‘Hate-wear’ and ‘Sad-wear’ are fashion’s new names for lockdown dressing.
With online sales booming but retail in sharp decline, the pandemic has changed shopping forever. Practical, comfortable items, suitable for a lifestyle of working from home and occasional trips outside, are at the top of the wish list. Brands such as UGGS, CROCS and even trousers with elasticated waistbands have seen rising sales. But with many of us suffering from lockdown blues, the way we feel about (and describe) our clothes has altered too.
Last week, two new expressions were coined to describe new attitudes to fashion; encapsulating the stresses and mundanity of lockdown, but also the changing relationship that we have with our clothes.
“Hate-wear” refers to clothes that are neither stylish nor particularly comfortable, yet constantly in rotation – items worn for their utility rather than their style.
Not knowing how to dress is the least of anyone’s problems at the moment, but we (mostly) still have to put on clothes. For those of us who now work from home, it has resulted in some odd choices.
Examples of “Hate-wear” include a sweater with holes, jogging bottoms in the wrong size and a jumper worn so regularly it suddenly becomes a symbol of stress and sadness. Matt Hancock’s zipped gilet, worn during visits to Covid vaccination centres, has become a sartorial symbol of “stress and sadness”.
Meanwhile, the term “Sad-wear” is a collective term for clothes that make us feel better when we’re sad, specifically born out of the hell of lockdown.
The list of “comfort-blanket” clothing includes pyjamas, hoodies and, of course, jogging bottoms (ideally with a matching hoodie). But it could, equally, encompass something unexpected or luxurious, depending on how it makes the wearer feel.
Celebrities ‘rocking’ this trend include Harry Styles who was photographed in a dressing gown and since then, Marks & Spencer have reported a fivefold increase in nightwear sales over the pandemic period. Justin Bieber was seen in an unflattering sweatshirt and Jared Leto in a filthy old beanie.
Basically “Sad-wear” means a stupid hat or novelty jumper or even a pair of joggers that feel great, but are laughably unflattering,
