Over the 4th of July I got to spend some time at my mom’s house. Being a good mom, she often saves articles for me from different papers she reads- one of the articles she saved this time was a piece on Emily Post, an Autobiography in Clothes, the premise being we could learn about the woman by looking at her clothes. I love clothes, clearly, and do think that what your wear can say a lot about you- as the saying goes, “Style is a way to say who you are without speaking”. But really, can our clothes say everything about us?
In reality I doubt the answer is black and white. There are things we wear because we have to (gym uniforms), things we wear to project who we want to be (power suits to meetings, etc), and things we wear that we don’t like (the sweater Grandma gives you at the holidays). Do these things tell who you are? Well, yes, actually. Those clothes show someone who follows the rules (or doesn’t), who strives to achieve things, and who cares about people’s feelings. And those are just things you don’t pick for yourself. So what about the clothes you do?
Above is my 8th grade prom dress, faded, but it still makes me smile. I vividly remember picking it out- I love a good party dress- and wanted something elegant and grown up, and this is what 13yo me picked. Would I buy it today? Maybe not, my definitions of elegant have changed some, but this dress can tell you about me. The princess dresses I wore as a kid, the closet of pencil skirts, designer heels, my favorite worn-in jeans- they all tell a little piece of who I am. And if clothes have this power to tell stories about us, should we be more aware of what we’re saying? Should this be a call to really let ourselves shine through our outfit choices?
I say yes. After all, you are what makes your clothes interesting. I’d love to know- what do your clothes say about you?
Wishing us all a week of clothes with stories and amazing shoes! XO RA
