Loose Leaf : Off-Blacks and The Real Last Step in Garment Making
hue parsing, subtlety in dark tones, and the entropy of color
There’s an impending shift you will all see happen very soon that I brought in a creative team for. Color was a pillar of this project and as we started pulling colors together they said they always create both an off-white and an off-black. This way there’s options besides just plain white and black that can actually provide a more dynamic color story and creates visual depth, as well as a personal color “fingerprint” of sorts. White, as we all probably know from paint shopping at one point in life, has infinite variations; cream, eggshell, alabaster, pearl, bone, parchment, porcelain, ivory, ecru…sometimes too many honestly.
But what about off-blacks? How often do we parse one black tone from another?
This had me thinking about my wardrobe and my genuine preference for off-blacks without even realizing it. With black made garments there’s something not quite finished until those black jeans are broken in and start to patina, fade, wear in. This is why we enjoy buying thrifted clothing; the natural aging has broken in the garment and it’s settled in to a vibe already. This patina provides dimension and the piece has more of a story, more character to it.
Today’s Loose Leaf is all about the other side of the off-white spectrum..off-blacks. We explore some less talked about tones, how garments and colors age with time, and how to wear all black while not really wearing all black….
