Does vintage have more Thingness (even when it also may act as a signifier)? Does clothes that has been lived in, regardless of its origins, have more Thingness? Does an Uniqlo "fast fashion" t-shirt that you've worn hundreds of times become in some way Slow through its being worn? Does a synthetic gorpcore piece become more less of a signifier and more Thingy by being worn to do genuinely gorpy activities in The Great Outdoors?
Follow up Q: Is it better (“better”) to be a person who spends money on Slow Fashion, or to be a person buys “Fast Fashion” but then wears it slowly and puts the $$ to other worthy causes, both very directly (donations, aid etc) and more indirectly (mind-widening travel, live music, print media)? How to even contemplate this question?
fast fashion in the literal sense is always bad because it's inherently destructive (anti-worker, anti-environment, anti-craft). But there are cheap clothes that aren't fast fashion.
perhaps fast fashion exists in the ecosystem in the same way that fur does. buying new fur/fast fashion gives new money/attention to manufacturers that don’t align with my values, no matter how i then go on to wear it ♥️
I was thinking the same thing, solsticecrown, especially as so many of the "new slow clothes" are homages to vintage pieces. Appreciate your thoughtful comment.
I want to argue against whimsical = perishable. Whimsy in a clothing context to me here is just a challenge. It is certainly easier to achieve with all available materials, colors, and processes. I want to believe that it is still possible to be sustainable and whimsical though.
Begs the questions, what is whimsy and what is sustainability?
Oh we are definitely not anti-whimsy — see our post about “the anchovy principle” most recently — just describing the prevailing slow clothes design logic as relates to whimsy
Thank you, Plane — always with these essays you manage to dignify my (our?) fixation with clothes. Grateful for a countervailing force to the nagging doubt that all of this can't simply boil down to hedonistic, lizard-brained status obsessions. Not being facetious when I say I feel less like an asshole for loving (and spending quite a bit of disposable income on) swaggy things and swaggy living. Love this about you, even more than the jawn recs.
Clea on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/classic_nonchalance/) is so amazing at presenting the concept of "good clothes" in the context of tailored suiting -- I followed her last year and now her account is one of my favorites, highly recommend!
Also, I'm in Minneapolis and want to say thanks for posting mutual aid opportunities -- I love my city and my neighbors and I'm so proud to live here. My favorite cafe, Modern Times, is also currently serving folks for free if anyone here wants to throw them a few bucks for the community, venmo @moderntimescafe (they also have insanely good t-shirts by local artists for anyone wanting to cop). Our local (legendary) sex shop Smitten Kitten is also doing the work organizing and taking care of neighbors, check their insta stories for various fundraisers for direct aid <3
Excellent thinking and writing here! You guys keep illuminating and articulating the currents of feeling and thought buried deep within us, incurable lovers of clothes. All I can say is I wear much better clothes than I used to, and I look a lot more boring.
And good on you, calling out the absolute obscenity of what is happening in Minnesota.
"Circa 2026, we have grown unprecedentedly tired and mistrustful of the World of Symbols and Signs. We want to engage, instead, with the World of Things in Themselves."
Well put. A whole lotta people have 2026 predictions á la "zines/cds/usb sticks are coming back"... this gets to the heart of the matter. Like, wouldn’t it be nice if someone into short films obsessed over, say, perfecting a pan (the thing itself) instead of optimizing a YouTube thumbnail (the symbol).
Unfortunately this is happening, even with people we believe in their work....
"Any trend that reaches a certain threshold of popularity will, by its nature, generate all kinds of unsavory behaviors, and attract all kinds of unsavory characters. Among these are, on the supply side, carpetbagging shops and brands who see a chance to cash in with a little artisanal astroturfing — Zara creating fake “small artisan stores” and collaborating with small independent brands; H&M paying IG style dudes to tell you that something called “H&M Atelier” is cool in between posts about how Comoli is cool"
Thank you for mentioning this notion ! Hope customers will wake up and see what is what in the end.
I think it's less "boring" and more neutral or versatile, which is important at these price points (even when justified by craft/material/etc) because people are going to be thinking about cost per wear.
Yeah I totally agree. my point is just, I see why people don't seem to go that way. If this is going to be your only artisanal slow fashion $500 shirt, and that's reality for a lot of people, it's going to be easier to justify if you can feel comfortable wearing it with anything. I would bet some brands see that too and end up narrowing their range accordingly
I was a bit surprised when i saw the Colbo and Zara collab myself. Loved how it looked and even thought about copping some pieces for my little ones, but I didn't. Not mad at Colbo getting their bag but it felt weird to see!
Does vintage have more Thingness (even when it also may act as a signifier)? Does clothes that has been lived in, regardless of its origins, have more Thingness? Does an Uniqlo "fast fashion" t-shirt that you've worn hundreds of times become in some way Slow through its being worn? Does a synthetic gorpcore piece become more less of a signifier and more Thingy by being worn to do genuinely gorpy activities in The Great Outdoors?
Yes !
Follow up Q: Is it better (“better”) to be a person who spends money on Slow Fashion, or to be a person buys “Fast Fashion” but then wears it slowly and puts the $$ to other worthy causes, both very directly (donations, aid etc) and more indirectly (mind-widening travel, live music, print media)? How to even contemplate this question?
fast fashion in the literal sense is always bad because it's inherently destructive (anti-worker, anti-environment, anti-craft). But there are cheap clothes that aren't fast fashion.
perhaps fast fashion exists in the ecosystem in the same way that fur does. buying new fur/fast fashion gives new money/attention to manufacturers that don’t align with my values, no matter how i then go on to wear it ♥️
I was thinking the same thing, solsticecrown, especially as so many of the "new slow clothes" are homages to vintage pieces. Appreciate your thoughtful comment.
Truly fascinating topic and concepts. Thank you!
I want to argue against whimsical = perishable. Whimsy in a clothing context to me here is just a challenge. It is certainly easier to achieve with all available materials, colors, and processes. I want to believe that it is still possible to be sustainable and whimsical though.
Begs the questions, what is whimsy and what is sustainability?
Oh we are definitely not anti-whimsy — see our post about “the anchovy principle” most recently — just describing the prevailing slow clothes design logic as relates to whimsy
Oh for sure! I did not intend it to seem like an accusation! More directed at designers and their desired aesthetic output really.
Thank you, Plane — always with these essays you manage to dignify my (our?) fixation with clothes. Grateful for a countervailing force to the nagging doubt that all of this can't simply boil down to hedonistic, lizard-brained status obsessions. Not being facetious when I say I feel less like an asshole for loving (and spending quite a bit of disposable income on) swaggy things and swaggy living. Love this about you, even more than the jawn recs.
Clea on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/classic_nonchalance/) is so amazing at presenting the concept of "good clothes" in the context of tailored suiting -- I followed her last year and now her account is one of my favorites, highly recommend!
Also, I'm in Minneapolis and want to say thanks for posting mutual aid opportunities -- I love my city and my neighbors and I'm so proud to live here. My favorite cafe, Modern Times, is also currently serving folks for free if anyone here wants to throw them a few bucks for the community, venmo @moderntimescafe (they also have insanely good t-shirts by local artists for anyone wanting to cop). Our local (legendary) sex shop Smitten Kitten is also doing the work organizing and taking care of neighbors, check their insta stories for various fundraisers for direct aid <3
Excellent thinking and writing here! You guys keep illuminating and articulating the currents of feeling and thought buried deep within us, incurable lovers of clothes. All I can say is I wear much better clothes than I used to, and I look a lot more boring.
And good on you, calling out the absolute obscenity of what is happening in Minnesota.
"Circa 2026, we have grown unprecedentedly tired and mistrustful of the World of Symbols and Signs. We want to engage, instead, with the World of Things in Themselves."
Well put. A whole lotta people have 2026 predictions á la "zines/cds/usb sticks are coming back"... this gets to the heart of the matter. Like, wouldn’t it be nice if someone into short films obsessed over, say, perfecting a pan (the thing itself) instead of optimizing a YouTube thumbnail (the symbol).
Unfortunately this is happening, even with people we believe in their work....
"Any trend that reaches a certain threshold of popularity will, by its nature, generate all kinds of unsavory behaviors, and attract all kinds of unsavory characters. Among these are, on the supply side, carpetbagging shops and brands who see a chance to cash in with a little artisanal astroturfing — Zara creating fake “small artisan stores” and collaborating with small independent brands; H&M paying IG style dudes to tell you that something called “H&M Atelier” is cool in between posts about how Comoli is cool"
Thank you for mentioning this notion ! Hope customers will wake up and see what is what in the end.
I think it's less "boring" and more neutral or versatile, which is important at these price points (even when justified by craft/material/etc) because people are going to be thinking about cost per wear.
would be nice to wild out a bit more though. like cool fabrics are still cool if they're brightly colored
One Hundo
Yeah I totally agree. my point is just, I see why people don't seem to go that way. If this is going to be your only artisanal slow fashion $500 shirt, and that's reality for a lot of people, it's going to be easier to justify if you can feel comfortable wearing it with anything. I would bet some brands see that too and end up narrowing their range accordingly
When is the book of BBSP essays coming out? This is era defining writing. Thank you.
thank you Lisette
I'm with Lisette. There's definitely room on the shelf for a BBSP volume.
Quality is its own form of style, as is individual expression. Boring is in the eye of the beholder, for sure.
I was a bit surprised when i saw the Colbo and Zara collab myself. Loved how it looked and even thought about copping some pieces for my little ones, but I didn't. Not mad at Colbo getting their bag but it felt weird to see!
To me, artisan = cool, and is a universal rule because someone cares about the thing they’re selling, regardless of what it is.
That could technically come from any aesthetic but is most hard won with someone that can loosely be defined as ‘minimal’.