I’ve been thinking and reading, and reading and thinking,
and I’ve decided to take a 60-day hiatus from clothing shopping. The time feels right, so I am starting today, even though it isn't the first day of a month or anything. If I give myself more time to think about this, I expect I'll come up with some "reason" it's a bad idea!
I started serious consideration of taking this step after
reading about Sterling’s experience. Her reasons for taking the break resonated with me and I decided that this was an experiment worth trying. Also the link recently posted by Janet was immensely helpful to me in deciding how I would like to move like to move forward in defining my “look” in the immediate future.
The circumstances that combined to make me think this would
be the right choice for me at this time are:
1) Changing Body. I’m 59 and 10 years past menopause.
There’s just no denying the changes that come at this point in
life. My waist is thicker, everything is just a little saggier, and there ain’t no diet or exercise plan that is going to change that reality. So it’s time to learn how to dress this slightly different shape, rather than clinging to the silhouettes of the past 40 years.
2) Personal Maintenance. As a corollary to #1, I’ve never been one to
put a lot of time and effort into skin maintenance, hair, makeup, etc. Mind you, I don’t wander around ungroomed, but I’ve always been a bit of a minimalist when it comes to makeup, nail polish, etc. It is probably time to step up my game in those areas.
3) Lifestyle and Climate Needs vs. Desires. I retired a few years back and drifted into wearing pretty casual clothes. They suit my lifestyle, but not my preferences. I MISS my old professional “uniforms”. I LIKE the way tailored clothing and high-quality natural fabrics feel on my body. It is going to be a challenge to translate these preferences into a practical wardrobe that suits my more casual lifestyle and the very warm climate in which I live.
4) Lack of Focus. Certainly I sometimes shop emotionally, or fool myself into thinking I have a “plan” and then making decisions based on criteria that isn’t very well thought out. I’m especially guilty of thinking “that-reminds-me-of-something-I-love-and-wear-alot-so-I’ll-get-this-one-too.” When I probably should be thinking
“that’s-nice-but-I-already-have-something-very-similar-so-don’t-need-this-one.”
5) Wear What I Have. I’ve got a well-stocked closet. If I am fully honest, it is probably overstocked. Though I’m not entirely sure if it is stocked with the right pieces. I am hoping that forcing myself to dress out of what is already here will help me achieve the focus that is currently missing (see #4). If I decide I hate it all, I’m prepared to chuck it out and start over. But I have a feeling that some, and perhaps many, of the pieces of the puzzle are in my possession, but that I’m just not putting them together properly.
6) Ethical Considerations. I really haven't paid a great deal of attention to where and how my clothing is made. I'd like to take these factors into consideration in the future.
I fully appreciate the solid reasoning behind NOT taking quite
such a drastic step as going on a complete shopping fast, as Angie has expressed here in the past. So I am going to make three exceptions:
1) Olive Jeans – I just ruined my favorite olive jeans, which I wear a lot. That particular style (Genetic Denim Daphne) is no longer made. I have searches set up on Ebay, Postmark, etc. for an identical pair. If they do
pop up, I will buy them since I can’t count on finding that exact item again. Otherwise, I will shop for a replacement pair next fall.
2) MOB Dress – My oldest daughter is getting married in September. If she comes to visit before this fast ends, I will go shopping for my dress with her. I would really like her input into what Iwear on her big day and, besides, it will be fun! Otherwise, I feel no need to be looking for
that dress so far ahead of the event.
3) Belts and casual jewelry – I have already identified some big gaps in these areas. So after 30 days have passed, I am going to revisit whether I have refined my needs well enough to make a couple of purchases in these areas. I’m leaning toward not making an exception
here, but feel like having a plan to revisit the issue makes some sense. (Especially for the belts, because sometimes you just need a little help to keep your pants up!)
Anyway, if anyone has made it this far, thanks very much for reading. I’ve said nothing here that hasn’t been said numerous times in this forum – and often much more eloquently. But it has been immensely
useful to me to put it all down on “paper” and declare my intentions publicly.
Edited to fix formatting.
