Issey Miyake Pleats Please A-Poc Flicker Skirt

A gradation is a difficult thing to build out of discrete parts. This skirt is made from mesh pieces of varying sizes arranged so that the scale shifts progressively across the garment, which means the density of the surface changes gradually: tighter and more closed where the pieces are small, more open and airy where they are large. The eye reads that as a continuous fade even though it is assembled from separate elements, and the layering of the pieces over one another adds depth on top of the gradient. Flicker is a good name for the result, since light passing through a surface of shifting density does exactly that. Turquoise green is a bold choice and the right one: a strong colour makes the gradation legible, where a neutral would let it disappear. The name also carries A-POC, which stands for A Piece of Cloth, the studio's long-running investigation into making garments with as little waste and as little cutting as possible.

Building a smooth gradient out of discrete mesh pieces is a real feat of construction, and the result is a skirt that changes character from top to bottom while remaining one garment.

A-POC, meaning A Piece of Cloth, is among the most significant ideas to come out of Issey Miyake's studio, and it names the house's continuing work on garments made with minimal waste.

100% polyester, made in Japan, in Turquoise Green. Mid-length, on an elastic waistband, crafted from mesh pieces of varying sizes arranged in a gradation to create a layered look.

Mid-length with an elastic waist, so it sits where you put it. The layered mesh gives it body without weight, and the open areas mean it is not fully opaque throughout.

A saturated turquoise with a shifting surface is the only thing the outfit needs. Plain and dark above. Worth wearing where the light will move across it.

Wash cool and keep heat away from it. Layered mesh at varying scales is more delicate than a plain pleated cloth, so a laundry net and a short gentle cycle are worth using, and never tumble dry, iron, or steam. Our fabric care guide covers polyester and technical cloth.

The Grainy Colors Skirt and the Thicker Bottoms Skirt are both built by pleating rather than by assembly. Everything we carry from Issey Miyake is listed together.