揭祕：衣服上爲什麼會設計假兜？

也許你有過這種經歷：在商店裏試穿一件牛仔褲，想伸進兜裏，卻發現這是一個假口袋。爲什麼衣服會有這種看似無用的欺騙性設計？這要從17世紀說起。

Clip-on ties. Fake button holes. Clothing can sometimes be a source of optical illusions. None may be more peculiar than the faux pocket. It’s there when you try on a dress or pair of jeans, try to dig your hand into the pocket, and realize there’s no depth to it. The pocket isn’t there.

夾式領帶。假釦眼。有時候，衣服上會有各種假象。但沒有比假口袋更奇怪的設計了。當你試穿一條裙子或牛仔褲時，你試着把手伸進“口袋”裏，卻發現沒有口袋。這是一個假口袋。

You’ll see it in women’s clothing, men’s suits, and more. Why do apparel companies do this? Why do some pieces of clothing sport fake pockets when the real thing is so practical?

假口袋會出現在女裝和男裝中。爲什麼服裝公司要這麼設計？真口袋這麼實用，爲什麼要製作有假口袋的衣服呢？

For the garment industry, the reason for a fake pocket is simple. For clothes that sport a specific kind of cut or form, pockets might alter the shape either in the warehouse or on the retail rack. By eliminating pockets in key areas, the apparel is able to maintain its aesthetic profile.

對於服裝產業而言，假口袋的存在理由很簡單。對於某種特定版型的衣服，口袋可能會讓衣服在庫房或零售貨架上變形。通過移除關鍵部位的口袋，衣服才能保持外形的美感。

The practice dates back to the 17th century, when pockets were actually removable bags in dresses that women would carry from one ensemble to the next. (This was a wonderful thing for pickpockets, who could simply run off with the entire pocket.) As more streamlined clothing appeared, slim pockets began being sewn into apparel, making a person’s silhouette more aesthetically pleasing for designers.

這一做法要追溯到17世紀，當時裙子上的口袋其實是可拆除的袋子，女性可以將口袋從這件衣服挪到另一件衣服。（這對於扒手來說太棒了，可以拿着袋子直接跑路。）隨着流水線服裝的出現，瘦小的口袋開始被縫在衣服上，設計師認爲這能讓一個人的輪廓更具美感。

But after the French Revolution of the 1790s, slim skirts were in, and pockets were out. Bereft of their pocket bags, women turned to handbags instead.

在18世紀90年代法國大革命之後，修身裙流行了起來，口袋被取消了。沒有了口袋，女性轉而開始使用手提包。

Then designers decided the cut of certain clothing was being disrupted—not only on the rack, but in wearing it. Designers didn’t like the idea of people shoving their hands into their pockets, bunching up the fabric. To discourage any kind of pocket-related distortion, they simply offered pockets that appeared practical but weren’t.

那時候設計師認爲特定衣服的版型被口袋破壞了，不光是在貨架上，在穿着時也是如此。設計師不喜歡人們把手插進兜裏的樣子，認爲這樣會讓面料鼓出來。爲了阻止衣服因爲口袋而變形，設計師乾脆設計出看似實用其實無用的假口袋。

So why have pockets at all? For many articles of clothing, especially jeans, people have grown accustomed to seeing pockets as part of the design. It would be odd to see a pair of Levi’s without hand-sized pockets on the hips.

那麼，假口袋存在的意義到底是什麼？對於許多服裝來說，尤其是牛仔褲，人們已經習慣於看到牛仔褲有口袋。如果看到一條李維斯牛仔褲臀部沒有口袋會讓人感覺很奇怪。

The problem exists primarily with women’s apparel, though men’s suits often fall victim to the practice. You can also blame the fashion industry, which touts dynamic designs emulated by manufacturers. A dress on a runway doesn’t need pockets; by the time a variation of it reaches store shelves, it still doesn’t have any.

假口袋的問題主要存在於女裝，不過男裝也經常淪爲假口袋的犧牲者。你可以責怪標榜創新設計的時裝產業，以及跟風模仿的製造商。T臺上的裙子不需要口袋，直到仿貨在商店上架，原版裙子依然沒有口袋。

If you’re flummoxed by the lack of pockets in your clothing, there are workarounds. Some apparel manufacturers use real pockets instead of fakes—they just sew them shut to maintain the clothing’s profile during transport or when people try them on to see if they fit. You can simply snip the threads sewing the pocket shut to make use of them again.

如果你因爲衣服沒有口袋而手足無措，還是有變通之法的。一些服裝製造商會用真口袋而不是假口袋，他們只是把口袋縫上以保持運輸中或人們試穿時衣服的版型良好。你可以將縫住口袋的線剪開，這樣又可以有口袋可用了。

flummox [ˈflʌməks]: v. （非正式）使困惑，使失措