why fashion designers don't wear the clothes they design

[calexico]

i've always wondered why there are so many designers that do not wear their own clothes...
yes, there are a few that do...
stella mccartney, i feel, designs for herself... what she wants to wear...
and a few others as well...
but there are an abundance of fashion designers that run around in their uniform of jeans and sneakers and white shirts...
*you know who you are*

just curious...
could it be that they are faded and a bit bored?
or perhaps they prefer to see themselves as a blank canvas?
perhaps someone in the *industry* can shed a little light on this topic for me...
as a designer myself, it is hard for me to understand why you wouldn't want to wear your own product...

 

[tricotineacetat]

Maybe that´s because once you are already so much into the creative process of designing clothes that in the end of the day, you are tired of taking too much care of your own looks... The french use to say that even the best hairdresser´s got unclean hair, maybe there´s some truth within this saying...

And yeah, I think there´s also truth within the idea that certain designers want to be more or less neutral, like blank canvasses. It certainly gives you a distance towards what you produce.

 

[saann]

When I told my teacher in design that you should design clothes you would want to wear yourself she said that a lot of designers design stuff they wouldn't wear themselves. they live out their fantasies and a lot of them like the challenge of dressing others in a way that they themselves wouldn't dress. That might be why a lot of men do womens clothes and not only mens clothes.

Whe designing they can go all out, stella mccartney in my opinion has very ordinary clothes, it feels like she doesn't go all out and maybe it's because what she designs is what she wants to wear, and she doesn't like going all out in her dressing.

Some people like designing what they want for themselves and some like designing for others.

 

[softgrey]

oh...i like this topic...




my comment...
most designers couldn't afford to buy their own designs if they had to...

 

[purechris]

soft

the cobbler's kid is always the last to get the shoes........

I like the idea of a blank canvas. The one thing to really remember though is that they are always thinking 6 months in advance.....so by the time their production is actually finished they're working on the next season.....My designer comes in and hates everything because she's already beyond it....she's hysterical about it......the last time she was here she said, "isn't this lovely, are you selling it well? If it was black I would wear it"

I think that's why so many people in the industry choose black because it's seasonless, and it always looks good. (hence my work wardrobe of black/gry/navy/white)

 

[stilista]

I was a designer, never wore the collections I produced. By the time they were ready to go into the stores, I was so sick of looking at them, the last thing I wanted to do was wear them! I'd make myself new things, or buy from other designers just so I was escaping from the eternal hell that was producing 2 collections a year!

And of course SoftGrey, I'd never have been able to afford them if I had to buy it off the rail thought those who did pay were loopy

 

[Luna]

I know that half the time after I'm done designing and making a bag, I'm so sick of it that I just don't want to look at it anymore.

But there are exceptions with me.

 

[Someday]

I think it's fantasy.
Most designers make clothing for the person they would love to be.

 

[Diorling]

I think it's fantasy.
Most designers make clothing for the person they would love to be.

Perhaps that ties into the men designing for women? I know I would design for the woman I would want to be.

 

[calexico]

the blank canvas thing works the best in my mind as well...
i like softgrey's economic analysis... i think that is unfortunately true too...
and the *designing for fantasy* thought is a nice one...

a friend of mine wears the same thing everyday...
it's his uniform, he has 7 of each for every day of the week...

he says in the morning it's one thing less to think about
and therefore more energy and time to spend thinking about design...

although i can relate to the incestuous nature of wearing your own product
isn't it a bit unfortunate to not want what you've created for yourself?

 

[Buckwheat]

I think the best part of designing is in the design process and not neccessary the end product. It's nice to see what you have accomplished at the end...but I think how you get to the finish line is the best part of all. I don't think some of them are sick of looking at their stuff at the end (some probably do) but basic items like jeans, t-shirt, button down shirt etc....they are what they are. Like a basic levi's 501 will do it...they don't really have to/want to wear for the crazy details/cut/theme or whatever they got going on for that collection.

 

[fashionista-ta]

Carolina Herrera wears her own stuff constantly ... Behnaz wears her own stuff when she goes out ... all the guys who design women's wear thankfully don't wear it ... I guess I haven't noticed this epidemic

 

[Spike413]

If you think about it, most women's wear designers are men, but the few who are women always wear their stuff, to add to fashionista-ta's examples, Miuccia Prada, Phoebe Philo, and Donatella Versace always wear something they've designed....especially Miuccia and Phoebe, you can tell they both really design with themselves in mind.

But of the men who design menswear, I think a lot of them do wear their own stuff, even if it's not right off of the runway....off the top of my head, Ford, Armani, Galliano, Dolce and Gabbana, Ozwald Boateng...all of them wear their own designs and their designs reflect their own style. You can totally see them wearing what they send out on a runway.

 

[clay]

This is very interesting. I , as Softie said, can't afford my clothes as yet. however in my mens clothing I definately design what I want to wear. Most of my female friends that design clothes usually put something in their lines, even if the line is less than their taste, that they actually like and wear.
I think that many designers, male and female ,wear their own clothes they design but just down play them and really look like their not into the whole fashion thing. Maybe they are really over it especially if they have had some success and made some real money.

I think men that design men's clothing probably do wear their things more than you may think.

I know I will wear my clothes constantly whenever I reach the point I can afford them or get a great discount. I don't do the jeans anymore, I'm doing something much better now for men and women. We'll see what happens.

 

[em 692]

i'm not so sure i think it could be because they're "bored" of what they designed...think of musicians. they practice a song and sing it over and over, but they still sing it at concerts, maybe even year after year.

though singing and designing are two different things...i wouldn't know what the reason could be because i'm neiter

 

[KhaoticKharma]

I think alot of designers designing for an established house don't always like what they are producing. Remember, Marc Jacobs got fired from Perry Ellis for designing what he thought was relevant. Backers/investors don't want whats relevant for alot of the older houses, they want what will sell. If it happens to fit into youth culture at the same time, well, that is just a bonus. I would take a job designing for St. John if they paid well enough, but I know that I couldn't wear what they would want me to design, that's for sure!

Just a theory...

 

[clay]

I think alot of designers designing for an established house don't always like what they are producing. Remember, Marc Jacobs got fired from Perry Ellis for designing what he thought was relevant. Backers/investors don't want whats relevant for alot of the older houses, they want what will sell. If it happens to fit into youth culture at the same time, well, that is just a bonus. I would take a job designing for St. John if they paid well enough, but I know that I couldn't wear what they would want me to design, that's for sure!

Just a theory...

Very true.

 

[softgrey]

hello clay......
i was just thinking of you...

nice to see you...

 

[Bidwell]

Notable women designers often do I think as do the men if they have their menswear line (as McQueen comes to mind). It can get confusing when designers don't set their own example but the day before a presentation (when the audience sees them) most will have worked 48 hrs straight and have literally not had a moment to put on a new outfit. Since t shirts and jeans are so comfortable to work in...

 

[Scott]

Yeah,it's true,mostly women wear their own stuff. An Vandevorst,Thea Bregazzi,Veronique Branquinho,Ann Demeulemeester,Zowie Broach,Tess Giberson....but I have seen Hedi wearing his own stuff and Raf Simons dons his work too.