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The Case for Uniforms

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  • cjbreed
    Senior Member
    • Feb 2009
    • 2712

    #16
    i must say i think that when a person ends up dressing in almost exactly the same thing every day, it generally happens as a result of way less thought and planning than say, u DudleyGray, are giving it. it happens because you have developed an identity, not because you are searching for one. i get the impression from you Dudley that you are very young, and still unsure of yourself and who you are or want to be. which is fine. but perhaps you should just take it all a little easier. talk less and listen more and just slow it down. i mean that in the nicest way possible.

    for me, i am very much a uniform wearer for most of the year. i like what i like and i buy enough of it to not have to wear it dirty lol. in the cooler months i add a tiny bit of variety to it but its still very much in the same style. one big big reason for this is that its one less thing to think about. it looks right on me, suits my personality, feels good, i don't have to plan shit, and i can pack a big in just a few minutes.

    this is not to say that there is anything wrong in being the exact opposite. thats just another identity. some people are naturals at being all over the place. there are so many different styles and looks and designers that i appreciate and admire and i would love to experiment in all these different things. mostly because its just good fun. but i don't. its not me. its just not where i am at in life. other people are and thats cool too. i can do it in my mind...

    but then theres the third kind. the dressed by the internets kind. the trendy kind. thats the kind that sucks.
    Last edited by cjbreed; 08-29-2014, 01:52 PM.
    dying and coming back gives you considerable perspective

    Comment

    • Carcass
      Senior Member
      • May 2010
      • 178

      #17
      I like the definition Shucks pulled up:

      noun
      1. the distinctive clothing worn by members of the same organization or body or by children attending certain schools.


      We are all basically the children of a certain school, but we are all also headmasters of our own individual schools. Just like schools have different forms of a uniform, I think a uniform can change depending on the occasion (or season,) and doesn't necessarily have to be five of the exact same thing, negating the concerns of some posters. In the end, different items have the same effect when mixed skillfully into the uniform wardrobe, and it just takes some effort to make sure the nuances of different items contribute to your overall goal of having a uniform.

      Comment

      • Faust
        kitsch killer
        • Sep 2006
        • 37852

        #18
        Originally posted by cjbreed View Post
        i must say i think that when a person ends up dressing in almost exactly the same thing every day, it generally happens as a result of way less thought and planning than say, u DudleyGray, are giving it. it happens because you have developed an identity, not because you are searching for one. i get the impression from you Dudley that you are very young, and still unsure of yourself and who you are or want to be. which is fine. but perhaps you should just take it all a little easier. talk less and listen more and just slow it down. i mean that in the nicest way possible.
        Yes, please, please, please.
        Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

        StyleZeitgeist Magazine

        Comment

        • Scander
          Senior Member
          • Jul 2013
          • 127

          #19
          What is an Uniform?

          Is it the combination of the same items in repetition? Is it how the milieu sees you?

          I wear clothes in black colour, who surrounds me could think that is an uniform also if I change my stuff. In this case I'm the one who see where is the difference and where is not the repetition. In my repetition of what is different for me I create a repetition with signs that all of them belongs to a common ground.
          So, is the Uniform only the repetition of the same or it is also the repetition of a different that relates to a code?

          Comment

          • syed
            Senior Member
            • Sep 2010
            • 564

            #20
            I do not consider myself to wear a uniform, but I do wear a personal uniform. Eduard Fuchs said that a person wears a uniform voluntarily only when they are “spiritually overwhelmed” by the ideas it embodies, and that is why clothing is used as a way of manifesting opposition. Dress is a public act, so we can argue that all influences upon how we dress will ultimately be external, but I differentiate a personal uniform from uniform, in that it is not aligning yourself primarily with some external idea, but rather the result of a more internal personal choice. Rather than using uniform to belong to a group, you use a personal uniform to present a constant that allows your own personality and person to be presented – if I wear pretty much the same thing every day, the people who know me forget about the clothes and just see me (of course that personal uniform will have a different effect on fleeting encounters, but such is contemporary life). Yes that personal uniform may be informed by external factors, but that is not the primary concern, unlike the uniform.

            I think that a personal uniform is distinct from just having a ‘style’, because it implies a more focused and coherent wardrobe – all the threads interconnect rather than following their own interesting paths here and there. The garments and accessories all work together for whichever social encounters one needs. In such a way I do not see a personal uniform as necessarily requiring multiples of just one outfit, but rather it requires having a focused style and a focused wardrobe to match. Variations on a theme, rather than multiple themes. It has a coherent thread throughout all the looks, whether that be achieved by the same garment appearing somewhere, the same colours, the same fabrics, however you choose to do it, but at the end of the day, there are no extraneous elements to that thread.

            Personally I do not think it occurs out of someone waking up one day and saying – I’m going to choose one outfit and wear only that. Rather I think it is an organic process, whereby you become comfortable with a direction, and you keep that focus. I think it is about already knowing yourself, at least where you are now, rather than looking to know or define yourself through choosing a wardrobe. I think the word ‘uniform’ scares people because they view it as some lifelong commitment, but for a personal uniform not to change as you change and grow would be pointless – maturity is important.

            For my own part, I have an intentionally small wardrobe that forces me to constantly examine my relationship with clothes and forces me to make sure pretty much every piece works together and works for the realities of my day-to-day life. I love every piece I own, but that doesn’t mean I put them away only for special occasions (I have too few clothes to really do that!). They are only clothes – wear them, use them, but use your head and look after them. The reason I prefer to have a personal uniform is that it provides a constant, and that is comforting. It is a psychological reaction to instability experienced both physically and personally, but I don’t attach specific significance to the garments themselves, rather simply the aesthetic of the personal uniform and the direction I have chosen. In fact I have purposely donated clothes I have been wearing and loved specifically to see if I could.

            Also in having a personal uniform I find it liberates you, not only materially, but also in the sense that I feel that I now enjoy fashion more. I can see a million different garments, I can enjoy seeing what other people wear, I can try on anything and everything I like the look of, but when it comes down to it, I know that I what I buy and what I wear on a day-to-day basis is pretty much already decided. I have no anxiety about fashion, about new clothes, and that is liberating. I know that when I need to buy something I just need to find something that fits the bill (in my case, usually something Yohji!).
            "Lots of people who think they are into fashion are actually just into shopping"

            Comment

            • Atom
              Senior Member
              • Sep 2009
              • 310

              #21
              Lots of my friends wear a uniform im some sense. You can tell miles away he's a punk, or a rockabilly, or vegan. They're not teenagers. Wearing a uniform serves them well, one can see from miles what they're up to.

              That's what the uniforms are for, Fuuma got it right. Branding.

              Comment

              • apathy!
                Senior Member
                • Jan 2014
                • 393

                #22
                ^ I think it's a mistake to think of fashion merely as a social identifier. If what you say is true, what does Rick's uniform represent?

                Comment

                • Mail-Moth
                  Senior Member
                  • Mar 2009
                  • 1448

                  #23
                  Fuuma was talking about branding in reference to fashion icons who actually have something to sell, in a material sense. I don't see the word apply so accurately to people like punks and vegan who partly dress to belong to something which makes them who they are, and which they indeed advertise - but contrarily to Owens or Lagerfeld, it isn't something they elaborated themselves.

                  I would take the term uniform in the strictest sense : always wearing the same thing, and reducing variations to the bare minimum. Otherwise it reaches too far. Wearing stuff pertaining to the same aesthetics or being used to one's clothes... Well, I too wear often black, and I too end up picking the same pieces in my wardrobe, again and again. But this is different from what Lagerfeld does, or Diane Pernet, of which I'm quite admirative by the way, not simply because "they know themselves and look confident with who they are", but rather because they appear unique - and their appearance merely conveys that unicity.
                  I can see a hat, I can see a cat,
                  I can see a man with a baseball bat.

                  Comment

                  • Faust
                    kitsch killer
                    • Sep 2006
                    • 37852

                    #24
                    Originally posted by Mail-Moth View Post
                    Fuuma was talking about branding in reference to fashion icons who actually have something to sell, in a material sense. I don't see the word apply so accurately to people like punks and vegan who partly dress to belong to something which makes them who they are, and which they indeed advertise - but contrarily to Owens or Lagerfeld, it isn't something they elaborated themselves.

                    I would take the term uniform in the strictest sense : always wearing the same thing, and reducing variations to the bare minimum. Otherwise it reaches too far. Wearing stuff pertaining to the same aesthetics or being used to one's clothes... Well, I too wear often black, and I too end up picking the same pieces in my wardrobe, again and again. But this is different from what Lagerfeld does, or Diane Pernet, of which I'm quite admirative by the way, not simply because "they know themselves and look confident with who they are", but rather because they appear unique - and their appearance merely conveys that unicity.
                    That's what I meant, too.

                    Again, I wouldn't be so cynical to say that this is pure branding. All of the aforementioned designers produce a wide variety of clothing, relatively speaking. So, Rick might choose anything from his repertoire, but he does not, he sticks to the same thing.
                    Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

                    StyleZeitgeist Magazine

                    Comment

                    • DudleyGray
                      Senior Member
                      • Jul 2013
                      • 1143

                      #25
                      Originally posted by cjbreed View Post
                      i must say i think that when a person ends up dressing in almost exactly the same thing every day, it generally happens as a result of way less thought and planning than say, u DudleyGray, are giving it. it happens because you have developed an identity, not because you are searching for one. i get the impression from you Dudley that you are very young, and still unsure of yourself and who you are or want to be. which is fine. but perhaps you should just take it all a little easier. talk less and listen more and just slow it down. i mean that in the nicest way possible.
                      Yeah, I hear that from a lot of people often, but I'm a terrible listener. I would say you're right on all accounts except that part about my adolescent identity crisis. It's actually a post-divorce crisis, similar to adolescence but without the luxury of time, similar to a midlife crisis but with an experience that confirms your doubts. You can only believe your instinct in such a crisis.

                      I'm almost there, though, I'm almost chill.

                      Originally posted by Faust View Post
                      Yes, please, please, please.
                      Haha, oh you. Advance apologies if I am exasperating at times. I do try and respect the rules and contribute meaningfully, but I wouldn't take a ban personally, for what it's worth. I'd understand, I wouldn't be a kunk about it.


                      Edit: I've taken up enough real estate in this thread, if anyone feels the need to reply, please do so via PM.

                      I told you I'm a terrible listener, but did you listen? No.
                      VVV
                      Last edited by DudleyGray; 08-30-2014, 10:17 AM.
                      bandcamp | facebook | youtube

                      Comment

                      • Mail-Moth
                        Senior Member
                        • Mar 2009
                        • 1448

                        #26
                        Originally posted by Faust View Post
                        That's what I meant, too.
                        I know, I wasn't referring to your article, but to the reactions that followed.

                        Originally posted by Faust View Post
                        Again, I wouldn't be so cynical to say that this is pure branding. All of the aforementioned designers produce a wide variety of clothing, relatively speaking. So, Rick might choose anything from his repertoire, but he does not, he sticks to the same thing.
                        I understand that, but you can't expect a brand's logo to change every time you see it. It is less about advertising the products themselves than their identity - what makes them the same, how diverse they can be.

                        But I agree, as I implied in the end of my previous message, it is not simply about this. Even if it does a favour to the brand, I don't see it as the mere result of a marketing strategy - more as a fortunate coincidence.

                        It is a public image and a visual signature - but not for commercial purposes only. In a much wider sense. We all try to do that around here, more or less.
                        Last edited by Mail-Moth; 08-30-2014, 10:10 AM.
                        I can see a hat, I can see a cat,
                        I can see a man with a baseball bat.

                        Comment

                        • line.theory
                          Member
                          • Feb 2011
                          • 32

                          #27
                          As a design student having just finished study, I often don't (and then feel bad that I don't) wear anything I've made myself, and would like to get to a point where I always wear /at least/ one thing of my own in combination with antique/vintage garments and the work of designers I admire. This doesn’t relate to uniforms in a strict sense, obviously, but I think a goal or rule like that has a sense of consistency about it that has led me to think more carefully about what I want from my own work. And increasingly I feel drawn to the idea of designing clothes that are uniform in some way. In particular, the idea of collections (or just an ongoing series of individual garments) where pieces are all made from the same simple, hardy fabric in a single colour.

                          This also ties in with what I’ve been wearing recently: comfortable, easy, durable pieces that I don’t feel too precious about. I think it’s partly because my budget is a bit limited at the moment, but I find myself wearing a uniform that follows this pattern, with variations dependent on the weather. It tends to be jeans or trousers and a tucked-in t-shirt, with a denim jacket or cotton lab coat over that when it’s mild and a long sleeve sweater and wool gabardine mackintosh or bomber when it’s cold. Especially when I’m busy, this formula really appeals to me because I’ve given it enough thought that I know I will be comfortable with how I present myself, but I don’t have to think about it on a daily basis. I can just put on a clean t-shirt, grab the same jacket that’s draped over my desk chair from yesterday, and head out for the day.

                          Also, although I have versions of some of these garments by a number of designers I love (Rei, Yohji, RO etc) a lot of these pieces I end up wearing lately are old uniforms, workwear, and some naval surplus, and feel really comfortable to just wear every day and either not worry if they get holes, or patch them if I feel the need. I can see that that’s how I /should/ be treating my CDG/Yohji/Rick pieces etc as well, but because I’m quite poor I’m not yet at a point where I’m comfortable wearing them to death. I still want to baby them a little, which maybe means I shouldn't have bought them in the first place? Does it make sense to have clothes you're constantly afraid of damaging?

                          To come back to the start though, I think that pattern I've fallen into is where I want to go with my own work. To gradually produce a small range of comfortable, hard-wearing garments that covers me for all situations. Not to have as strict a uniform as Mail-Moth or Faust describe ala Rick Owens or Diane Pernet, but to produce say one outfit for: hot weather, mild weather, and cold weather, each of which shares the same base pieces, is based on the same shapes, and made from the same two or three fabrics, and which I feel good in and can just wear and wear and wear. I guess I also hope I can communicate this idea to and reach other people for whom this an appealing idea, too.

                          Comment

                          • DudleyGray
                            Senior Member
                            • Jul 2013
                            • 1143

                            #28
                            Been wearing the same thing daily the past week and figuring out that the desire for a uniform for me is largely to be so happy with who I am that I can just wear the same thing every day, and to portray myself genuinely and accurately to others. I've used fashion a lot as an avenue for trying to become someone new or different or better, and I really just want to be happy with who I am at this point in my life.
                            bandcamp | facebook | youtube

                            Comment

                            • Shucks
                              Senior Member
                              • Aug 2010
                              • 3104

                              #29
                              ^ i like this.

                              Comment

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