'Under The Surface' Vol #1 The Stripe's Rebellious Life
Introduction
An essay series exploring the rich threads connecting style to historical, sociopolitical and cultural forces.
With the ease and convenience of buying clothing these days, often we give little thought to the fuller story of an item of clothing we buy, as we dash into the mall or go online. But every colour, every material, every print and every cut of cloth, has its own unique story of how it came into being. By having a deeper understanding of these elements, it brings us closer to the craft, we are more discerning as we select items and develop a deeper respect for our carefully crafted wardrobes.
Vol, 1. Scandalous Stripes
No doubt when you think of a stripe, something will come to mind. We all have our associations with a pattern. For a long time, I discounted stripes, I immediately thought of preppy, sporting, new England Ralph Lauren type looks, or the typical Breton French tee. This wasn’t my look, so I discarded the entire stripe family in one fell swoop.
The stripe has a long, mischievous and complicated history in our wardrobes. Textiles have always given us rich stories and provided deeper clues into a society and culture. Prints are often used to signify our position in society, or allegiance to a clan or tribe. This essay focuses on the western symbolism of the stripe, that’s not to say it doesn’t have a story in other cultures, it would simply be too much content for one essay.
The Birth of The Pinstripe
For the last few years I have been obsessed with the pinstripe, there was a sharp, clean DKNY collection from 2016 SS which I always return to for reference and re-ignited my love of this reiteration of the stripe.
It symbolizes a long-ago part of my life, when I worked in the golden mile, aka the city of London, quite literally its own entity governed by a separate police force. I lived east of this area and traveled into “the city” daily on the bus.
Back then, the bus route I took was serviced by the old Route Master double decker bus. There was an open platform at the back, where you could leap on and off at unofficial stops and the buses had a conductor, with the engine at the front of the bus. They were a hair rising, often times thrilling ride, as they careered about the winding streets, with us locals flinging ourselves off the back before the bus stopped, a truly iconic part of London’s DNA. But due to all sorts of safely and cost implications, they were phased out right before the pandemic. The homogenization and regulation of everything in the name of safety, is truly a tragedy of these times we are living in.
As the bus spluttered and chugged its way around meandering small streets, I could feel the watchful eye of the majestic city buildings. Out on the street, we walked briskly in the cold, hundreds of rhythmic footsteps, echoing in shiny black shoes, as statues of historical figures and horses loomed over us. It was here, the pinstripe was birthed, in the hallowed bankers halls and secretive gentlemen’s clubs.
A flurry of dark suits, rainmacs, poured down the streets at rush hour, I would see an abundance of pinstripes, from elegantly tailored Savile row suits, to wider more garish stripes,, each style giving information on the possible status and work position of the wearer.
Years later, looking at pinstripes in the bright lights of a modern shopping mall in tropical Singapore, all those memories come flooding back as I run my hand over some beautiful Sandro pinstripes. A world and a lifetime away, but this print had the ability to take me back there.
As I slip on my new Shona Joy pinstripe waistcoat, I feel the energy of London, of the history around this centuries old print. It has meaning and fullness for me, it’s a part of my culture, my own history.
Devils Cloth
In western Europe during medieval times, we hear striped fabric referred to as ‘Devils Cloth’¹. It was the print representing prisoners, beggars, prostitutes and hangmen. These stripes were wide and chunky.
Then there is the story of the Carmelite monks who were out of favour with the pope and ordered to give up their striped, brown habits. Apparently, many refused.
Stripes continued to be the reprobates of print, with even zebras scorned for their beautiful stripes by many in western fashion.
It’s hard to say when we saw a change in attitude around the stripe. As always, history isn’t linear. On and off throughout history, we see the stripe sometimes in a favorable light, other times representing the rogues of society.
Military Might or Revolutionary Stripe
Stripes have had a strong association to the military, sporting uniforms and used in coats of arms and flags. Around the late 1700s during the time of the French revolution, we see the stripe move from rogue status identifying the underbelly of society, to the stripe representing the good hard-working people, taking on yet another position in society.
Bright red and white broadly striped fabrics were seen on ladies and men’s jackets too. This also coincided with an appetite for Anglomania fashions and lighter fabrics representing the working classes.
The very first American flag had just thirteen stripes of red and white symbolizing its emancipation from the original British colonies.
Why use a stripe? It is hard to find any conclusive reason. It is visually impactful; it has a masculine strength to the pattern. A rigidity, inflexible as it states its claim on the fabric, as opposed to a feminine energy which curves and flows.
Nautical Stripes
Many associate the nautical stripe most strongly with the French Breton or la marinièr. It became the French navy’s official uniform in an act of parliament in 1858. The French Navy stated, “The body of the shirt will count twenty-one white stripes, each twice as wide as the twenty to twenty-one indigo blue stripes.”² It does however, seem to have been used to denote the sailors at the bottom of the hierarchy, not for the officers, often naming the lower ranks of seamen, zebras, used as derogatory name. Again we see the use of textile and print to denote status.
Apparently it was then adopted by French fishermen in the north and onion sellers. The stripe seemed to represent a type of freedom, which was revolutionary and somewhat masculine. These characteristics may have been what appealed to Coco Chanel, as she also came to use the Breton stripe for women in her clothing. She used many traditionally male elements of design for women’s clothing, to give more comfort and freedom as women dressed.
Back on English soil, we see gentlemen boaters in their striped blazers in Oxford, along with cricketers and their striped socks.
The stripe’s summer and seaside journey did not stop there. We see it make a grand entrance onto the Italian Riviera, in the famous Capri beach clubs, across glitzy palm beach hotels in Miami and worn with the casual monied nonchalance, on the likes of Jackie Onassis and Bridget Bardot, adopted into the collections of Ralph Lauren reliving its sporting English boating life, but on American shores in the fashionable Hamptons.
Rogue Charm
1920s gangsters embraced the pinstripe, channeling their association with the under belly of society from the Middle Ages and the secretive banking world of the city of London – a perfect mix for a gangster. Al Capone went from pinstripe to prison stripe – perfectly illustrating the message of the stripe’s illustrious journey through time.
Contemporary Stripes
The stripe’s rebellious creative spirit lived on through the beatnik generation in the 50s and 60s. The black and white striped t-shirt became part of the fashion identity worn by the likes of Andy Warhol, James Dean and seen in films like Jean Luc Goddard’s Breathless.
The stripe’s bold energy in the sixties was used to create optical illusions, illustrating and playing off the psychedelic movement at that time. Think of Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo as we fall into his world of surreal and discombobulated stripes.
Now we have the famous Adidas three stripes continuing to play on its sporting history, it is hard to find conclusive evidence as to why a stripe was used.
Some say, no reason other than it stands out. Others say each stripe was to represent the continents of Asia, Europe and North America, showing it was an international brand.
Luxury fashion house Missoni is known for its bold use of colour with striped geometric patterns. Originally, they used the stripe design as their machinery only produced the knitwear in solid colours and stripes³. But gradually this became a signature piece, they said it represented fun, freedom and sport.
Conclusion
If you want to embody that sense of masculine energy, a striped print may just help you tap into that aspect of yourself.
Putting on your striped shirt, you mean business, you aren’t going to retreat from any confrontation. You will face what comes head on, unyielding.
Use this bold pattern to help you to speak your truth, stand up for what you believe in, or tap into any part of the stripe’s rebellious life, to channel what you need to support in your daily life.
¹Michel Pastoreau, professor of medieval history, Western symbology expert, and author of The Devil's Cloth: A History of Stripes.
²France Today
³Fashion Textile Museum London