The time has come to purge the closet. I have five bags of clothes ready to bring to 1. Revolution, then 2. the Listen Center (our local equivalent of the Salvation Army or Goodwill), with one little vintage piece that might be of interest to Nancy the Girl. It's always a good way to channel one's time, going through one's closet and coming face to face with one's oversized wardrobe. I own quite a few second hand clothes, and I also hang on to clothes that I purchased a long time ago -- more than ten years I consider to be "a long time ago."
The top that I'm wearing today might actually be getting there in age, and it's still perfectly fine, as the temperatures drop gradually to a comfortable coolness. In assembling my outfit for today -- something that takes me a long time on days when I really don't have to look all that presentable -- I realized that I was perhaps channeling one of my favorite women artists, Elizabeth Vigée-Lebrun.
She was a portrait painter, who most famously painted the French Queen Marie-Antoinette. This painting is a self-portrait, with one of her children. She popularized the Roman revival, with thin drapy fabric, the headband, and the sash. I am holding the wool shawl as a joke but also with a wink to that painting.
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What does it mean to look "presentable"? Presentable to whom? I have a doctor's appointment, then a Zoom info session during which I may have to show the top half of my body. Once the earrings are in, I guess I am ready to leave the house.
In sorting the clothes that I wanted to pass on to the next person, I had to think about where I had bought them, so as not to send back clothing to a second-hand source. I am switching second-hand sources around. Basically that means giving to Revolution clothes that I had found in other places, like Beacon's Closet and Housing Works in New York, and Chercheminippes in Paris. (I am hyperlinking away today).
I think it's all right, as long as the clothes are in good condition.
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Then there is the time I am spending assembling my wardrobe for the October trip. I will be in Paris then in Florence. Lucky me. I think about my friends' travel woes, and how it might make sense to only travel with carry-on luggage. On the other hand, it might be fine to check a suitcase. Why do I agonize over the packing of clothes and shoes? Shoes are important of course, for walking and for keeping feet dry in the rain. I am going to places where I can easily purchase, second-hand of course, clothes that I might "need" because they did not end up in the suitcase. Back to the idea of "presentability," I realize that when I travel in chic places like Paris and Florence, I want to blend in and not look like a tourist. I don't know why that's important to me, but this is where second-hand stores come in handy.
When I directed programs for my university in cities in France, I would buy used clothes there, once I had established what looked "French" but not necessarily in season. Besides, fashion styles are not that different from year to year anymore, they are merely recycled versions of old styles. You can wear any length you want. The colors are also being combined and recombined, to the point where there is no longer one color that is de rigueur in any particular season. If there is, I haven't noticed it. I did just see a fashion spread in a magazine that combined pink and red. Those will stand out in the streets, but I don't want to stand out, I just want to...blend in.
The process of preparing for travel is just as important as the trip itself. A male friend has told me that he needs a trip at the end of the year in order to have something to look forward to. The process includes of course the careful study of maps, the reservations of apartments, reading up on museums and their artworks not mention their opening and closing times. But preparation for me also includes the careful, thoughtful packing of the suitcase.
For some reason, sticking to one color palette seems helpful, because that way, everything goes with everything. I see that I have green so far dominating in the little outfits I have assembled so far.
Greens, blacks and greys. Good fall colors.
Last year, when I traveled to the UK, also in the fall, I had a good pair of waterproof boots that came in very handy. I also had two raincoats. Ditto. This time around, the jackets, sweaters, outerwear will have to be adjusted a bit, as Florence, where I will be for two weeks, will be somewhat warmer and drier than Glasgow and Manchester.
The trip is more than a month off. In the meantime, I will try not to purchase anything new, resist the temptation, not easy when sales are being flashed in front of our noses every time we open up our phones and computers. A month is not that long.
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