An international fashion research project exploring the 'craft of use'

Transfer of Ownership

Giving a garment to someone else is sometimes a straightforward and spontaneous act. At other times a transfer of ownership is more circuitous. Periods of overlapping ownership often intensify resource use and stud a garment’s story with memories.

Rather not wear it than lose it

"So I am wearing my Dad’s air force jacket. He was in the U.S. army for a good part of his young life and had a bunch of uniform that was decommissioned and given to him when he left and when I moved to Wellington it was colder than I was expecting and I didn’t really have a coat so he sent me up this one which normally has a really puffy lining in it which is too hot for the summer....and a hood and it’s all utilitarian but he calls me every couple of weeks, to check up on me but mostly to check up on his jacket. He’s like, ‘you still got it?’

I lent it out once and he was so angry! He said, ‘oh how’s my jacket doing?’ And I said, ‘Ahh I lent it out to Cami to get home when it was raining out.’ And he was like, ‘you did what?’ ‘Can you trust this boy, do you know who he is? Do you know where it is, have you got it back yet?’ And so he loves it to pieces so I try and take good care of it.

But it’s kind of ironic because it was always a work jacket for him. So it’s covered in bits of paint. It’s coming apart at the seams… but I like how it’s just much too big for me and the pockets are everywhere… It’s my one good thick coat but if I know that I’m going to go somewhere where I might need to take it off and put it down I’d rather wear a bunch of jerseys and cardigans and my thin coat instead just because if I lost this one I would be murdered and also really sad that it was gone."


Wellington, New Zealand - March 2013
Photograph by Aliscia Young