return to domesticity

[utopia]

I could be off my mark here, but I've been noticing an increasing trend towards domesticity. it seems traditionally 'domestic' hobbies, such as tea drinking (including antique perusing for the perfect teacup) and knitting are undergoing something of a chic renaissance as of late. I even know university boys who are taking up knitting, exchanging recipes, and sewing their own clothes. my 20-something aged friends are scrambling to find vintage aprons at the antique store, and collecting teapots and doilies.

aesthetically, the look is a bit of a carry-on of the granny style (as well as the trend towards jumpers and headscarves) that is trendy at the moment, but I see it as being more integrated with actual domestic practices, such as sewing one's own clothes or knitting a scarf. the clothes are utilitarian, look homemade...simple, tidy and practical housedresses, and aprons/apron dresses are worn. I'm also seeing a lot of traditional knitting bags being carried as day-to-day handbags. I should add, it's not the same as the stepford housewife look...it's more practical and homely.

chloe a/w 06-07

diane von furstenberg a/w 06-07 - house dress

behnaz sarafpour a/w 06-07 - homemade looking skirts

thakoon a/w 06-07 - apron dress

vena cava a/w 06-07

all above photos from www.style.com

on the lower end of things, www.urbanoutfitters.com has retro-inspired housedresses to complete your house-y look.

 

[Lena]

excellent trend watching -as usual- utopia, i agree on this trend being on the rise, its a refuge to comfort and it does echo the recent economic climate (staying at home, feeling safe, less show off, finding back the joys of doing things by yourself, protection)

 

[DreamsAreMade]

I don't know. I really don't like this style. It may look..cute on models, but it would make the general public just look chubby. They're not flattering. I'm for clothes that flatter your body and these ain't it. At least not in the pictures posted.

 

[Lena]

seems that i must be one of the very few people liking Chloe's fw0607 collection..

 

[Erin]

I don't like the style... but I like the idea...

Excellent topic, utopia.

 

[Velouria]

I don't like the style... but I like the idea...

Excellent topic, utopia.

I agree. The clothes aren't very flattering, but I find the idea of 20 year old boys drinking tea and knitting very charming in a weird way.

 

[milkeyedmender]

seems that i must be one of the very few people liking Chloe's fw0607 collection..

fear not, i love the collection too lol.

i definitely see your point utopia. politically this has been a much more conservative decade than the last, and i find it quite interesting that the tv icon we had in the nineties was carrie bradhsaw in sex and the city and in the noughties we have bree vanderkamp and the desperate housewives. moving away from the liberalism of recent times, we are bound to embrace domesticity and less progressive views of the female. i do find it cute, but at the same time the meanings behind this sea change in fasion disturb me slightly.

 

[kisa]

I really like the idea of this. I can't shake the feeling that fashion designers etc just do the exact opposite of the year before so we have to buy more things. From opulent victoriana and russian styles to this relatively plain stuff. I'm onto you fashion industry!!!

 

[utopia]

I really like the idea of this. I can't shake the feeling that fashion designers etc just do the exact opposite of the year before so we have to buy more things. From opulent victoriana and russian styles to this relatively plain stuff. I'm onto you fashion industry!!!

thing is I don't think it's so fashion industry driven, but rather more the fashion industry being responsive to the mood already created by an economic situation - as milkeyedmennder and lena pointed out. it reminds me a bit of the 1930s depression/dustbowl look... it is not necessarily beautiful or flattering, but there is a bleakly lovely, handmade quality to it that appeals, and it is reflective of a less modern lifestyle. and I must agree, it is brilliant seeing boys drinking tea and knitting.

by the way, this is my highly domesticated vintage knitting bag (which indeed, is used both for knitting and for everyday)...

 

[Whitelinen]

I find this interesting, yet am not sure if I like the trend, I'm not meaning clothes but the 'domesticity' idea.

I think some of those clothes look very good on runway, but 'domestic' looks are, to me, kind of different from that. Domestic isn't the first thing that comes to my mind with those clothes.

 

[Lena]

you know.. this trend has been lurking around in trend forecast agencies not sure for which season i saw this emerging and it was discribed more or less in the way that utopia explains/sees this.

there is something 'not quite there' with the 'domesticity' title for this hybrid trend, but i'm sure we will soon come up with a more fitting definition.

 

[tott]

I may be totally off here, but could this be about the arts/crafts/quality knowledge we are losing? I see this as practically screaming for safety and longevity... Arts and crafts, like at the beginning of the 20th century.

 

[Spacemiu]

It seems to come out of a wnat for saftey as well as a anti-capitalist/anti-consumerism/ DIY feeling

 

[snowqueen]

o0k might be totally wrong and completly junmping on the wrong wagon here but also this summer pinifore skirts are a big trend .. recon this could be sort of linked ??

 

[Lena]

I may be totally off here, but could this be about the arts/crafts/quality knowledge we are losing? I see this as practically screaming for safety and longevity... Arts and crafts, like at the beginning of the 20th century.

yes, this is what came to my mind when i first saw this topic, i even thought of merging with the existing thread.. this is what we lose, what we wont be able to 'produce' anymore, as far as western countries go..

i also agree with the anti-consumerism note from spacemiu
and with tiamaria bringing in the pinafore styles which are part of the 'safe/domestic' esthetics.
its almost a 'developement' of the 'nostalgic/fairy' mood and its also related with the 'childlike' trend, its all about refuge and emotional safety.

 

[sea of stitches]

gorgeous bag utopia. domesticity has been on the rise for a while now, but maybe not so much with "big" designers? i remember about 6 years ago changing the words of le tigre's mediocrity rules to "domesticity rules" hehe.

 

[Hanne]

Time is money - and being able to do things the oldfashioned (and slow) way - such as knitting your own sweater vs buying it not only signals a sort of anti-consumerism, a desire for the more personal but also having enough time to spare.

This was also one of the themes at the danish design centres exhibit I went to some time ago : http://www.thefashionspot.com/forums/f81/exhibit-danish-design-centre-danish-framing-future-design-31244.html (see post #7-10)

 

[sanura]

I can understand the appeal of this style. I was just checking on line for "housewife" "farmer girl" style online. The appeal is that it's functional looking yet fun and flirty...

 

[Tinetush]

I like this. And I see a trend here.
I think it has been evolving for quite some time, bubbling under the surface. . .

 

[MulletProof]

interesting topic, utopia.
so is it more like a mood rather than trend per se?