Day 57: Well I MIGHT...
Well thank you Charlie for the initial challenge, and Jenny for the link to a very inspiring post link. This article is a lady who has committed to buying no new clothes for a year... not only that but I foolishly linked on to read what had inspired her to make this pledge which was a project where one woman decided to make a brown dress and wear that for a whole year - EVERY DAY. Though I do find that a captivating idea and I am very inspired - I think I'd find it easier and less mundane to eat value mash for 3 meals a day for a year and nothing else (though I may suffer malnutrition ...so that's out as the alternative). However I am also really inspired by another blog to the opposite extreme. One guy dedicated a blog to his girlfriend, Katie. 'What Katie Wore' He thought she had great style and he was challenged to do something romantic. Everyday he would photograph her and post the photo... HER challenge was to wear something different every day for a year. A more expensive and opposite in outcome to the other ones!
A few weeks ago I was embarrassed as I nearly had to sync my calendar with Beth and Rachel's - we need to know each others diary... sure... but mine was full of a couple of weeks worth of what I was going to wear everyday!... Sad as it may be I love the idea of doing this- all the time. If I think of the times I rush to get ready in the morning ... getting the school run done on time being the target so just ending up wearing exactly what I last took off which is inevitably just whatever is on the top of the pile next to my bed. Well I'd felt challenged that I used to be far more imaginative with clothes than I am these days and decided to plan out a different outfit for every day. I did this a few years ago and loved it. - Everything I owned appeared somewhere on a monthly plan - meaning I got wear out of everything and didn't resort to same old thing all the time. Its always great to challenge yourself to wear something you've forgotten about and I must say THAT does appeal in the challenge to not buy anything new. I've become lazy about that again - the heating in our new office is governed by a man, who is also a dad. Need I say more. It wont be allowed on until at least the February snow so I've been piling on the hoodies over the past couple of weeks! I'm wondering if I would have enough to combine the 'no buying' with the 'something different everyday' would I have enough to do that? I reckon with mixing and matching allowed I might just!! PLUS it would give me a proactive challenge which I'm better at than just crying over what I can't have.
So... though I seem to have been better at posting a 365 on why I SHOULDN'T have to do a clothes fast ... Joel did remind me that the bottom line is basically - I don't have the choice if I remember its not my money. And yes - the reality is I've paid off £1000 of an overdraft. I feel proud of myself BUT our current account is also in its overdraft - with no interest - but still an overdraft, I have a credit card to start on after this which is 6 times what I've paid off and 2 more that I've not even looked at.
I would HAVE to put a clause in about gig clothes. There are things I can wear for work that can be tatty and worn but not in schools and not at gigs. Though officially we should have all of that paid for - it doesnt work like that yet - we're finally getting charity funding for lots of costs now rather than everything being covered by our time and money but I've not read of any grant making trusts that fund sequined dresses as yet. As I have our gig wardrobe in my dept of work I know I have something of a big say...but if either of the others said they wanted to wear only old stuff on stage for the rest of the year which they were also wearing in everyday wear I would say a big NO WAY to that. So the way I'll work that is that anything I have to buy for stage is ONLY for stage - no sneaking it out to a party and its all planned out through work.
So I do want to do it... I might fail if I do - I can't underestimate how I'll cope if I see something I love - its not the pressure to be 'in season' for me but a genuine love for a pretty shape or fabric. I'm also not sure when to start... I am going to Clothes Show Live in December... I might be able to manage it without buying anything... but I really might not!
A few weeks ago I was embarrassed as I nearly had to sync my calendar with Beth and Rachel's - we need to know each others diary... sure... but mine was full of a couple of weeks worth of what I was going to wear everyday!... Sad as it may be I love the idea of doing this- all the time. If I think of the times I rush to get ready in the morning ... getting the school run done on time being the target so just ending up wearing exactly what I last took off which is inevitably just whatever is on the top of the pile next to my bed. Well I'd felt challenged that I used to be far more imaginative with clothes than I am these days and decided to plan out a different outfit for every day. I did this a few years ago and loved it. - Everything I owned appeared somewhere on a monthly plan - meaning I got wear out of everything and didn't resort to same old thing all the time. Its always great to challenge yourself to wear something you've forgotten about and I must say THAT does appeal in the challenge to not buy anything new. I've become lazy about that again - the heating in our new office is governed by a man, who is also a dad. Need I say more. It wont be allowed on until at least the February snow so I've been piling on the hoodies over the past couple of weeks! I'm wondering if I would have enough to combine the 'no buying' with the 'something different everyday' would I have enough to do that? I reckon with mixing and matching allowed I might just!! PLUS it would give me a proactive challenge which I'm better at than just crying over what I can't have.
So... though I seem to have been better at posting a 365 on why I SHOULDN'T have to do a clothes fast ... Joel did remind me that the bottom line is basically - I don't have the choice if I remember its not my money. And yes - the reality is I've paid off £1000 of an overdraft. I feel proud of myself BUT our current account is also in its overdraft - with no interest - but still an overdraft, I have a credit card to start on after this which is 6 times what I've paid off and 2 more that I've not even looked at.
I would HAVE to put a clause in about gig clothes. There are things I can wear for work that can be tatty and worn but not in schools and not at gigs. Though officially we should have all of that paid for - it doesnt work like that yet - we're finally getting charity funding for lots of costs now rather than everything being covered by our time and money but I've not read of any grant making trusts that fund sequined dresses as yet. As I have our gig wardrobe in my dept of work I know I have something of a big say...but if either of the others said they wanted to wear only old stuff on stage for the rest of the year which they were also wearing in everyday wear I would say a big NO WAY to that. So the way I'll work that is that anything I have to buy for stage is ONLY for stage - no sneaking it out to a party and its all planned out through work.
So I do want to do it... I might fail if I do - I can't underestimate how I'll cope if I see something I love - its not the pressure to be 'in season' for me but a genuine love for a pretty shape or fabric. I'm also not sure when to start... I am going to Clothes Show Live in December... I might be able to manage it without buying anything... but I really might not!
WOW!!!! Well done Mand, that definitely deserves a huge big something other than just well done. I know that will have taken so much of your strength to make that decision so you are more than half way there and i think making that decision is the scariest bit, now becomes the fun of finding old wardrobe items and enjoying the challenging of making nice things with what you have and looking lovely as you always do. I am really excited for you, cos i'm sure you will learn loads through doing it even at the times when it is really really hard to resist. I suggest not putting yourself through too much pain by not going clothes shopping very often unless you actually think you could just enjoy looking.
ReplyDeleteyey to you xx