Guest Blogger: BiAlamode: The Cultural Blend

The Cultural Blend

Ever wonder why so many people find the mixing of cultures so disconcerting? Well, I’ve often wondered this myself….in silence mind you, but for me I see “the cultural blend” as a beautiful thing. In the last five years or so, hubby and I have started traveling in earnest and I must say the places that I’ve seen so far have whetted my appetite for knowledge about people and their cultures. Those parts of the world that I have come across have pushed a “curiosity button” inside me and I gotta tell ya, I’m ready to see much more of the world’s beautiful places and yes, Asia tops the list.

I think that may also be one reason why I love fashion so much, its colors and patterns bold and bright, so visually stimulating…..and the possibilities?…..well…..they’re endless. In my humble opinion, “the cultural blend” can be found in many places but one of the first places would be in fashion.

You see, fashion blends a little sumptin’, sumptin’ from everybody’s culture. Fashion designers truly fascinate me, because their creative minds start at the point of their own origins and then their designs sprout wings and take flight. Wherever that “little creative birdie” lands, influence takes hold.

Truth be told, we human beings blend culturally all the time, whether we even realize it or not. We take little pieces here and there from cultures that cross our path...putting our “little spin” on that thing. We make it our own. Be it designers making Japanese kimonos with African textile prints,

or Koreans entertainers wearing cornrows and afros………….

or American female singers wearing traditional Asian attire and a young lad following suit……………..

Whatcha end up with is a “cultural smoothie” I like to call it. When the “blending” of cultures takes place, it creates an appreciation for and stimulates an open mind regarding others who are different from us, or at least…..it should.

From our fashions…even to our music, when “the cultural blend” happens, that’s when true beauty comes to fore. Oh and when “the cultural blend” happens in the….ahem…..“Biblical sense” the world and its inhabitants get blessed with this…………………..

And this…………………………

And this…………………………

And this……………………….(*didn’t forget you fellas*)

And this………………………

And this……………………………..

And iconic talent like this…………………….

Hey, all I can say is if this is what the world gets from being tossed in a Magic Bullet, keep the “cultural smoothies” coming baby….keep’em coming!

I think these three feel me….SMILES!

Until next time……………………………….. #TeamCulturalBlend.

*Photos courtesy of the World Wide Web therefore considered public domain, all photo collages courtesy

of D. LaShore aka BiAlamode, please credit as tagged*

*(All text herein is the property of the author D. LaShore and may not be copied with permission)*

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ABOUT ME

Hello to all of the Pink Fashion Ninja’s out there,

I’d like to first introduce myself to everyone. My name is D. LaShore, otherwise known as BiAlamode. I’m a 40-something married woman from Houston, Texas USA and I have been intrigued with the Asian culture from the time I was a youngster. During my youth, besides school, my days were filled with dolls and playhouses and my Saturday mornings were filled with cartoons (anime) and the occasional martial arts film, several of which starred martial arts legend Bruce Lee. Through those movies and also documentaries and dramas I’ve truly come to appreciate this beautiful culture that is quite unlike my own.

As an adult, it was a young actor/singer named JiHoon Jung aka Rain that was/is totally responsible for bringing me even deeper into the Asian culture…the Korean culture, specifically. After seeing him in the Hollywood movie Ninja Assassin and watching endless videos of his many musical performances, I became one of his dedicated Clouds. Through my association with the Cloud USA fan site/blog and its founders Terri Robinson and Stephe Thornton, the door to the Korean culture has opened even wider for me. It’s afforded me the opportunity to meet some very wonderful people. April Jackson aka The Pink Fashion Ninja is one of those people and I’d like to thank her for this opportunity.