SOME DAYS, I PUT TOGETHER an outfit, look at
myself in the mirror, and realize that I made everything I am wearing. Despite being frequent in my case, that
realization is always followed by a satisfied smile and an imaginary tap on my
back. I have been in love with designing and sewing since a small age. In fact,
growing up slightly tomboyish, on the rare occasions I would play with Barbie
dolls, the activity would be split 90% sewing clothes for them and 10% role play.
The role play part, of course, would be mostly about the dolls being models and
strutting the clothes I made for them down the runway.
Making my clothes is both
financially beneficial and emotionally gratifying. Being on a budget, it’s a
lot cheaper to buy the fabric and make the piece yourself, but that’s only
because you are not calculating the cost of your own labor. I guess I love
making clothes so much, it’s not even labor for me even though I realize how
sore my eyes, fingers, and back are when I take breaks. The emotional
gratification is more important to me. Although I am incredibly happy when
wearing clothes that I have made* and although while making them the prospect
of wearing them is additionally motivating, for me, the process of making
clothes - all the way from picking the fabric till the last ironing - is the
best part. That process is like art. Scratch that. It’s art! You can’t rush it
and you have to pour your heart, soul, and attention in it.
Despite the fact that designing my
clothes exercises my creativity on an entirely different level, I am equally as
happy when I make clothes using ready-made patterns. There is always a way
to add a twist to a pattern to make it completely my own, be it incorporating
a detail absent from the original model or using a completely different fabric
than the one recommended in the magazine. An infinite number of ways exists in
which you can make clothes unique. In our societies where the focus is
increasingly being shifted from “we” to “I”, personalizing is key to distinguishing ourselves from the crowd.
Being a person that gets
bored easily, I appreciate the volatile nature of fashion and find trends
inspiring, but at the end of the day when it comes to clothes, I appreciate quality over quantity and
personal taste over popular opinion. When I make clothes, I aim for aesthetics,
versatility, and timelessness. That’s how I end up with outfits like the one
you see in these photos, where I unexpectedly stumble upon a top I made back in my junior year of high school, and I realize that not only can I still wear
it almost 7 years later, but I can also combine it with newer pieces.
Thank you for reading and have a nice day!
ASPIRE HIGHER!
*hugs*
Dilek
*I am even happier when I see other people wearing the clothes that I have made for them.
