Fashion Fads: A Crafter's Catch-22

I don't claim to be a fashionista, but something I have noticed over the years (as I'm sure many of you dear readers have) is that fashions come and go.  Some last a long time, while others last about as long as a snowcone in the clutches of a fire-breathing dragon in the middle of Death Valley.  


Poor Norbert.

Experienced crafters, especially those that enjoy knitting or crocheting (or otherwise handcrafting) garments intended to be worn in public, tend to be pretty keen on such matters.  As a whole we know what has lasted year after year, generation after generation, and (as long as we mind our guage, follow pattern instructions, etc.) it always seems to look classy.  Classic.  Well put together.  Cases-in-point:  Aran or Fair Isle pullovers.  

 

My favorite sweater...ever!  Every time the mercury drops, this comes out of the wardrobe.



A very cute example of Fair Isle work in the yoke... 

Occasionally, though, the pattern designers for big yarn corporations will put out patterns that gear toward the latest trends and hot-ticket items flying off the department store shelves--keeping up with the Jonses, if you will. 

Initially, this doesn't seem like a bad idea.  If you work fast enough, you can have the latest and greatest accessory, and in colors and cuts that suit you so you don't have to look like everyone else.  But that, friends, is a big "if".  Even if you've got the fastest knitting needles, crochet hook, or sewing machine in town, you might be stuck with something that is here-today-gone-tomorrow in a nearly literal sense. 

Let me tell you a story...

In my experience with what I call the "Great Poncho Craze" when I was in middle school, I saw a few of my fellow students wearing the triangular-or-diamond-shaped pieces to and from classes.  Although I somewhat hate to admit it now, I relished the idea of a poncho and I was determined to have one.  I had just learned to knit and crochet that summer, and the new pattern-a-day calendars I had gotten for Christmas were chock-full of ideas.  

A couple of examples from my youth, as patterns from the local craft store...something else from the 70s that was making a comeback nearly thirty years later:  those big jeweled flower brooches. 

I could jabber on about the long process of looking at patterns after school and the endless daydreaming about how fabulous the final result would be, but to make a long story short my coveted accessory had landed back into the fashion recycle bin before I could think to beg my mom to take me to the local Joann's (a fabric and craft chain here in the US).


Fast forward ten years, and it almost looks like they've returned in a few new incarnations:  the cape, the capelet, and the ruana. 



Ponchos and capes, reinvented.  How long will these stay, I wonder?  A capelet, FYI, is a shortened version of a cape, usually ending at the elbow of the wearer.

Now, I'm not taking a stand for or against the poncho and its cousins (although I probably would never have lived it down if I ended up with one and wore it at the time), or any big trend for that matter, but it does beg a very good question: How willing am I to invest time, money, and space in my wardrobe in something that may only last the rest of this season and may or may not return the same time next year?  And if I'm making it from scratch, will it even be finished before it lands back into the runway recycle bin? 

There is a way to side-step this crafter's Catch-22, however, and even if you don't craft but still want to have your chance to get ahold of the current "it" item, but it does require some reflection , and a few more questions to ask yourself. 

Quiz Time! 

1.  First thing you'll want to consider--and probably the most important--is if you can see yourself wearing the thing even when the trend piddles out.  If so, then go ahead!  Knock yourself out! And if fate is on your side, whatever it is might even come back around before you think it will.  And if it does, you'll be prepared.  MWAAHAAAHAAAA!!!! 

If it doesn't come back so quickly (or at all), then you'll still look pretty cool; it shows that you know what suits you, and you don't care what the rest of the world thinks.

2.  If in response to number one you think, "I really like (insert name of item here), but I don't think I'd want to be the only one wearing it if it goes off the mainstream," then you might like something that can be restyled, or worn in varying creative ways. 

For instance, going back to the whole ruana/mega-wrap thing (because I'm pretty gosh-darned out of the loop when it comes to what's new), if you opt for a shawl instead you can have the freedom of enjoying it as a big luxurious wrap, but it can easily convert into a kicky scarf.  

Shawls are pretty awesome.  Wear it around your shoulders, or around your neck--it looks especially cool under a denim jacket!  (and yes, those are my own drawings.)

Granted, that one is geared more toward the makers in the group. 

For those who are more inclined to go store-bought however, that's not so easy unless you know someone handy with a sewing machine and willing to help (especially if a good bribe is involved).  If you're neither a maker nor know anybody who is, please move forward to number 3. 

3.  For argument's sake, let's say number two is more where you stand.  Unfortunately, your "it-thing-in-question" may not be something that can be restyled or worn in a slightly different way (because hey, a skirt is a skirt, and--unless you know some magical shoemaking elves or are one yourself--those platform shoes are staying just as they are).  This is when you'll need to ask yourself how much you're willing to spend and whether or not you're willing to let the item take up physical space in your wardrobe.  For the makers reading this, you'll also want to extend this and ask yourself how much are you willing to invest in the time and materials required to construct our "it thing".  Putting in the time is a biggie; I've seen and made some of those "quickie knits", where the pattern spouts claims of a cool new look in under three hours.  And trust me--they look like they were done in under three hours, and that's not a good thing. 

In the end of it all...

I hope this shed some light on how to survive the fads, from the resplendent to the ridiculous and somewhere in-between, that ebb and flow like the tides.  Some ideas will be a flash in the pan, others will grow and evolve, but like it or not, fads will always be the latest rage!