Winter is finally here and as the longer night sweeps in, everything seems to have gone black. Maybe that’s what happened to my fabric choices as well as all the colour seemed to have dissipated. There may be a point in time where I would have been horrified at being a soulless conformist wearing black, i.e. like everyone else around me, but recently I seemed to have grown attached to the notion of an all black or monochrome world. Don’t get me wrong though, I still love the prints and colour but sometimes wearing black seems like a ‘Get out of jail’ card. Almost like a shroud that prevents people from judging you.
But you know that’s not my game. I love looking at what other people wear and in return, don’t mind people looking at what I wear. After all, it would be a lie if I said I don’t wear what I wear to be noticed. If that was the case, you wouldn’t be reading this blog as it won’t exist!
So back to black, I went through my stash of fabric and pulled out several pieces of black fabric that I have been saving for the time I have something interesting to make. This time, I played with the idea of a trouser with a wide leg but cropped at the ankle. I’ve seen quite a lot of people, mainly Japanese and the fashion elite, wearing this type of trousers and it looks good and definitely a deviation from the even skinnier skinny jeans that seems to be permanently stuck on a lot of people at the moment.
Using a black wool fabric, the weight of the fabric accentuates the straight lines of the trousers and creates a nice drape and movement when I am stationary or in motion. After all, who doesn’t want to look good while running after the bus!
I also made a black shirt using a black cotton lawn fabric but I used mesh as a detail on the collar, cuff and yoke to create a sports like look. And yes you have guess right, the mesh is a remnant from my previous projects! Why waste?
I combined this look with the Neoprene wool jacket I made last year. Conformist in colour I may be but I make it up in the pattern cutting and details.
I do have to say though that as easy as it may be to wear black, it can be very difficult to make garments that are black (or white). The lack of colour or prints draws the eyes to every bit of details on the garment and bad pattern cutting and/or sewing can immediately show up. After all, our choices are influenced by the details, whether it is the cut, print or colour.
That is unless desperation plays a part and we just grab the first thing that comes our way but I’m sure that is a mistake we quickly learn not to do!
Stephen Yong 