Ways of seeing
Since I’ve been blogging and become more involved in quilting and crochet, I’ve noticed that my way of seeing things has changed. I’ve been thinking a lot about fashion and style and about what is “in fashion” and “stylish” and what isn’t, and why. My vintage crochet posts have prompted me to re-examine my ideas of what looks good to me and what doesn’t.
Have you ever looked at an item of clothing and thought “gross, why would anyone ever wear that” and a few months later found yourself lusting over the same type of clothing? Looked at a colour combination or type of craft, thought “meh” but in a few months you were wearing or sewing or crocheting that exact same thing? Is it just about exposure and familiarity?
There are definitely fashions and trends in craft and dressmaking in the same way that there are fashions and trends in most other aspects of life. Who remembers the fad for sunflowers a few years back? For stars and moons? Are we going to look back at the things we love now with a tinge of disdain?
I peruse a lot of blogs. There are over 300 subscriptions in my reader. I read many in depth, but there are plenty that I roll over for the pretty pictures. They are sewing, craft, crochet, and dressmaking blogs. There is no doubt that we all jump on the bandwagon with certain projects – I’m definitely a bandwagon jumper! Is there a common aesthetic, or are we creating one?
I definitely make things now that I would have turned my nose up at years ago. I’m manging to develop an eye to see past styling and colour so that I can identify the underlying lines or design. At the same time I recognise that despite admiring the minimalist aesthetic that is fairly prevalent amongst those who are perceived to be “cool” and “hip”, I am not a minimalist. I like colour. If there is the option of choosing something in a subtle, textured grey or choosing it in vibrant teal, I’ll pick the teal any day. I like details – pleats, crocheted edging, yokes, pattern on pattern, applique. I also like a quick project, but if I’m going to sew something that’s fast, I’ll probably do it in loud fabric. Actually, I hardly have any solid fabrics in my stash.
Where is this ramble heading? I’m not sure really. I just know that since I’ve been blogging I look at things differently. I see colour and pattern in a new way, with new subtleties I hadn’t recognised before. I remember that when I was a teenager, I told a friend that she shouldn’t be wearing pink and red together. I thought that making shoes in any colours other than brown and black was a waste of time – why, didn’t brown or black go with everything? I wouldn’t have been been caught dead in a crocheted shawl in my twenties.
So maybe now I’m settling in to my own sense of style, both in terms of the clothes I wear and the sewing and crocheting I like to do. Of course I’m influenced by what I see around me – who isn’t? But now I’m more confident to choose what elements speak to me. I can see things a little better. I listen more to my gut instinct about what I like. I can appreciate what others like, but don’t have to feel the same way. It’s okay to think differently but still appreciate and respect the work and effort that others put into what they make.
Today’s my birthday. I’m 42. Will I be wearing loud colours and patterns in ten years time? Once I’m in my fifties and then sixties will I be able to make a crocheted shawl seem fashionably hand-crafted – or will I just seem old and cliched? Maybe I’m already cliched? Because I’m sure that as the years roll past I’ll still be sewing and crocheting and quilting and crafting. I want many more years to be able to wear the things I like to make without them becoming inappropriate. Mind you, it might be fun to be the crazy eccentric old lady; I don’t care all that much nowadays what other people think about how I look, so I will possibly care even less as I age!
How many of your crafting decisions are influenced by others? Are you conscious of the process, or do you think we just absorb it, almost by osmosis? I add things to my “to-do” list constantly as I see what others have made. You should see my Ravelry queue! And I’m itching to make some Dortje pants and some Feliz dresses. How do you think that you see things? Has your way of seeing changed over time – or has it remained fairly constant?
(I decided to keep this blog post photo-less on purpose so that my images wouldn’t distract from your own ways of seeing)
Happy birthday to you! I look at blogging as a wave of influence provided by the everyday person. Thos style magazines of the past were the ideals and values of a select group of editors trying to create the zeitgeist. Now every person can talk for themselves and set the agenda from their own ideals and values.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!
Totally agree that we’re simultaneously influenced by the things we see around us and (as we age ever-so-comfortably into our sagging skins) we are more in tune with what we would and would not wear.
It’s funny, when I step out of my crafty little world and glimse back into mainstram fashion world, I realise how little attention I pay to fashion these days – when it used to be the world in which I lived and breathed.
Go the crochet shawl, I say!
happy birthday wishes to you!!!
Happy, happy birthday Lara. I hope you’ve had a gorgeous day.
A very thoughtful post (as per).
“Of course I’m influenced by what I see around me – who isn’t? But now I’m more confident to choose what elements speak to me. I can see things a little better. I listen more to my gut instinct about what I like. I can appreciate what others like, but don’t have to feel the same way. It’s okay to thing differently but still appreciate and respect the work and effort that others put into what they make”.
So very true.
For me…I don’t have a huge library of contemporary craft books. I’m much more likely to find something “rank” in a vintage book & rework it so that it suits my current style.
And sometimes I have an idea of something I want to make & then suddenly see a wave of that something online & it puts me right off…interesting isn’t it.
42! Sounds like you’re well on your way to discovering the meaning of life, the universe and everything.
I do hope you’re familiar with Douglas Adams – there must be a lot of people in the English-speaking world who are baffled by the comments they receive on their 42nd birthday.
To focus on one point of your post – it is quite bizarre how you can scoff at a particular fashion when it first comes out, and then one day find yourself making/buying the same thing and wondering, “When did this happen?”
Happy birthday!
I wear a knitted shawl most days this winter, which is not something I ever expected to do under the age of 75 🙂
Hello from Spain and happy birthday!
Of course I think we are influenced by what we see around us. In some way it is fashion, in some way people, influences, magazines, or now blogs that we see, our friends… everything. But for me, this is not all.
I’m 35 going for 36. When I was in my twenties I wouldn’t have put on some clothes that I love now. My wardrobe is not the same. In my case I think this is because of my mind, the person I’ve turned to be. In my teens I wanted to be accepted, in my twenties I wanted to be pretty or sexy… Now, I want to be pretty, sexy, comfortable … but just me. Your evolution as a person determines the things that interest you… and this is so also when it comes to the way you dress yourself.
Uhh… I guess this is too much thinking for today since it is your birthday….
Enjoy your day!
Happy birthday!!
I would not describe myself as edgy (not even slightly – most of my shoes are black or brown but I recently acquired a red pair, yippee!), but since being in blogland, I’m far more aware when an indi fashion starts appearing in mainstream shops (Target is carrying a lot of babushka prints for little girls at the moment!).
And while it takes me a good couple of years to be vaguely comfortable with some fashion changes, I look back on the way that I dressed 15 years ago and often cringe 😉 So I must be impacted by changes in fashion over time, even though I think I resist pretty hard. I like blogland because it’s very ok here not to conform to mainstream style. So even though I rarely act on clothes trends due to seeing them on blogs, I still feel just fine about being me. Though I have jumped on the Leonie/Michelle crocheted vest bandwagon! And I plan on making myself a knitted shawl in the not too distant future!
Great post.
A great (and thoughtful) post Lara!
Hope you have a great Birthday xx
Happy birthday lovely girl!
I find as I’m getting older I am more confident in my own skin, and have starting to colour block more. I didn’t notice that I was doing it at first, but my hairdresser noticed it and complimented me on it. (Good boy – that’s why I keep him around!)
So like you I have started embracing colour, and bold patterns, and things that make more of a statement about who I am (big and loud) and how I want to be seen (classy and colourful).
This is a great post Lara. Thanks for writing it!
Happy birthday Lara. Just loved your post and always find inspriation here x
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Happy birthday my astrological twin!! I find it hard to separate the influences of age and the Internet. I definitely think I am better able to understand things like body shape and garment style and how they interact (even if my choices aren’t always made for the same reasons), but how much of that is just learning life’s lessons the long way and how much has been the greatly increased exposure to the things people make and how that works on them I couldn’t even guess. I am similarly not a minimalist, though I think my aversion to loud prints and colours is related to fatness rather than fashion – I think I was a 30 before I wore red (and I LOVE red) – so deeply was I inculcated with the try and be invisible ethos of 80s plus size “fashion”. So I still have the challenge myself to get off grey and black, but I have always loved texture (the fat girl’s print). I now tend to go on print and colour jags and then nothing I own matches and I run back to black and grey for a while. I should also say I just don’t have a good eye and feel for colour combining. But getting back to the point, I have most definitely been influenced by the internet bloggers and crafters in as much as it has made me want to do more – to think beyond simply getting garments to fit and spend more time on thinking and about how to make things in new and interesting ways. That’s partly an aesthetic thing (when it comes to whose sense of fashion I admire the words interesting, unusual, and designed would definitely come to mind) but also a crafting challenge thing. The more I challenge myself and work at testing new ideas the more inspired and engaged I am by the job of clothing myself and my family…so yeah, I would definitely say I see things differently.
Happy Birthday Lara! Hope you had a super fabulous day.
What an interesting post – I think we get to a certain age where we’re confident enough to wear whatever we like without worrying about whether its in fashion or not. There’s also a certain point where it finally clicks, and we know what suits our body shape and what is comfortable to wear.
Happy Birthday Lara!
I think my taste in lots of things changes overtime. I know I am currently making things that years ago I would have turned my nose up at & at the same time if I look back at what I made (or was wearing) a few years ago, I would cringe. In relation to what I wear, i don’t think i follow trends too much, I dress to be comfortable & my colthing colour palete is very boring so theoretically everything goes together! I would love to wear more colour & I hope as I get older I will- I plan on being an eccentric pucci muumuu wearing grandma & I’m sure i’ll still be crafting too!
Happy birthday to you – hope you had a great day and that you wore your favourite shawl!
I think it is impossible not to be influenced by what we see and to think of how we might adapt or change an element in order of it to suit us – be it the colour or texture used to create an item.
Or if the exact item is to our liking then to go for it as it is.
I think that as I get older I am more comfortable in my own skin – more accepting of what and who I am and this makes me more confident in wearing things I want to wear – be they fashionable or not.
Happy Birthday!
I’m not sure if my tastes have truly changed over time, as much as I have expanded my view and my experiences have shaped my tastes. I still like things, styles, and colors that I liked as a child and teen, but as I’ve aged and experienced more, I’ve had my eyes opened to so many other things and styles I like and want to use in my home and clothing. Figuring out what shapes and styles of clothing are flattering is an ever-evolving mission. I am becoming more comfortable with bright color and pattern, but still find textural tone-on-tone more me. I love all the blogs I read because I am challenged to see beyond my walls and am inspired to just try something. Heck, if it turns out icky, it still won’t look as bad as that haircut/perm in 7th grade, and I certainly survived that. As far as clothing styles go, I’ve never dived into the fashion pool much. I always feel like a fraud trying to dress “hip”. I’m always excited when the current trend is something that I would make for myself.
Great post Lara (and a very happy birthday to you indeed!). I definitely think I’m suggestible in terms of styles, colour combinations etc, but I keep forging my own way as well. I’ve started recognising that I can love and admire certain fabric choices, aesthetics and styles on blogs, but that they wouldn’t suit me and my home (so I just admire and don’t do them myself). But it’s ever-evolving. I’m only just learning what colours and styles I like to wear, and how they differ from what colours/styles I like to see around me. Sometimes I feel quite confused!
I’m 61, I wore shawls and crocheted vests in the ’70’s. I still wear the equivalent in pashminas/scarfs and vests. Wear what you like regardless of age- be “eccentric”. I try not to wear the “uniform” of older women.
Happy, happy birthday Lara. I hope you had a fabulous birthday.
This is a great post. You should be writing columns for somebody.
I have always loved colour, and always had my own unique sense of style. But I have definitely grown more confident in it as I’ve aged.
Hope you had a wonderful birthday Lara.
Your words are so true. As you accrue life experience (I wont say age – sounds like you have an expiry date), your perspective does change. My move from the city to the country is bringing that home. I’m finding that being surrounded by nature is tuning my eye to see colour differently. The days of wearing all black are starting to fall on the negative side of the scale.
Happy Birthday!
I don’t think I have ever been fashionable in my whole life. I have always worn precisely what I wanted to wear. But never in that cool way either. I am sure I have been laughed at and scoffed at, but I never noticed. I was too busy being comfortable in my very plain, uncool clothes.
Happy Birthday (slightly belated!), Lara.
As the slightly eccentric one in a largely corporate/sporting environment, and as nearly the only one in my age group – ‘in between’ – I used to be so wary and self-conscious of what I wore…neutral all the way!
But – and in part it’s thanks to blogs like yours, and assurances from wonderful friends to be true to myself – I am who I am, and within bounds, that’s how I dress, how I behave, and how I see the world. I wouldn’t wear a full on shawl in my workplace (tempted!), but I have nearly finished my Winkle Vest, and will wear it happily. And the funny thing is that I get little interested comments from the girls around me as to what I’ve made…..!
Hope you had a wonderful day, and all the best to you and yours. Thank you for giving us a gift of thought and inspiration in return.
Lynda
Happy Birthday Lara – still so young! Interesting post…. I didn’t read everyone’s comments, but I’ll throw in my 2 bobs …. I’ve become increasingly conscious of style … I’ve even recently made an appt for a colour and style analysis – I thought I had a pretty cool sense of style, and made good decisions in terms of fabric and colour choices, but I get a real shock when I look at the photos of myself that I take for the blog – ew – they are really telling!! They portray a different perspective than just looking in the mirror. But my real motivation is the TIME and cost involved in dressmaking. If I’m going to spend good money and heaps of time on something for me, I want it to be perfect – to suit me to a TEE! So it will be interesting to see what the expert says. Age is of course another factor – I am 46 – in my mind I’m still a skinny minny teenager – but those photos are my reality check – eek! Wait and see …..
Firstly a big Happy (belated) Birthday to you!!
I really enjoyed this post as it’s something I’ve recognised about myself -I scoffed at boots over jeans two years ago, now I live in them and just today I purchased some Heather Bailey ‘Nicey Jane’ despite not thinking much of it a few months ago!
Let’s hope the things we’re making now still look great in ten years time!!
Happy Birthday Lara, I hope you were able to celebrate ALL week. I love your posts when go introspective. You raise some good questions, and I find myself nodding my head. And not because I’m about to fall asleep, even tho actually I am…