A Post a Day in May #24: This devil does not wear Prada

I have pledged to write a new post for this blog every day in May.

Oh god. I had to put on clothes this morning before leaving the house.  And, of course, I did. And I do, every day. Every. Single. Day. And that is the challenge: Every single day, I have to think  about what I’m going to wear, find something to wear, put it on, wear it. And the next day, it’s the same thing all over again. Sigh. 

When I was a little girl, I remember myself as being fond of fashion and kicking up quite a fuss about clothes. My aunt Vivian indulged me at around age 12 or so with a shopping trip especially to buy new clothes — just for me. I must have been lamenting my fate as the younger sister in the family, suffering from terminal hand-me-down-itis. That shopping trip and its treasures are seared into my memory: the red pants, patterned blouse and, above all, the wrap-around skirt and matching quilted vest that I loved. 

Amanda, aged about nine or so

But any love of clothes shopping is long gone. What I love now is having clothing options that fit three criteria: comfort, a smidge of style and sufficient aesthetics to not offend. Comfort and style do not always go hand in hand, and aesthetics are more often in the eye of this wearer than anyone else. However, if I have to sacrifice any of these, it will usually be style that I let go of — if it’s clean and more or less suitable for the occasion, it's good enough for me. 

I often wish I had a simple uniform to wear — just wash it, wear it, repeat. Every day the same wardrobe: known, expected, familiar. And, I suppose, actually, I do have that, sort of, because I wear pants and a top, every day. In the winter, I rotate through seven pairs of cords and a variety of blouses. A couple of jackets, one navy blue, the other black, complete my outfit. In summer, I do the same but the component pieces are made of lighter fabric. I won’t win any awards for fashion, that’s for sure, but I also won’t be arrested by the aesthetics police for showing too much skin or offending with clothing more suitable for the bar than the office.

At the moment, I’m trying not to think about the clothing challenge I’ll face in early June, when I’m attending a conference in New Orleans. Google tells me the temperature will be hotter than hot and the humidity off the charts. This prairie person knows enough not to pack cords and long sleeves, but I do wonder just what I’ll end up wearing. All I know is that it will be clothes. Any suggestions? 

For fun, do you remember these fashion experiments? Woman Man 

Thanks for reading. 

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