Friday, January 16, 2009
Designing for Men
As I work on new designs, I am tempted to consider including more designs specifically for men.
I have made a couple of forays already, with Balsam (pictured above) and Along the Boulevard scarf version for a man.
But I have been recently challenged with the Along the Boulevard scarf by someone on one of the Ravelry forums who claimed that no man (unless gay) would choose to knit--or wear a scarf like that. When I asked him why, he answered by saying that men don't tend to like anything made "with holes" and prefer garments worked in a dark or otherwise neutral colour.
He also went on to say that he could always tell when a woman had designed something, because it was often an adaptation of something originally designed for a woman. Guilty as charged.
We had an interesting discussion about this and it has made me think. I suspect he is voicing an opinion held by many male knitters as well as male recipients of knitted gifts. And as a designer trying to make a living at this work, I don't want to produce a design that won't be welcomed by male, as well as female, knitters.
And yet I can't see myself designing a grey, cabled V-necked, cardigan vest for men, for example, especially since there are so many good designs like that available already. So the question for me is, "How to keep things interesting and challenging for me as a designer, while at the same time, acquiescing to the more conservative expectations of male dress?"
It is true that designs for men, especially when they are more adventurous with colour and form, don't seem to work very well. You can't exactly expect a hot fuchsia pink, asymmetrical, lace-patterned sweater with a draping collar to be a hit with men. Although there would probably be a lot of women who would love it.
No wonder it is so much fun designing for women!
