Transitional Seasons = PeaceBang's Personal Hell
I think I made it okay through the last few big church events. I wore pretty skirts and blazers and my hair was acceptable, if not great. A member of my faithful Booger Patrol helped me wipe away some stray Tammi Faye Bakker smeared eyeliner after a funeral on Saturday, and my feet didn't hurt too much in the various cute heels I wore.
Then the weather turned really warm and muggy again, which has me standing in my closet fretting over what to wear. Summer blouses are too white, too cottony and beachy, or just wrong colors for autumn. I always feel good in a blouse or sweater with a blazer, but it's too warm for that. So I'm left with autumny or wintery looking tops that are either too warm or too dark for this Indian summer weather, and I just feel bloated and sweaty and my hair is a wavy nightmare no matter how much product I use in it.
Today I wore a long, straight purple kind of dressy, Indianish print skirt I've had for about six years, with a black tank and black v-necked cardigan over it. I wore black Bandolino wedge sandals and a prayer wheel on a long silver chain. It worked fine for a Chamber of Commerce lunch but was too uncomfortable for class, and I noticed that the skirt is getting a little bit SNUG. Augh!
When you're a chunky gal, it's all about layers, and it's just too warm for layers right now. I wore a striped, short-sleeved empire waist blouse to the board meeting tonight, with black pants and black flats. I forgot to take my hair down from a big, sloppy stupid hairclip I wear when I'm cooking, so rather than show up looking like Mad Hair Woman of Borneo, I tried to neaten it up and kept the clip in.
I hate transitional seasons. When it's this warm I just want to be knocking around in shorts and a t-shirt. Blah.
Then the weather turned really warm and muggy again, which has me standing in my closet fretting over what to wear. Summer blouses are too white, too cottony and beachy, or just wrong colors for autumn. I always feel good in a blouse or sweater with a blazer, but it's too warm for that. So I'm left with autumny or wintery looking tops that are either too warm or too dark for this Indian summer weather, and I just feel bloated and sweaty and my hair is a wavy nightmare no matter how much product I use in it.
Today I wore a long, straight purple kind of dressy, Indianish print skirt I've had for about six years, with a black tank and black v-necked cardigan over it. I wore black Bandolino wedge sandals and a prayer wheel on a long silver chain. It worked fine for a Chamber of Commerce lunch but was too uncomfortable for class, and I noticed that the skirt is getting a little bit SNUG. Augh!
When you're a chunky gal, it's all about layers, and it's just too warm for layers right now. I wore a striped, short-sleeved empire waist blouse to the board meeting tonight, with black pants and black flats. I forgot to take my hair down from a big, sloppy stupid hairclip I wear when I'm cooking, so rather than show up looking like Mad Hair Woman of Borneo, I tried to neaten it up and kept the clip in.
I hate transitional seasons. When it's this warm I just want to be knocking around in shorts and a t-shirt. Blah.
Labels: Attire
posted by PeaceBang at 9:21 PM
2 Comments:
It sounds as though you did quite well given the circumstances, PeaceBang. I sympathize with you about transitional seasons!
I actually had what I think (for me) was a pretty good fashion day, for all that it is still WAY too hot for September (though for Texas, it's not unusual). I'm still very much doing short sleeves here and expect to be for a while. I wore a black jewel neck narrow ribbed cotton blend sweater over a mid-calf red and black print straight six-gore skirt. (Yes, I know prints aren't the best, but this one is pretty classy looking: red lace-style medallion print, on matte black jersey knit -- in a decidedly VERTICAL pattern, which is important for 5'3" roly-poly me). I wore my new black platform sling pumps and a silver chain w/red crystal beads and matching small chandelier earrings. I didn't look 20 or even 30, but I did look pretty good. It helped that my near-shoulder length wavy hair didn't frizz up, because our recent humidity got blown east (you can always blame your western neighbors, PB). I went to a church council meeting tonight and thought I looked pretty snappy. Maybe the colors were way fall-ish, but the weight of the fabrics was just right. And my pastor, who's shaped a lot like me, was in a black and brown slinky knit pants outfit, so I wasn't the only fall-like one there.
I have the heavy upper arm thing going on, so I was very pleased to find these jewel neck sweaters in 1X fit loose enough to make it down almost to the elbow bone, and skim over the hips loosely, all without looking like I am swimming in them. I got a red and a black one on sale at (gasp) Kohl's the other day. Already I'm glad I got them and may go look for a couple more colors. Honestly, we need short sleeve stuff here in Texas off and on until well into November and it's so hard to find good dressy tops that can stand alone. I've tried, and the lacy and high-waisted fashionable things just don't work for me. I'd rather go this more classic route, which I know does.
It's good to do one's best and accept that it's pretty OK. Part of that for me means accepting that I won't ever be working it like wonderful Miss Houston (great post up there, PB), but I CAN work it like myself. I want to thank you again for the good advice and things to think about that you provide here. Here in Texas, working in a non-fashion conscious suburb, it had gotten too easy to just say, Oh well, I look better than most of the folks who come in to church worship and meetings, so it really doesn't matter past that. Yes, it does. To me. There's still enough in me of the little girl who loved to dress up in MATCHING outfits and who loved to privately pick out the prettiest shoes each fall and spring (even if stepmother dearest bought the ugliest ones she could find), that I *like* doing the best I can with what I have/can afford. I like being told that I look pretty, or that I always accessorize nicely, or that a highly creative and well-dressed choir member wishes she could raid my jewelry box. All recent compliments from people who don't just say things like that.
So please know, dear PB, that it does wonders for me to know you fret over the same things I fret over, that you sometimes wear things that are several years old, and that you're human enough to admit that you're a fellow "substantial" woman (my favorite euphemism for someone who's not a size 6). Just because we're not blessed with willowy designer's dream bodies doesn't mean we can't or don't want to look lovely and well-put together. I don't know if you know how good your blog here is for women like me, who aren't as confident as you seem to be about the fashion thing. You bless me nearly every time you post!
I share sentiments and sympathy both for the change in season and for having to negotiate the heat in Texas. I share psamist's experience of trying to be comfortable and professional - complicated by the fact that those who are more adjusted to the heat begin to turn off the A/C when the temp is in the 80's as opposed to the 100's, along with the general desire to reduce utility expenses. Ambient temperature becomes much more of a gamble during this season when the office can be chilled and the parishioner's house stifling.
Just thinking - I watch my spouse get ready for church and he has the same basic uniform - pants, usualy dark cotton slacks, with an undershirt and long sleeve button-down in white, light blue, black, or burgundy. If he doesn't have meetings, he will wear jeans. It doesn't matter how hot it gets, that is his classic look, often topped with a chalice and a jacket for meetings. And he has the extra shirt ready to go if needed.
PB and psalmist - your solutions sound like good efforts. My remedy so far - have many outfits ready to go at a moment's notice, esp. lots of blouses and camis.
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