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Sunday, July 01, 2007

 

What I Wear: project wrap-up and braindump


6-27-07
Originally uploaded by marytsao
Mayberry of Mayberry Mom was wondering how I felt now that my What I Wear: Suburban Housewife Edition photo project was over.

I feel a mix of emotions: relief that the project is over and I no longer have to remember to take my picture, sorrow that I have no choice but to return to fashion obscurity, happiness that I did the project for the entire year without quitting, fear that I will stop caring about what I wear now that the project is over.

A little over a year ago I decided to take a photo every day of what I was wearing. I'm not sure why I started doing this. Lucky for me, I wrote a post about it. In my post, I explain:

"What do my outfits say about me? Am I an easy-going mom or an uptight mutha? Am I fun? Carefree? Warm? Caring? Bitchy? Classist? Preppy? Hot? Unclear about my advancing age?

All of the above? Decline to state?"

Apparently, I was wondering what kind of an image I was projecting with my clothing choices. Huh. I guess I kind of forgot about that goal as time went by. However, if I was seeking that knowledge, then I like the comment that called my look "casual and comfortable."

Casual and comfortable. I'll take that.

I learned some things from posting my picture every day on the Internet. Nothing terribly profound, but here's the rundown:

  • I am completely comfortable with how I look in my clothes, and I'm happy about that. I think my size is average and I don't cringe when I look at myself in the mirror or in a picture. One of my unspoken rules for this project was never to comment negatively on my body or on my outfit when I posted a picture. That's good practice for real life, too.
  • Looking good (to me) helps me feel good.
  • Different people have different tastes. Some things I hated, other people loved.
  • Sometimes I gave clothing away after looking at my photo of the day; it took a photograph to get me to see when an article of clothing was unflattering.
  • I'm much more comfortable now admitting that I like clothes and fashion and style and shopping and all of those things. It's possible I previously equated style with being "girly" or "frou frou." I still might, but I no longer care if people associate me with those words. This project brought me in touch with my hidden feminine side.
  • It felt good when people said nice things about my outfit. Most people, whether they admit it or not, do spend some time figuring out what they're going to wear. I am trying to give out more compliments now on what people are wearing. For some reason, this is hard for me to do, and I'm not sure why. I'm hoping practice will make it easier.