Apps aid fashionistas in tracking down desired clothing, shoes

By Natasha Baker TORONTO (Reuters) – Fashionistas envious of clothing, shoes and accessories worn by strangers or seen on websites can turn to new apps for hassle-free shopping to find, and buy or rent, similar items. Like the music app Shazam, which identifies songs based on sound clips, new fashion apps use photos and image recognition technology to find similar clothing. “People see items they like on the street but can’t really go up to the person wearing them and ask where they got them,” said Daniela Cecilio, the chief executive of London-based startup Asap54. With the Asap54 app for iPhone, which was launched last month, users take a photo of an item, or upload an existing one, and describe what it is to help the app identify it.