Anti-Delusion Fashion

The other day, when I was wearing a black cut-and-sew top with a patterned skirt, an acquaintance complimented me.

"I feel like I've seen the pattern on this skirt somewhere..." my acquaintance said, so I replied, "It's from a collaboration with Marimekko that I bought at Uniqlo last year or the year before. It apparently sold really well, so that might be why it looks familiar."

Then, my acquaintance looked slightly flustered and said:

"B-but, when you wear it, Chinami-san, it doesn't look like Uniqlo! It looks much more expensive."

That was the extent of the exchange. I thanked them, and that was the end of it.

However, I suddenly wondered: when did the remark "It looks expensive when you wear it" start functioning as a compliment?

I want to wear the things I like. I don't mind if they don't look expensive.

Sometimes, I think that modern fashion might be an activity based on delusion. Delusion refers to lies, falsehoods, or in Buddhism, a world view based on illusions stemming from ignorance.

Before I knew it, the term "taka-mie" (looking expensive) became a standard fixture in fashion magazines and on social media. There is a trend of praising clothes that look expensive despite their affordable price.

Fashion shouldn't inherently be about "how to make inexpensive things look expensive." I think fashion is about the process and ingenuity of combining clothes and accessories that suit a person and make them look their most attractive.

I'm not particularly fashionable. I just want to live my life wearing things that suit me and that I feel comfortable in. A day spent thinking, "This skirt shape really lifts my spirits," is a fun day. I feel that steadily accumulating days like that is one way to live life.

Whether it's inexpensive or expensive, an outfit that makes me want to hum a tune is a huge success.

That is the spirit I want to keep.