The Ghost of Clothing Past II: As the Deer Pants

"As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God."
--Psalm 42:1

[Listen to this as you read]

If this psalm was any inspiration to me during my high school years, then I sorely misinterpreted it. My idea of a great outfit consisted of "nature"-inspired pants--neon blue snakeskin print, fake leather floral, spray painted alligator pattern, etc.--with a splashy colored top. I understand that "deer pants" isn't really a thing (haha), but it certainly could be an inspiration. I just have a feeling there's a more...shall we say modest... way to go about it!

A girl friend of mine asked me recently what I thought of loud patterns. I like color, and I like patterns, but your voice should speak more loudly than your clothes! As the adage goes, wear the clothes; don't let the clothes wear you. As I think back to high school, I remember telling someone the reason I wore such bright, funky outfits was that they could speak for me. Basically, I was trying to make a statement with my clothes when I felt I couldn't make one with my words. I'm still a quiet person, but I'm able now to show my personality through my actions and speech, not through what I wear.

Oh, deer! (Pants!) You should have heard the noise these things made when I unfolded them.

My apparent former inspiration

Let's modify this a little bit: new inspiration

My soul pants... done right!

Jacket, Target; pants, Goody's; shoes, Payless; watch, Target

Longing for Eden

"When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being."
--Genesis 2:4b-7

There's no profound meaning or theme to this passage, except for the fact that Virginia has been buried under twelve times more snow than it's used to, and combined with power outages leading to a cold, cold house...paradise sounds really nice right now! (I would settle for spring while I'm still on earth though.)

Dress, by me; jacket, Target; shoes, Aerosoles; earrings, mission in Guatemala

How far could these shoes get me in the snow?

Behind the Seams

Dress, $13, JCPenney; T, $3, Target; Cardigan, $5, Ross; Shoes, $13, Target; Bag, $11, some guy in Honduras; Headband, homemade

Picture for a moment a night out at a Broadway play: imagine the scenery, the costumes, the lights, the props, the playbill, the concessions... Did I forget anything? Ah, that's right, the most important part of the event: the actors. The dialogue that propels the show is the essence of a play. Without it there is no plot, no purpose, no reason for props and scenery, no one on which to place the costumes. I'd like to think we should keep this in mind when we dress ourselves. If the scenery appears too elaborate or the props are of shoddy construction, the audience cannot concentrate on the meat of the play; they're too distracted. Likewise, if we do not dress modestly but drape ourselves in clothes too fancy or sloppy, it will be hard for others to concentrate on what we're saying.

NOW, picture the play, complete with the actors and their marvelous dialogue, beautiful musical renditions, and just the right amount of props, scenery, costuming, etc. Do you see it? Now here comes a stagehand, walking, clack clack clack, across to the middle of the stage. He opens up a trap door in the floor for one of the players to disappear into. Here comes another, stomp stomp, and calls out, "Hey, John, lower the rope! Peter's about to fly to Neverland! I've got to hook it to his waist!" Whoa, wait a minute, hold the show. This is not what I paid for. I want to see the people, the story. I don't want to see how they make it happen and what keeps it together. No offense to stagehands (I worked backstage in high school!), but your work should be invisible. This is what it's like to me when I see a smart, talented, beautiful woman with her under"things" sticking out all over the place. I don't want to see it! I want to hear what she's saying, not see what keeps her clothes fitting well. I can only imagine the effect that has on men.

Sooo, the solution? Cover it up! Everyone will have different specifications for modesty, but it is never appropriate to show the straps or where the straps are deliberately lacking, if you know what I mean. I use t-shirts under spaghetti straps, and men's tank tops under shirts that are cut too low down or too far up my waist. Cardigans are my best friend :)

*Sigh* I just want to end by saying that last year, Beyonce followed one of the worst trends of all time--OF ALL TIME--by going pantsless, along with some other big-name performers (Lady Gaga, Madonna, and Britney, to name a few). It boggles my mind how little celebrities like to get away with wearing. I think these awkward, ridiculous ideas eventually trickle down to the rest of us and make their way into our minds, so that when we want to wear, say, a strapless dress or a miniskirt, it seems modest in comparison. Ladies, do not give out free backstage passes. There is one reserved ticket, and to earn that, he'd better, as Beyonce says, put a ring on it.

If you want something done, you've got to...

^"A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies...
She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands...
In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers...
She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes."
--Proverbs 31:10, 13, 19, 24

Front view

Back view, zipper detail

Left to right: pillowcase, pillowcase, handkerchiefs!

A few weeks ago as I was organizing, I came across these most awesome skirts in my "mementos" box in the kids' closet. The one on top I made during my third (?) year of college. The solid black material used to be a pillowcase; the patterned fabrics were scraps my mom had; and the whole thing is lined with material from a white bedsheet. It took me maybe half an hour to make, and it is one of my favorite articles of clothing I have right now. I happen to have lost just enough weight after having kids to fit back into it! During the winter I have paired it with a bright red sweater and black heels. It would work in the spring too with a bright pink or turquoise t-shirt and sandals.

The skirts on the bottom I made during high school. I was much, much smaller then, so I was able to fit into a pillowcase chopped off, hemmed, with a ribbon for a waistband. The handkerchief skirt is probably my favorite thing of all time, made out of two bandannas my mom used to wear as a teenager, with some kind of rope or shoelace sewn in as a drawstring waist. Each of these skirts took maybe ten minutes to make.

I miss sewing. I haven't done much of it since I have gotten married (mainly because I don't have a sewing machine...or mainly because I have young children who need my attention most hours of the day!). Obviously, in biblical times, the ingenuity and cost-effectiveness of sewing one's own clothes was valued as a womanly trait. I love the creativity and artistry it uses (I don't have a long enough attention span to use patterns...those projects get forgotten for years at a time!), and the money it does not use (my mom has loads of scrap fabrics, but old clothes with holes in them or that no longer fit can be refashioned into new styles). I hope I will be able to get my own sewing machine soon and start up some new projects!

If the ___ Fits

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
--Genesis 1:27

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
--James 1:23-25

Purple dress, $15, Converse for Target; boots, $30, Target; earrings, $4, For Love 21

Bag, $15, Target

I believe that all women struggle with body image. I have not met one woman who loved the way she looked. How sad this must make God! All of us were created in His image, and none of us (so far as I can see) are content with it! We also tend to be our own worst critics (or best, if a critic is good if critical?), and "forget" what our real image is. Our only responsibility remains to exercise [moderately] and eat [moderately] to steward the bodies God gave to us.

In writing this, as I need to heed my own advice (a la Alice in Wonderland), I am either a hypocrite or a work in progress. I have found that the way I dress can have a profound effect on the way I view myself. That is not to say that I should find worth in my clothes, or that anyone should judge my personality based on my appearance (which I have attempted at points in the past), but that I can give myself a little more grace when I [try to] look MY best. Though fashion magazines are generally the last place you'd want to look to help with body image, I have found a neat little tool that shows you how to dress for your body type . Basically, work with what God gave you instead of wishing for other things.

Ahhh... doesn't that feel good?

Resolutions

^"What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless. A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?"
--Ecclesiastes 2:22-25

"I give myself very good advice but I very seldom follow it."
--Alice from Alice in Wonderland

A toast to 2010!

Blue blouse, $9, Target; cardigan, clothing swap; skirt, Express; shoes, White Mtn.

Back detail of the blouse

After a six-week blog sabbatical due to reasons good (holiday travel, less computer time/more real-world time) and not-so-good (a crippling sense of inadequacy), I have returned in light of my one New Year's resolution: practice moderation (and I don't mean moderating blog posts). I've heard all kinds of ways to "keep your New Year's resolutions this year!" but the only way that I know of that will always work is letting God take over your life and goals. If your goals are His, then His spirit will keep you in His path.

I think it's good to examine ourselves and our progress and make goals to improve. Usually I come up with some kind of all-or-nothing resolutions like don't use the TV or internet, don't eat sweets, clean the house every day, etc. But then when I don't accomplish these things (and honestly, I can't imagine more than 10% of the general population would), I feel terrible about myself (it should be so easy, there must be something wrong with me). This is definitely not what God wants.

I'm currently studying about grace, and with that comes moderation (hello, same root word as modesty!). That means just like God has standards for our living (His commandments), and when (not if) we fall short, He gives us the grace (Christ) to still behold His glory, when I fall short of my own standards, I should give myself the grace to accept myself and hold some sense of self-worth. It is not all or nothing, but a moderation between standards and grace.

For those of you who know me, you can help me stay accountable to this! And by the way, I aim to post about once a week so I don't get burned out :)