Why do I like wearing patterns? Zašto volim nositi uzorke?

When it comes to clothes, there is a pattern I seem to favour and it is a pattern of wearing patterns. What it is about prints and patterns I love so much? I can't say with absolute certainty, but I can recall quite clearly the sensation of being mesmerized by patterns from an early age. I would stare at elaborative tapestry for hours and I would dream of being an Indian princess. I always loved gypsy dresses and I couldn't help but going nuts for any kind of ethnic print. I have adored and will probably continue to adore traditional clothing and attire. Moreover, I'm sure that folklore will always be a great inspiration for me. Folklore dresses always felt like art to me. Within themselves they contains so much history, aristry and finese, that it is hard not to take a deep apreciation of them. They are quite often very rich in patterns, often embroided ones (my other great passion that I won't get into now).

Kada je u pitanju odjeća, čini se kako pratim jedan uzorak ponašanja, a to je nošenje uzoraka. Što toliko volim kod uzoraka i printeva? Ne mogu reći s apsolutnom sigurnošću, ali jasno se sjećam kako su me od najranije dobi opčinjavali uzorci. Zurila bi  satima u složenu tapiseriju i sanjarila o tome da sam neka indijska princeza. Uvijek sam voljela ciganske suknje i bila oduševljena etničkim štampama. Voljela sam i vjerojatno ću nastaviti voljeti tradicionalnu odjeću i narodne nošnje. Štoviše, sigurna sam da će mi folklor uvijek biti velika inspiracija jer mi se uvijek činilo da su narodne nošnje umjetnost, a kako i ne bi kada u sebi sadrže toliko povijesti, vještine i finese, doista je teško ne cijeniti ih. Često su i bogate uzorcima , pa i onim izvezenim ( a vez je moja velika strast, ali o tome neki drugi put).

top: old
skirt: Azel (outflet store in BIH)
heels: naughty monkey
bag: vintage second hand

So, let's get back to my early ears. Besides staring at man (or more frequently woman) created patterns, such as those you can find on clothes, I would spend a lot of time staring at patterns in nature. The pattern of waves, stones. and those magical shells you can find on the beach. Slowly, an interest for patterns evolved and I would look closely at typican Dalmatian stone structures and buildings, stone walls amd houses....it all fascinated me. The centre of Split city was also a great source of fascination for me. Its narrow streets filled with stone houses and little gardens. So much life enclosed within preserved walls of an ancient Roman Empiror's palace. To me it seemed like a beautifully crafted pattern in itself.

Vratimo se ranim godinama. Osim što sam buljila u uzorke koji su ljudskih ruku djelo, kao npr. one koji se mogu pronaći na odjeći, također sam puno vremena provodila gledajući prirodne uzorke. Uzorak valova, kamenja i onih čarobnih školjki koje možete pronaći na plažama. Polako, to neko zanimanje za uzorke je evoluiralo i ja bi pažljivo gledala u tipične dalmatinske kamene građevine i strukture, gomile (suhozide) i kuće....sve me je to jako zanimalo. Centar Splita mi je bio veliki izvor zanimanja. Njegove uske ulice pune kamenih kuća i malih vrtova. Toliko života zatvoreno unutar očuvanih zidina palače drevnoga rimskoga cara. Samo po sebi to mi se činilo kao vješto izrađen  uzorak.

When I was quite little, I would stare at walls. Not in a depressive kind of way, like described in The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlote Perkins Gilman ( a brilliant short story btw, published in 1892, so you can download it for free) but in another kind of way. If I stared long enough, I always had the sensation of seeing the walls move. The same would happen with curtains....and furniture....and just about anything. In patterns I saw life. You know how some people love cloud watching? Well, I like it too and that's about it. Patterns seem almost like an inviation for play to me. They're fun, they're fascinating and I can't get enough of them.

Kada sam bila baš malena, često bi buljila u zidove. Ne na depresivan način, kao onaj opisan u slavnoj kratkoj priči Charlote Perkins Gilman iz 1892 (kod nas preveden kao Žute Tapete, divna kratka priča, možete je lako pronaći na internetu te besplatno skinuti i pročitati), već na jedan drukčiji način. Ako bi dovoljno dugo gledala, uvijek sam imala osjećaj da se zidovi miču. To isto se događalo i s zavjesama i namještajem...i bilo čime. U uzorcima vidjela sam život. Znate kako neki ljudi vole gledati oblake? I ja to volim i to je otprilike to. Uzorci mi se čine kao pozivnica na igru. Zabavni su, zanimljivi i ne mogu mi nikada dosaditi.

Two outfits where pattens play a big role. No surprise there, as I have just explained, I've very keen on patterns. This skirt.....You know how I don't like to shop for clothes often? I was never much of a shoppingholic but with years my shopping metabolism got even slower. Sometimes month go by and I don't buy any kind of clothing item. Well, this skirt I just had to have. It is the perfect length, ideal cut....and what can I say about the pattern? I saw it in an outlet store and I payed something like three euros for it. Its print is the kind I really love. Very elaborative, very colourful and loud. I paired it with a plain black tshirt and a simple brown bag, but the heels have a pattern of their own. Giraffe print all of things. Call me print  and pattern addicted. I loved wearing this.

Dvije odjevne kombinacije gdje uzorci igraju bitnu ulogu....baš i nije neko iznenađenje jer kao što sam objasnila, uzorci su mi prirasli srcu. Ova suknja.....Znate kako nemam običaj često kupovati odjeću? Nisam nikad bila neka šopinholičarka, ali mi se s godinama taj kupovni metabolizam još više usporio. Nekad prođu mjeseci bez da išta kupim. No, ovu suknju morala sam uzeti. Savršene je dužine i kroja....što reći o uzorku? Vidjela sam je u outlet dućani i mislim da sam je platila oko dvadeset kuna. Ovaj uzorak mi je jako drag. Jako složen, šaren i napadan. Nosila sam ga s jednostavnom crnom majicom i smeđom torbom, ali su zato petice uzorka žirafe, tako da nema meni bez mješanja uzoraka. Možda sam jednostavno ovisna o njima. Jako mi se svidjelo nositi ovu kombinaciju.

The second outfit is all about stripes. Well, you all know how much I like stripes, don't you? I got this top and skirt at Zara because my husband was wondering why I never bought anything at Zara.. He said I should give it a try. So, a few months ago I went into Zara and bought these two items. They kind of seem to match. I finished this outfit by adding this little folklore bag to the mix. Because stripes on stripes is great, but stripes on stripes with a bit of etnic print is better. Yes, I'm addicted to patterns. Florals, military, stripes, tartan, ethnic, polka dots, military....I honestly can't think about a pattern that I don't like. I do have my favourites. I think those would be tartan, florals and stripes. My holy trinity.

Druga odjevna kombinacija je u znaku pruga. Znate koliko ih volim, zar ne? Ovaj topić i suknju sam uzela u Zare jer mi se muž pitao zašto nikad nisam ništa kupila u Zare i uvjerio me da bi trebala, tako da sam prije par mjeseci ušla u Zaru i uzela ova dva komada koji mi se nekako i slaži. Ovoj kombinaciji sam dodala malu folklornu torbu jer su mi pruge sa prugama odlične, ali pruge sa prugama i folklornom torbom su mi još bolje. Da, ovisna sam o uzorcima. Cvjetni uzorak, prugice, karirano, etnički uzorci, točkice, maskirno....zaista mi ne pada na pamet neki uzorak koji mi se ne sviđa. No, opet imam neke svoje omiljene i mislim da su ti karirani i cvjetni uzorak te prugice. Moje sveto trojstvo.

When I paint on clothes myself, I often create patterns. Embroidery is big on patterns as well. When I make jewelerly and necklaces, I create patterns. There are patterns on my paintings. If we look closely, there are patterns everywhere....and they are endlessly fascinating. Some people search for patterns in behaviour, some people search for patterns in art and some for those in laws that govern our physical world. Scientist, artist and ordinary people, we are all witnesses of patterns on daily basis. We all search for meaning in patterns at times. So, why not wear patterns? If you like them that is.

Kada sama crtam na odjeći, često stvaram uzorke, a i vezovi često imaju svoje uzorke. Kada pravim nakit i ogrlice, stvaram uzorke....postoje i uzorci na mojim slikama. Gledamo li dovoljno pažljivo, postoje uzorci svugdje...i beskrajno su zanimljivi. Neki ljudi traže uzorke u ponašanju, neki u umjetnosti a neki u zakonima koji vladaju našim fizičkim svijetom. Znanstvenici, umjetnici i obični ljudi, svi smo mi svjedoci uzoraka svakodnevno. Svi mi tražimo značenja u uzorcima povremeno. Zašto onda i ne nositi uzorke? Ako nam se to sviđa naravno.

 We could talk about patterns in fashion and by that I don't just mean those printed or painted on clothes. Fashion is full of patterns and it is often repeating itself. Fashion has its behaviour patterns as well. History of fashion can be closely linked with history of art and even with politics. It is an interesting topic and I'm sure many of my fellow bloggers would have something interesting to say about that. For really, there are no shallow topics. There are only shallow people. If you take the right approach, any subject can become a profound one. Clothes are not important, many say. That's relative. Sure they shouldn't be our only field of interest but as I said, what I really comes down to is our approach to things. A person can write a brilliant article inspired by fashion, taken that this particular person has talent and will to write and if not then her/ his writing about any subject won't be that great. 

Mogli bismo pričati o uzorcima u modi i s time ne mislim samo na one koji su isprintani ili oslikani na odjeći. Moda je puno uzoraka i često se ponavlja. Moda ima  i svoje uzorke ponašanja. Povijest mode može se usko vezati u povijest umjetnosti pa čak i s politikom. To je zanimljiva tema i sigurna sam da će puno blogera ima nešto zanimljivo za reći na tu temu. Zaista, nema površnih tema. Postoje samo površni ljudi. Ukoliko je vaš pristup dobar, svaka tema može postati duboka. Odjeća nije važna, reći će neki. To je relativno. Naravno da nam to ne bi trebalo biti jedino područje zanimanja, ali kao što sam rekla stvar je i u našem pristupu. Netko može napisati briljantan članak nadahnut modom, ako posjeduje talent i volju za pisanjem naravno, a ako ne , pa onda u nijednoj temi neće briljirati.

skirt+top: Zara
necklace: DIY
bag: handmade Croatian folklore bag

 What do we really talk about when we talk about clothes? Sometimes it is something more than just a conversation about trends. There is something more if we choose to look for it. A mystery that lies beyond all things. And it exists in all things. Quite often, clothes are not just what they are in the physical sense of the world. Just like you and me aren't just bodies. We aren't just a product of society and upbringing.  We are, aftel all, our own creators, we are the choices we make every day. 

O čemu doista pričamo kada pričamo o modi? Ponekad je to više od samo razgovora o trendovima.  Uvijek ima nešto više ako to odaberemo potražiti. Misterij koji postoji onkraj svih stvar, a istovremeno postoji u svim stvarima. Odjeća zapravo najčešće i nije samo ono što je u fizičkom smislu. Kao što ja i vi nismo samo tijela i nekakav proizvod okoline i odgoja. Mi smo u krajnoj liniji  sami svoj stvoritelji, mi smo izbori koje radimo svaki dan.