Why Clothes Matter

The clothes we choose to wear constitute some of our most crucial and carefully chosen lines of autobiography.

FURTHER READING

"Once, we were all dressed by someone else. Parents picked out a T-shirt; the school dictated what colour our trousers should be. But at some point, we were granted the opportunity to discover who we might be in the world of clothes. We had to decide for ourselves about collars and necklines, fit, colours, patterns, textures and what goes (or doesn’t) with what. We learnt to speak about ourselves in the language of garments. Despite the potential silliness and exaggeration of sections of the fashion industry, assembling a wardrobe is a serious and meaningful exercise."

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CREDITS

Produced in collaboration with:

Gemma Rose Green-Hope

[Nawor]

now if only i had the budget for my fashion sense

[RikalJsiPunk]

These stop motions and graphics are totally awesome. Big up to creator. It's pleasure to watch every clip.

[digitalbrentable]

I couldn't agree more. Lots of people claim they "don't care how they look" or that they just "wear whatever they want." But in actuality, this couldn't be further from the truth. They aren't walking around naked, or in a burlap sack; their fashion choices are very much deliberate and meaningful. If you're a jeans and t-shirt guy, you're messaging with that outfit. When you say you "just wear what's comfortable" you're not being honest with yourself - a toga is comfortable. You just wear what's practical? Why not a jumpsuit?

Choosing not to put a lot of thought into what you wear is a choice itself, with it's own implications. It generally means going with whatever your culture says is normal, messaging that you're down to earth and broadcasting a message of commonality with your fellows. Wearing casual clothes signals humility. Wearing shabby clothes signals a disinterest in social status and worldly concerns, implying a focus on other things.

[onelight]

Clothes are an excellent expression of our own style, but we must make sure that the style we are portraying actually comes from within us, and not from a marketing ad, which is telling us that we need this piece of clothing to feel good our accepted.

[Fuliginosus]

Choosing among clothes got so complicated that now I just wear a thong and body glitter.

[SunlessDawn]

Choosing what to wear was such a pain for me when I grew up. I hated all the different choices of colors and how they work together or not. Or thinking about when was the last time I wore this or that. I then started to wear only black clothes and it was such a relief for me not to think about what to wear every morning.

[zsazsa_dj]

Clothes are not who we are, they're who we want to be.

[bunnidew]

Crap, now I'm self-conscious about my clothes...

[upintheclouds]

"Our wardrobes contain some of our most carefully written lines of our autobiography."

Beautiful.

[evevoxx]

u forgot to mention that its not all about the clothes, its about how people wear them, posture is a big part of fashion that gets overlooked, u can pick a person the perfect outfit, it wont fit him until he wears it with pride

[AlexKryptonite]

I have started buying only second hand clothes some months ago. I think these clothes match better to my grunge alternative style and people / animals / the environment doesn't suffer.

[aquabot]

Clothes are often an armour you put on to confront the world.

[izzyduzit]

I'm watching this while getting ready for work and I can't choose what to wear now....thanks

[RYBATUGA]

I have the impression that a lot of people dismiss opinions that come from people who dress in a different and radical way. That pisses me off...

[LucDukeVoid]

As a 6'2'' male with a shaved head, beard and a large, muscular physique (due to over 4 years of bodybuilding), people would assume me to be brutish, intimidating and quite simple.
While this is certainly an aspect of my personality, I also happen to be be a very joyful, sarcastic and open individual. I therefore like to convey that by dressing in tops too large for me and wearing skin-tight jeans cuffed up comically high in order to show off my collection of colourfully silly socks.

I love this video.

[arete]

Our clothing choices reflect not only our currect self but what we strive to be, a mixture of traits that are congruent to the current self yet foreshadow our development and progress as human being . How can u show how elevated and above the frail you're, how your mere existence on the physical plane is nothing more then a role of self-amusement in just a few piece of clothing .One must choose very wisely as such an issue is of grand importance of our selfimage and legacy.

[jamessmyth]

A good indicator is the extent to which a person rejects socially accepted fashion. A teenager wearing exclusively Nike or Adidas, to me suggests conformity, and a sense of self consciousness and/or fear of not fitting in. We see this in all age groups; it's generational adherence. Those who reject this are the ones most comfortable with their own bodies and minds.

[gegbomb]

thank you for putting it so well!! it's not about being vain, it's about controlling other people's immediate perceptions and sculpting our own identity

[Userx]

I wear the same thing everyday. Very meaningful. It says it doesn't really matter what I wear, as long as I don't look like an idiot.

[Mar-xshg]

I'm not confident enough to wear the style I like :/ I always find myself thinking when I lose weight I'm gonna wear that, haha but it's a long process