and status symbol. She then instructs on how to create clothing in the look and feel of that designer. To hear more click here. (If you don't want to listen to the whole thing, start about 13 minutes in....)

Otto von Busch haute-couture heretic and DIY-demagogue visits the RSA to present his extensive series of projects that experiment with the reverse-engineering, hacking, tuning and sharing of fashion as a form of social activism.