This past week, I found myself momentarily paralyzed while getting dressed. I had big night ahead of me, and almost immediately felt as though I had nothing to wear, and more importantly, no idea how to put an outfit together.
How could this happen? (To me?) I'm a fashion designer!
The past few months my social media feed has been inundated with styling advise on how to put an outfit together. There have been countless videos dedicated to "how to tuck in a shirt," "rules of threes," "third pieces," not to mention the layering upon layering of accessories.
Just when you think the stylist is done.... wait!... she almost forgot to put on the finishing touches and..... phew! Thankfully the earrings and handbags have been added. (That was a close one!)
I felt a wave of relief when one stylist pointed out (in her own video) that these types of crazy styling videos really only perpetuate the myth that as women we are "not enough." I remember agreeing with her and commenting, "how about we just wear what we love, and feel confident in our own skin?"
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Recently I was chatting with my uncle who said that he was embarrassed to confess that he held onto clothes that he no longer wears. He described them as items that hold memories of people and places. He dismissed his actions as silly and I told him that there was absolutely nothing silly about it.
If you visit my closet you will find my prom dress, a home-made dress that my mom and grandmother made together, countless vintage handbags, and some old t-shirts given to me from my husband back in the days when he was still my "boyfriend." These items are pushed to the side to make room for the clothes that I actually wear, but they hold a place in my closet and in my heart.
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So, how did I conquer my momentary "paralysis" while getting ready for my big event? (No, I didn't reach for the prom dress and my "boyfriend's" old t-shirt.)
That would be weird.
But I did remind myself that I had everything that I needed and I turned to the items that were special to me.
I grabbed the floral dress that I wore two years ago on thanksgiving (the one that I looked pretty in when someone took a picture of me while I wasn't looking.)
I put on a pair of shoes that I recently purchased from a woman that makes shoes by hand (her approach to craft resonates with me and reminds me why I make clothes.)
I swapped out my nerdy glasses for a different pair of nerdy glasses that I purchased when I first became "a teacher" and wanted to look like "a teacher."
I stopped myself from adding a belt because I remembered that belts make my body feel awful by the end of the night, as do most earrings, so I didn't add the earrings either.
I added a necklace instead with a picture of the Virgin Mary, in honor of my father who had passed away almost exactly one year earlier.
I felt confident and strong. And I remembered that I was enough.
