A Little Lagniappe

January 19, 2024

Sewing is about a lot of things as much as it's about  creating beautiful outfits.  For me, sewing was always about looking as good as you could.  I adored looking into the new fashions and how could I style them to my look and my shape and my size.  And that's what I did.  I loved the YSL Tuxedo Look, but I had some figure faults that wouldn't allow me to buy this outfit outright from YSL.  (I also had some budget faults that wouldn't allow me to buy it! )

That YSL cumberbund would have been too big, and the pants too small. Additionally, I wanted to do the more traditional satin lapel and collar with the smaller tie and the tuxedo-stud buttons.  I added so many details to "my" take on YSL's "Le Smoking" suit that I could do when I made this, making it better for me than anything I could have ever bought.  

We are beginning to return to a much more normal style.  Call it minimalism, stealth wealth, or quiet quality, the trend is moving more in that direction, and I'm looking forward to it.  There's a recent article from Back Row that looks at fashion from an outsider's view from inside the fashion industry. (And yes, this is a paid-for article, but here's a PDF version if you want to read the whole article cause I don't like it when people put up links, then you have to pay $80/year to read one article!  I came across this from her Instagram account, which is also worth a follow.)  This industry is a little like all businesses.  There are some interesting tidbits in the article about the trend of fashion that I agree with.

• Barbiecore was a fad, more like a flash in the pan!
• The designer of towel skirts still hanging on (a total rip-off)

And then some predictions for 2024

• Fashion will move away from making social statements on society. (Thank heavens - we get fashion and that's all).
• Publishers will suffer as search undergoes an AI-driven change.  So this means if you're looking for a specific item, your AI search engine (they mostly all are now), will give you closer to what you want rather than having to search through the "pants category" at your local store.  Additionally this means that if the search engine drives you to a store, the store pays the search engine, but the store may not be organized well and you're left with page after page of nothing what you're looking for.  

Here's my typical search for something at a high-end retailer looking for that "classic" dress...search for Little Black Dress and get it with no sleeves, strapless, funky sheer hem, full, funky hem, too long, too short and frankly nothing I'm even slightly interested in.  

With AI, that all changes and #5 on her list is right on point, and I can't wait.

• Luxury brands will continue to court ultra-wealthy clients....and basically leave the rest of us out.  You know, this doesn't bother me at all.  For all my life I've been making high-end clothing, and won't stop now - it will just take on a more minimalist look with that stealth wealth flair.

The rest of it doesn't really pertain to fashion that I'm interested in or sewing.  I've already started dressing up a little more and feeling a lot more special.  Not only that but I notice that when I do that, people feel more special around me.  That in turn, makes me feel more special.  It's one of those never-ending circles that turns into something very fresh and new - feeling good and flattering in your clothes.  

The other side of this (from the comments on this changing style/fashion trend) is that it's perceived as a way to sell clothes.  Changing fashion makes it necessary to buy more clothes (or so one commenter says), and therefore you must spend more money which is a crock because we don't need more clothes. Maybe, but more I wonder if changing fashions is so new because we've had almost a complete generation of fast-cheap fashion, that this is about the change itself.  IOW, changing fashion hasn't happened in so long, that the idea of change in itself is new.  So to think of anything like minimalism, or grooming, or care for presentation and a well-kept look, has become such an oddity, that the change itself is suspect.  

I grew up in a period of high change, and frankly I loved it.  One of the features of a faster fashion-changing cycle (about every ten years), is that the trend doesn't get staid or worse, overdone to the point that for some fashion victims there is no rescue -- muffin tops abound, the loss of subtle seduction with TMI in every crevice of one's body, and a lack of caring about a person's appearance much less clothing. Without the exposure to the cycle of change, how would one know that and therefore be able to see that the change brought about not only a lot of creativity, but also prevented a sense of stagnancy in one's wardrobe.  

To end our little saunter through style, is one of my other fav authors/posters on Instagram, @psychologyforfashion where she discusses not to be afraid of establishing a uniform for yourself.
 

Here's the perfect example - although it's cold and Wintour does this as well with a sling pump as she does her winter boots.  The look is straight-forward, very minimalist and very stealth wealth - all three of these are Chanel take-offs.  She looks together, and perfect for her position as a fashion editor of probably the most influential fashion magazine published today.

Why would anyone want to cultivate a uniform like this?  Isn't this the very essence of squashed creativity?  Actually not, if you've ever tried to live in a uniform mentality, it's very creative and even empowering as you are literally forced to be creative in your selection of the outfit that will be brought home to live in your closet full of uniforms.  If that new uniform doesn't fit in your lifestyle, it's apparent immediately.  

For we sewists, this is really very easy for our uniform is our core pattern, and the entries flow from one piece to another with creative flair and an inventive necessity.  That's what the core pattern does - it's the base, while the other pieces are all full of imagination and what-if's!  You may not think of your core pattern as a  uniform, but that's exactly what it is and it works great in the minimalist, stealth wealth trend we are in the midst of enjoying.  

I'm still working with changing my silhouette slightly and haven't fully played with that new line enough to get a grip on exactly what I'm looking for, but I'll know it when I get there.  Just like you, I'm not sure where this will lead, and that's the charm and excitement that lays ahead.  Simply because we do not know the exact path, often allows us to try creative things that we would never try before.  

Encourage yourself to try something new in your core pattern, and even think about adding a piece or two to it, or a slight change in the silhouette to experiment with a new take on your core pattern.  This sort of thinking really does bring about some fantastically new ideas.  

Enjoy!

The SewingArtistry Resource Library is designed to contain information to not only make your sewing better, but to aid in you fitting and flattering your shape, size and style.  Check it out. 

Look for future classes coming in 2024
The Core Pattern Shirt, (one of my favorites for woven core pattern that you can make into a myriad of different garments), 
Basic Knit Top (core pattern class for knit basic tops, shells, tees, dresses, and tunics)
 

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