Clothing

 

Each evening I choose an outfit for the next day, and with this choice comes the burden of a character. That concept might be overused, but it’s true. What you wear has everything to do with how you carry yourself, how you sit, how you speak, your mindset even. It’s a costume in the most subtle and organic way. The way we act in formal wear, for example, really demonstrates this change. If we remove the expectations, the social cues and etiquettes, the subconscious (or conscious) acting we do each time we get dressed, what would be left? 

When it comes to the question of what the aesthetic at the core of my style is, perhaps my most transparent look into that came during the beginning stages of the pandemic, when I started to design and sew clothing for the first time in my life. The creative liberty was entirely in my hands, to an almost worrying degree. I was not only not confined to the styles in stores, I got to choose everything about the clothing; color, fit, pattern, length, closure mechanism. Being faced with the task of creation rather than selection is much more intimidating than I thought it would be. While also being limited by my ability, I think starting from nothing and imagining a final product gave me a look into what I really liked and what genuinely inspired me. I could wear things I had previously only conceptualized. I could take elements of two pieces I enjoyed and create something entirely unique. Before I knew it I had sewn an entire line of dresses. I felt like I had finally found my style. 

That seems like such a trivial part of oneself, “style”, but I think it offers valuable insight. Clothing choices are so different from our tastes in anything else, even if that thing happens to be artistic. Which architecture styles you like, or music, or painting or whatever it might be says a lot about you, sure, but it isn’t broadcast wherever you go. There are so many assumptions we can make, and we do make, depending on how a person is dressed. Maybe this is a negative thing, and maybe it shouldn’t be this way, but from my experience, it’s the way it is. The character you play isn’t just for you, through clothing it’s always on display for everyone around you. 

How do I want to be perceived? This is a question which is maybe too big to tackle here, or even anywhere, but we can start by examining what I already wear: Turtlenecks, blazers, corduroy, trench coats, the flowery dresses I sew. Each outfit I put together communicates a different aspect of the person I am; the activities I’m taking on that day, the mood I was in the night before when I chose the pieces, the people and places I take inspiration from. Clothing is an incredibly powerful symbol. For the countless strangers you pass  it’s the only impression of you they’ll ever get, let it be a good one, and let it represent you.