picture by raquette
A while ago I stumbled over a book from Soetsu Yanagi called “The Beauty of Everyday Things”, which became kind of a value bible for our raquette products
Admittingly, I was never overly interested in the fine arts, the extraordinary or beauty that can only be looked at but has no function or use. Instead I found more appeal in the everyday, in everyday objects, everyday spaces and places, ordinary people with their ordinary habits and routines
If I look into my own wardrobe and apartment, I can clearly see that the things I most love and keep the longest are pretty simple things and styles, mostly sweaters. Many of them already with bruises and edges. Many of them from people I love or places or brands
Not sure it is because of my sport background, but I have a special connection with sweatshirts. I love the 100p cotton ones with a bit of a rough and dry feel to them. The ones that are heavy, but not too heavy. The ones that are a bit stiff after wash, but then perfectly adjust to your body. The ones that get a bit of a fine peeling over time, which is what makes them so charming
I can honestly say I wear at least one piece of cotton sweat or jersey a day every day … and I realized in fact, that many people do. And which is the one you use most? Or I use most? Or they use most? Probably the simple plain one. Probably the one with a relatively classic fit. Colored? Absolutely yes, as long as it stays plain. These are exactly the styles that you can dress up or down and that make a variety of outfits and occasions all year long
As you can see , it is of no surpise that cotton sweat and jersey essentials became the main pillar of raquette. Although I am able to find decent quality cotton for adults, I was hardly able to find the right quality for kids. Either the material was with polyester/ elastane content – better to throw them out straight away – or the weight to flimsy to withstand several washes or way too many colors on one piece or the fit too fashionable …
Of course, providing a certain quality comes with a price. However, why as parents would we not invest into the bread and butter of our kids’ wardrobe? Why would we invest less in something that can be worn all year pretty much every day? Why would we not invest into a product that can make so many different outfits? A product that could be even handed down to the brother or sister?
At raquette our cotton essentials, the baseline as we call them, are of 100p eco cotton, zero elastane, zero toxic contents, zero fuss and a modern classic fit. We use slightly heavier weights than most of the brands you find in the market with 200g for jersey and 380g for sweats. We want the product to last and to become better with every wash
Because our baseline products are meant for everyday, they must prove at least for the following values:
· realistic use
· multi-use
· durability
· solid reliability
· qualitative material base
· genuine beauties
· faithful friends
We believe in the ‘era of critical evaluation ‘ as Soetsu Yanagi called it. So be critical, ask, give us your feedback as it is the only way to make sure we improve our product and the only way to guarantee that you get increasingly better quality. Whilst still much of our buying behavior is emotional, we believe that people become increasingly more conscious and aware … of what they buy and how much they buy and where they buy. This is great!
jenn (jenn@raquette.eu)