May day

Now I know that May Day occurs on May 1 and not May 31, but after my last post I thought that recognition for an emotional uprising might do me some good.

No, I didn’t go out and buy a new Roxy bikini, but I did feel great when I found one that I bought pre hiatus at the end of last season still new with tags! Whoo-hoo! It’s occasions like this that justifies my sale shopping and squirreling things away for the proverbial rainy day!

I also learned that the FitFlops Company has not brought out its line of slip on/mule type FitFlops sandals yet. (Those sandals would not have that annoying piece between the first two toes and the reason I never could wear flip-flops.) That made me feel even happier because I couldn’t get a pair of FitFlops now anyway!

So while I still feel somewhat deprived, I also feel happy because I didn’t cave into the impulse of buying some new clothes or shoes to try to change that feeling of deprivation, especially when anything I bought to offset the feeling of deprivation not only would not fit or otherwise be wrong for me, but the feeling of deprivation would only change into one of remorse. (Remember the purple cape, fellow travelers, remember the purple cape.)

June, here we come!

Two seasons down

Memorial Day in the US usually acts as the unofficial start to summer; Beach house rentals begin; men can wear white pants, women white shoes; sandals are allowed; flexible summer work hours apply. Summer!

With Memorial Day weekend occurring last weekend, I realized that two of the toughest seasons had passed since hiatus began. Winter, where I want to wrap myself in Scottish cashmere and find a flattering Henri Bendel sweater, and Spring, where I want to shed the dark and heavy clothes of winter and find a bright Prada floral print. This year, I still wanted to do those things, but didn't. So how do I feel about deliberately spending (no pun intended) these two seasons without buying clothes (or shoes or belts or jewelry or anything like that)?

Well I wanted to say that I felt good or okay about it. But then I thought about those words and how bland and unrevealing they are when it comes to emotions. What do they really mean besides "I'm not able to/don't want to really describe how I feel so stop asking me."?

So I went a bit deeper and examined whether I really felt okay or good about this. I realized while I wanted to feel good about my hiatus and wanted to feel that I had done something big on a small scale regarding examining my life (since according to Socrates, an unexamined life is not worth living), I wasn't feeling that at all. I feel deprived!

Once the emotional floodgates opened, the feelings of guilt and depression came - how can I feel deprived because I haven't shopped in six months when there are people starving out in the world and living on the streets with their possessions in shopping carts? And then, as the emotional coup d'ėtat, frustration rears its ugly head (guilt and depression still gripped in its sharp teeth), because I can't back out of hiatus at this point (I'd feel ashamed and a failure) even though I would love to go out and pick up some new Roxy beachwear for my upcoming sailing trip and a pair of FitFlops that are all the rage and I just know will look great on me with a new summer skirt.

At this point no one should be wondering why I remain in therapy.

Onesy, twosy, redsy, bluesy

I bought a onesy last week (as a gift, folks! as a gift!) with the “I ♥ NY” logo on it, thinking it would be a better choice for a NY baby than the “My mommy drinks because I cry” piece that I preferred.

My purchase got me thinking about why adults don’t have onesies. Sad, really, since it’s such an easy choice of clothing. One piece, nothing to it. Better than a dress, which requires undergarments of all sorts as well as a multitude of accessories and potentially some ironing. Onesies are simple. Why else would Spidey wear one? Or Flash Gordon? Sure, the adult version may look more like a catsuit for superheroes and those of us obessessed with Halloween, but it doesn’t have to.

I recall owning an old Banana Republic flight suit that I thought very stylish when worn with heels and a form-fitting military-type belt. I miss that outfit. Granted, I’ve blocked out the struggles with the buttons during trips to the toilet when I wore it, and maybe I didn't look so hot in beige, but that’s memory for you, isn't it? And I imagine that today's onesy would be like those old farmer Brown long john pajamas with flaps for easy access. No fumbling around after drinking those 8 glasses of water!

I think I’d like one with blue pinstripes and the number 2 on it, if anyone asks.

Timing is everything

No, it's not Sarah Jessica Parker at yet another opening for SATC, the movie.

It's the Village Care of New York's [ http://www.vcny.org ] annual "Tulips and Pansies: The Headdress Affair" benefit fashion show.

Apparently, NYC's top florists join with NYC's most creative fashion designers to create outrageous and over-the-top floral headdresses. The show, held this year on Thursday, May 15, raises funds to support Village Care's medical and other support programs for the 1500 AIDS and HIV patients it serves on a daily basis. It looks like a fun, mardi gras-type parade of hats and flowers for a good cause.

Someone tell SJP! As a concerned New Yorker she might be interested in recycling her London hat and add real flowers for next year's show - a win/win for all!

Fashion faux pas

I could end this entry right here.

To be fair to Sarah Jessica Parker and everyone who has ever listened to someone tell you how good something looks on you when you're not quite sure, I think the hat merits a brief discussion of whether her choice represents one of daring and cutting edge chic, or one of the emperor's new clothes.

Admittedly, I'm one of the last people who should point a finger at someone for a fashion mistake (remember the purple cape, folks back in Emotional Shopping - Is there any other way?). However, I do have friends who put themselves together very nicely. By osmosis at least, I know something about outfits working, even if I can't actually put one together myself. Not exactly the "I know it when I see it" standard that US Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart placed on 'obscenity.' More like the standard of, "those who cannot do, teach, and those who cannot teach, critique."

For real input as to what works and on whom, I rely on my friend K - fashion icon and hero. K wore orange stockings to her wedding, years before they became popular among the trendy eurotrash. She owns a duct tape handbag (one-of-a-kind) and sported it long before the whole duct tape prom thing happened.
http://www.ducktapeclub.com
She mixes stripes with polka dots and plaids and looks phenomenal! Despite not seeing her photographed by the Sartorialist,
http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com
I know designers have spotted her on the streets of NYC and copied her. (I'm talking about you, Miuccia!) K can put together trash bags on a rainy day and look like she's going to walk down a runway. She's that good.

And K makes and wears hats, just not ones with bird's stuff and butterflies (unless it's Mardi Gras or Halloween, of course - then anything goes). But she doesn't make or wear hats that require thousands of dollars and a convincing argument to wear. (The one I heard was that the Sex and The City movie premiere justified the wearing of a hat because it was in London. Hmmm. Does that mean that a slash across your throat also makes sense because of Jack the Ripper?)

The real lesson here? Be careful what you wish for starlets and fashionistas - maybe not all press is good press.

210

The area code for San Antonio, Texas. The year the Romans made peace with the Scots. A Concorde airplane now on the Intrepid. A sailboat. A freeway.

And the number of days left of hiatus.

The new black

What is it about black and the black comparison? Why are other colors judged against the color black? Isn't black enough for us?

Wikipedia provides information, but little help. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_new_black

Black represents a slimming color, a basic color, the foundation of a wardrobe. While bloggers may write about the little brown dress (see Judgment Day - March 30, 2008), it's the little black dress that sends hearts aflutter. The argument over whether black is the negation of color or the combination of all colors proves black's conflicting nature.

http://www.colormatters.com/vis_bk_white.html

At once serious, conventional and sombre, black also is mysterious, sexy and classy. Black will be mentioned in every article about clothes, either as an essential (you must have a pair of black slacks, black heels, a black dress) or as a comparison (this year, brown/grey/royal blue is the new black).

My take on the black comparisons? Black is easy. Easy to wear, easy to match, easy to hide flaws (both your own and the fabric's) and dirt, easy to go from work to play. Easy.

In a complex world of wardrobes and clothes, black brings us some simplicity. And that's why we love it best and all other colors are compared to it.