A Cosy Weekend
Fall/Winter 2011
"Even though consumers want design and style, they should also choose something that they will not throw away after one season."
- Takayuki
The weather has been rather unpredictable as of late, as has my health, and so I find myself yearning for something cosy and soft. Of course comfort does not have to mean giving up design. There will always be the side of me that enjoys something soft and romantic rubbing up against the side of me that enjoys, an often aggressive, dark modernism. Of course the latter is more something I tend to admire in abstract as opposed to something I actively pursue where my own wardrobe is concerned, although recently it seems as if that line has blurred somewhat. Regardless of aesthetic however, fabric and shape will always be the primary concern for me. However you choose to dress, provided those two factors have been thought about, it will always be interesting for an outside other to view.
Clothing is created to be worn, and as such a designer should start from the fabric. It informs the way a garment will drape against the body, the way it will move against the body, and the way it will feel. That tactility is something unique to wearing - whereas art can be simply viewed and appreciated, clothing is only truly appreciated once worn. Of course fashion these days is built more so upon imagery than the actual wearing of the garments depicted, so one is able to simply consume an image of a look, rather than actually wear that look. The relationship is thus often one of the consumer aspiring to an image. However whilst I think that can be useful in terms of inspiration, the best method is always to try something on and move around in it. If it feels right, it feels right.
I absolutely loved Takayuki's Spring/Summer 2011 (click here) collection, so I was excited to see the latest Fall/Winter 2011 collection. It seemed a very organic evolution in terms of both aesthetic and production, focusing again around a soft palette and a really interesting mix of fabrics and textures. Indeed the label was partly based around the conscious use of eco-fabrics (albeit more so with his ikkuna/suzukitakayuki line rather than the mainline), and this collection like those previous relies on natural and organic fabrics. Takayuki's design philosophy is based around clothing that ages gracefully, being something you connect with rather than dispose of after the season has passed. Evidence of this is perhaps most obviously found within the coherent aesthetics of this collection and its predecessor, both being easily combined and added to a wardrobe. It is for me a very romantic and alluring image.
Unfortunately I have yet to actually find somewhere in London that stocks his work (although female readers can find his collaboration work with Uniqlo for their Designers Invitation Project still in stores). However I certainly look forward to getting my hands on some of his pieces and trying them on.