susan earlam ~ horror author

I’ve recently started reading all the blogs I follow through Bloglovin, Santa was kind and I got an iPad for Christmas and the Bloglovin app on there is brilliant. So I’m probably reading more blogs than ever before, finding new ones and rediscovering some I’d forgotten about.

Anyway one post really stood out from the others recently for me- on Tasha’s blog By Gum, By Golly. If you dont already know of it then hop over and take a look.

The post that really chimed with me was, How Do You See Yourself In The Closet Of Your Daydreams.

Having spent most of the last two years pregnant (I had two miscarriages before having littlest in Nov 2013) my wardrobe choices haven’t always been what I actually want to look like. The fact is I haven’t even been able to wear 90% of my wardrobe because of my changing body shape.

The thing is, as Tasha says- “sometimes how we see ourselves in our head is drastically different than how we look in real life.”

Mornings in my house are the busiest time of the day, time is of the essence. Husband getting ready and going out to work, getting eldest ready for school- fed and watered, and feeding a 12 week old baby is a real juggling act. So it’s no surprise really that I throw on something I don’t really think about- as its the two things I need at that time of the day- Quick & Easy.

So I just sling on a variation of the mum uniform- jeans, ankle boots, t-shirt -a Breton stripe if I’m really doing the mum uniform 😉 and a cardigan. I look like your average mum on the school run- but is this how I want to look?

If I’m honest- no its not. There’s no edge, no excitement, no sparkle. Its purely functional. You could argue that I get ready for “work” in the morning and what I put on is my uniform or office suit… Like those who have 9-5- I only am able to express myself through my clothes at the weekends or after work.

NEW FLASH- I’m “at work” 24/7 its just the nature of being a mum, so I really need to force myself to sort this out.

You might think this is a fickle thing to ponder upon, and in some ways it probably is. But clothes are an extension of the wearer- its how you perceive yourself and I think- especially for women is linked to self esteem. What you wear effects how you feel, so if you are wearing something you don’t feel great in then its going to have a knock on effect on how you feel about yourself.

I’ve realised, as I think I do every year in winter, that the things I like wearing and feel like “me” in, are mostly things that aren’t practical for day to day life in drizzly, cold Manchester.

I’ve a LOT of clothes that I don’t wear everyday, yet they take up the most space in my wardrobe. Things like Stop Staring dresses, Bettie Page Dresses, cute vintage (thin) cotton dresses, short sleeved blouses and tops. Don’t get me wrong- I love all this stuff but its useless for me at the moment.

Another thing is I’m not your average woman I have difficulty buying stuff that fits me. I’m taller than average, so legs are often not long enough,  a small back, big boobs and I’ve a stupidly high waist. I know this as a dressmaking tutor was once shocked at how long a zip I’d need to make the Katherine Hepburn trousers I was planning on doing- as we were tweaking patterns to make them custom fit- another unfinished sewing project. Oh the shame of it.

So this year I’m really going to make an effort to look more like how I look in my minds eye. More on what that actually is soon-(its not flouncing around in a 1950’s petticoat dress number in case you were wondering) thanks for reading this rather long-winded post!

I’ve made a start on “the wardrobe of my dreams” my taking a load of stuff to the charity shop- and selling a few things on eBay.

• How often do you have a clearout of your wardrobe?
• Are there things you just cant bear to get rid of?
• How do you store things you might only wear a handful of times every year?