Tuesday, May 20

thoughts on words on clothes.


As a middle-aged lady with a punk aesthetic who was also once (ahem, three-times) an English major I have a strongly ambivalent relationship with text on clothing. I've always hated logos — there are very few entities on Earth I care to advertise for on my body (it's my BODY) — but I cherish words. Words are everything! They are power and magic, they are how we meld our minds together, they are really the best thing humanity has churned out. Well, that and ice cream.

I have been putting words on a few things here and there. On the Glompad bag:


And, yes, I put my own name on a thing once in a while ...


but I'm sure you'll agree: I've been so dang prudent. I want to do it more, I'm always stifling the urge to, honestly, but I feel a great responsibility to do it well, to do it right, to not fall into the cultural (and aesthetic) pitfalls that are rife in a world where children wear sweatpants that say "Princess" across their butts and people who put out a line of t-shirts consider themselves fashion designers. Narrative abuse is rampant! Words deserve our care.

So that's what's on my mind. Here's my Pinterest board. I'm building it but it's ... very slow going. I see much that I hate and get a spark of excitement when I see it done right. I'm following that spark and seeing where it leads me. Let me know what you think. And feel free to suggest additions but be prepared for my wrath of fussiness — it knows no bounds.