There is something that I notice, looking at a shirt. Is the collar necessary? Sweatshirt and T-shirts don’t have it. It is not like I’m going to wear a tie, so it’s not serving its original function either. Objectively studying just the collar, it appears to have a strange shape. From the shape of buttons, or the hem, you’d be able to guess the function. But this doesn’t go for the collar. However, I understand that what makes a shirt beautiful is precisely that it has the collar. In the first place, humans can’t live with only things that have meaning. People who wear a collared shirt, in a small way, is making a stand for their sense of value. This thought comes to mind as I ponder the shirt.
But now actually, taking a closer look at the Utility Light Wind Shirt, I understand that there isn’t one part that is useless. Each stitch, each detail and fabric has a reason. The pocket with flap is just the right size, and the placket is sturdy with a neat straight stitch down the middle. Covering core yarn, with a polyester core wrapped in cotton, has the texture of natural cotton and is comforting. It is very beautiful, and very normal.
The point is not whether the collar is necessary or not; a shirt is a shirt because it has a collar. This makes me think of the copywriter Takashi Nakahata’s theory, that a fried shrimp is what it is because it has a tail. It is somewhat unrelated, but Haruki Murakami wrote, if you don’t know what to say for your self-introduction, talk about friend oysters. The meaning of this was something like, if you have the words to discuss something other than yourself, it will come back to help you.
The stich of the sleeves and the pleats are perfect. There is no uncertainty in the straight angle of the hem. This honest and stoic impression is backed by the subtle but utterly high level of technique. The hem is straight cut so it can be worn as a blouson, and the thickness of the durable high density weave weather cloth makes it versatile for various ways of styling. Precisely because everything is just right, it is hard to notice what makes it so. It is just kind of really nice, so you end up wearing it every day.
Subtle but indispensable. If you own this kind of shirt, your daily life will change. “There is no meaning. Just living” goes the song by Gen Hoshino. In all different people’s living, it is funny to think about all the countless collars being worn, which have lost their original meaning and function. The sun’s rays of spring, the rain during the wet season, all feel dear. Maybe the joy of wearing clothes lies in the space between meaninglessness and functionality.
