UNIQLO｜LifeWear Story 100 directed by Yataro Matsuura

For anyone to feel kindness. This was what drove Asha to design clothes.

Every day, from early morning to late in the evening, she would bus tables at the Coffee Shop, saving as much as she could to build up her savings, all to make this one dream come true.

She would never fail to keep up her daily design work. Some days, she would be completely worn out and just do a page, but not a day passed where she wouldn’t sit down with a pen.

“I’m still not confident about my designs. I get scared if I don’t keep up my design work, not that any of them are to my satisfaction. But I feel like the only thing I can do is to keep drawing and one day, I will be able to get a glimpse of what fashion is, what design is. What I want to design. For that, I feel like I must sit in front of a desk every day, no matter what.”

One day, Asha said,

“As I draw, I get that drawing is about putting your thoughts on paper. Even if it’s that single line, you have to think about what that could mean. That’s why, for me, designing is about thinking deeply about clothes. To do this each day, every day, as though to affirm what clothes should be.”

“What does it mean to affirm every day?”

“When I’m designing, I come across realizations here and there. Then I think, is this really the case? Or may not? Yes? As I’m moving my pen, I contemplate whether my realization was correct or not. Strange, right? To contemplate about what seems certain.”

Asha laughed.

“But come the next day, that affirmation may be wrong ,but that’s fine. So, the reason why I keep up the drawing each day is to reach that absolute certainty of my realization.”

“If I take even a day off, I feel like all the learning I have done up to that point will be lost,” she said, trying to stand tall to look outside the window.

Asha never actively tried to share her designs with others, because for her, they were like a diary, a representation of what goes in her mind, her heart, rather than a drawing.

But one day, her drawing pad was left open and I got a glimpse of her design work.

Uniqlo U, made by Christophe Lemaire’s Paris design team. The crewneck sweatshirt is one of the symbolic items in this fall/winter collection.

Its key feature is the French terry fabric, which is a rather thinner material amongst the pile fabric often used for sweats. It has excellent stretch and moisture absorption, as well as a fine texture. It offers all the goodness of French terry but with just the right thickness and weight. Enjoy the exquisite texture of a sweatshirt, designed thoroughly for the everyday use.

I was shocked to see the drawing on her pad.

She would always say, “I have to do my designs today…” but not one of them looked like clothing of any kind.

What I saw were people after people, men, women, children, young and old, and so many of them, too.

Some were walking, sitting down on a chair, lying down, eating, jumping, crouching — all the fine details of their movement were beautifully drawn.

I flipped to another page, and it also carried pictures of people in various modes of action and next to them was writing, in small letters, like “happy,” “warm,” “tough,” “hard,” “hot,” and “cold,” all memos that described the state and the emotions of these people.

For Asha, designing clothes was not about clothes themselves but people, as they are and their various movements and emotions. I was simply amazed at this approach of hers.

“Hey, what are you doing! Don’t look at my design pad,” she said as she entered the room.

“I’m sorry, well, actually, it was open, so I kind of had a glance at it, I apologize.”

She closed the pad and said, “This is my everything for me now, so I don’t want other people to see this… so embarrassing.”

“But it was my fault that I left it open, so you’re not to blame.”

Sometimes, when we’re walking together, she would suddenly zoom in on something. When I follow what grabbed her attention, all I would see is someone doing their ordinary thing and think, why is she studying this person so much? Now I know that she was studying their movement and posture from a design perspective.

Asha was sitting in a chair with the neck of her sweatshirt pulled up to her chin with an open pad in front of her. She had a vacant look in her eyes.

“What is a design? Your thoughts? I’m now starting to think it’s about being kind… like this sweatshirt I’m wearing, it’s so kind to me. What about it? Well, this design which is nothing special but every detail…”

She was feeling the rib design on the sleeves and the interior, made with raised fabric, and said, “Kindness makes one happy. It’s so important…”

Originally, sweatshirts were clothes that athletes wore before their match, so they were designed to be tough and functional. Uniqlo U has conducted its own study of their details to come up with just the right fit, from the rib weave to detailed stitching.

The drop shoulder and slightly shorter torso with a relatively rounder silhouette are both casual and plush a fine mixture of authentic and modern. Enjoy the variety of vivid and neutral colors, made to create a range of style options.

A piece of clothing brimming with kindness
has such charm and energy,
bringing about that happy feeling.

WOMENU CREWNECK
LONG-SLEEVE
SWEATSHIRT

In Select Stores 9/14

What is “LifeWear story 100?”

At UNIQLO,
there exist these lines of clothes
which has remained for many years,
trend-neutral
yet never dated.
Out of the line-ups,
they are the unsung presence,
sitting quietly behind in TV ads.

Yet, they are the culmination
of the years of passion and devotion,
where UNIQLO sought to pursue
more comfort,
more durability, and
more quality.

They give shape and gravitas
to what and who UNIQLO is,
and what UNIQLO continues
to nurture with great care.

To go beyond yesterday,
to reach higher tomorrow.

When you take it in your hands,
when you try it on,
it softly speaks to you,
almost like a friend.

What is a rich quality
lifestyle?
How is such a quality day spent?
What does happiness mean to you…

And you will find yourself
surprised to discover that such
piece of clothing has existed.

What is the UNIQLO principle?
Why do we call clothing LifeWear?
What kind of clothes constitute
LifeWear?

Here, we go deep into
the root of LifeWear,
to know
and to tell.
And I hope to write
stories that revolve
around LifeWear and myself.

LifeWear story 100 will be
a story about a journey with me and LifeWear.

Yataro Matsuura

Essayist, editor. Born 1965 in Tokyo.
For nine years from 2005, under the leadership of the founder, Shizuko Ohashi, he was the chief editor for the magazine, “Kurashi no Techo.” Since, he launched an online media site, “Kurashi no Kihon.” Currently, sits as a director for Oishii Kenko Ltd. Recognized for his eye for style and experience in presenting ideas for quality lifestyle. Regularly writes in his columns in newspapers and magazines. Has penned numerous best-sellers including “Kyo mo Teinei ni” and “Shigoto no Kihon Kurashi no Kihon 100.” Hosts a radio program on NHK Radio 1, “Karen Style.”