Intuition imperfected

I don’t mean to write any manifesto’s but there’s got to be some criteria for a spring clean. Lately I’ve been sorting through my clothes and carefully folding everything away in bags clearly marked ‘eBay’, ‘Spullenhulp’, ‘DIY’, etc…to be able to grasp upon how many clothes do I have. And the resulting clean wardrobe is my best reward. Surprisingly enough I tend to discard newer clothes and keep the good old ones that have been with me for quite a few years and are showing the inevitable signs of wear.
Today I caught myself at a thought while fitting a lovely dress which shall go on pre-sale tomorrow and make its way into my newly ‘clean’ wardrobe, that I only chose for it because I thought it would look great after a few washes, when the sleeves start pulling at the elbows slightly and the shiny silk will become matt at the seams and folds. I'm longing for those imperfections more and more each day!
I’m starting to dislike new clothes. I do want to have the new ones, of course, but it’s more about the feeling that the new piece of clothing is not capable of giving – a sense of ownership, memory and that ubiquitous spring melancholy, when you’re longing for something new which should give you the same old comfort and cosiness and sense of security. Too hard to find this in clothes, and even harder in people…but let the people aside, as this makes a separate story with a scenario spanning from London to Cologne to may be even further overseas… so back to the clothes.
There are details which set an off-mood of a season for me, but strangely enough I come across great examples of such love to detail mostly in the way men are dressed. It’s incredibly rare when I find a snapshot of a girl and see the same details treated sentimentally – women leave it up to fashion’s flimsy tendencies. Men on a contrary, build up a certain style based on a sentiment and personal value. Men’s style is never far-fetched – if it’s cold outside they’ll by buying lined classy jackets bypassing the hot trend of the year of unlined and deconstructed cotton blazers.
I’ve been collecting some images which inspire my own outfits, but once again – men do it better.


Just take a look at the wonderful suede effect a jacket gives when it’s slightly worn and rubbed, it looks somewhat papery, makes me want to pleat and fold it like real crisp origami to pull the contrast lever even higher and make it crease at edges and bounce with geometric pleats down the centre back. Or a thrifted doctor’s bag that is crackling and fading, but the resulting texture makes a very interesting colouring effect.



Or a loose unevenly tucked in sweater, high socks and cut-off trousers.


Or a cropped jacket with stud detailing on the lapel – notice those ‘permanent’ turn-ups on the sleeves and traces from the sleeves being pushed up at the elbow. This DIY marvel is worn with a rose corsage…What more can I say?

I think there’s a heavy dose of romanticism in each outfit, they seem to be intuitive too, and masculine not from the look but from the approach. I’ve got to try my absolute best men’s logic to figure out how to translate this approach into girl’s dressing style. Not an easy task! It seems like the best objects you’d be likely to possess only if you are an extreme hoarder by nature. I must admit that I’m not…so may be the spring clean is the main threat to such approach? If I’m so eager to donate half of my sentimental wardrobe’s gold mine to Spullenhulp I might be going right against the grain. Hm, good that those bags are still standing in the kitchen.