Hello, this is Kubo. I know this is a bit sudden, but people often talk about comfort, right? There are many different types of comfort, but I feel like people often talk about how much space the fabric fills between the skin and the fabric, or how the fabric touches the skin.
My idea of "comfort" is a little different; I'm more conscious of the range of motion of the arms and legs. Things like how smoothly you can move your feet forward, or how much stress you can reduce when bending your neck.
Comfort is a delicate matter, and even small things can make a big difference. For example, in my experience, just placing a soft piece of fabric behind the neck of a coat can make it feel more comfortable.
I sometimes think there are "misconceptions" about comfort. For example, when you try on clothes, you raise your hands straight up to check how they feel. But do you really have the opportunity to raise your hands straight up like that?
It's not like we're New Yorkers stopping yellow cabs (laughs). In New York, you have to raise your hand really hard for them to notice, but in Japan, they'll stop if you just raise your hand lightly. So, if it leads to design restrictions, I even think it might be okay to sacrifice the part about raising your hand.
Comfort is of course an important factor for customers, but it's actually a challenge for designers like us. Comfort and design can sometimes be in a trade-off relationship. Prioritizing comfort can sometimes limit the design, and vice versa.
Vivienne Westwood once said, "Fit your body with clothes, or fit your clothes with your body," and there is no right answer.
As an aside, I had the opportunity to hear from the pattern maker for the Emperor, and he told me an interesting story. He said that he changes the pattern depending on the situation - when the Emperor is sitting, standing, or walking! I was amazed at how he chooses a pattern that looks beautiful depending on the situation.
I believe that beauty and elegance depend on patterns. However, it's not so simple to say that this necessarily guarantees the best comfort. That's how difficult the issue of "comfort" is for designers to deal with.
Oversized clothing is all the rage right now, but frankly, it's probably not very comfortable. What about you? Still, as a designer, I'm always thinking about how I can use some pattern or other technique to solve the "comfort problem" of oversized clothing. Even with a voluminous silhouette, I can predict how it will look when worn, find the best solution, give it shape, and deliver it to the world. That's our job.
My idea of "comfort" is a little different; I'm more conscious of the range of motion of the arms and legs. Things like how smoothly you can move your feet forward, or how much stress you can reduce when bending your neck.
Comfort is a delicate matter, and even small things can make a big difference. For example, in my experience, just placing a soft piece of fabric behind the neck of a coat can make it feel more comfortable.
I sometimes think there are "misconceptions" about comfort. For example, when you try on clothes, you raise your hands straight up to check how they feel. But do you really have the opportunity to raise your hands straight up like that?
It's not like we're New Yorkers stopping yellow cabs (laughs). In New York, you have to raise your hand really hard for them to notice, but in Japan, they'll stop if you just raise your hand lightly. So, if it leads to design restrictions, I even think it might be okay to sacrifice the part about raising your hand.
Comfort is of course an important factor for customers, but it's actually a challenge for designers like us. Comfort and design can sometimes be in a trade-off relationship. Prioritizing comfort can sometimes limit the design, and vice versa.
Vivienne Westwood once said, "Fit your body with clothes, or fit your clothes with your body," and there is no right answer.
As an aside, I had the opportunity to hear from the pattern maker for the Emperor, and he told me an interesting story. He said that he changes the pattern depending on the situation - when the Emperor is sitting, standing, or walking! I was amazed at how he chooses a pattern that looks beautiful depending on the situation.
I believe that beauty and elegance depend on patterns. However, it's not so simple to say that this necessarily guarantees the best comfort. That's how difficult the issue of "comfort" is for designers to deal with.
Oversized clothing is all the rage right now, but frankly, it's probably not very comfortable. What about you? Still, as a designer, I'm always thinking about how I can use some pattern or other technique to solve the "comfort problem" of oversized clothing. Even with a voluminous silhouette, I can predict how it will look when worn, find the best solution, give it shape, and deliver it to the world. That's our job.