Page 22 - Designing Ways 272

FASHION

What is a sentence for feather?

‘She was marvellous and her feathered hat remained

unruffled as she took her seat in the audience.’

by Stienie Greyling

strich feathers have fascinated they are super effective when it comes to
people for centuries and have self-defence. If an ostrich is cornered by
Olong been an important export a hungry predator, such as a lion, cheetah,
from Africa to different European leopard or hyena, it will kick with a force
markets. The ostrich plume was a key part powerful to kill. Each two-toed foot is
of the luxury trade across Mediterranean armed with a ten centimetre sharp claw
shores for centuries. The main source of too, so predators had better beware.
ostrich feathers was from wild ostriches, What do feathers represent in fashion?
especially from North and West Africa. The grandeur of feathers is something
By the middle of the nineteenth century, that has been explored in fashions around
the rising economic value of ostrich the world. Offered in a variety of different
plumes triggered colonial French and shapes, colours and textures, these relics
British competition over this luxury of nature hold spiritual significance for
commodity, leading to the establishment many, but it’s their organic beauty that
of domesticated ostrich farms by the has cemented them as an eye-catching
French in North and West Africa and by sartorial splendour.
the British in South Africa. It is alleged that plumes were made
The ostrich might not be able to fly, popular in the 16th century by knights
but boy can it run! Using its long legs, who brought the trend back from their
powerful thighs and strong feet, this big crusades. They would wear feathers on
bird can cover five metres in a single stride their heads called panaches that indicated
and reach speeds of over 70 kilometres status, wealth, ethnicity and more when
per hour! When zooming along at such worn in battle.
mega speeds it holds out its short wings to The use of feathers as sartorial
help it balance. decoration dates back to around to
This brilliant bird’s strong legs don’t B.C., with our evolutionary cousins the
only carry the ostrich where it wants to go, Neanderthals. Scientific analysis says

22 Issue 272 • dw