Weekend Edition #32: Let's Get Loud
Taking up space, starting with our clothes
Hi,
Thank you for reading Wednesday’s post, writing kind messages, and being here today. I am grateful for you all.
My brain currently feels like it is hosting a cast party from Inside Out: Sadness, Anger, Fear, Disgust, Anxiety, Embarrassment. Ennui. Not so much Joy. (But I’m looking for her.) None of these emotions surprise me.
What does surprise me is the immediate shift in what I want to wear. On Tuesday I wore a classic suit. On Wednesday I put on the most statement-y shirt I own, with an oversized collar and billowing sleeves. On Thursday I went with big barrel jeans and a bright red sweater vest.
Right now, I want bold clothes. Loud patterns. Clothes that physically take up a lot of space. Clothes that may make your eyes hurt. Clothes that can’t be missed. Clothes that say: Hey! Over here!
And there I am.
I’ve felt like this before. Especially in middle school. Middle school is tough, man. Middle school feels a lot like our current climate. Warring cliques, shifting friends, rumors, gossip, trying to figure out who you are and where you fit in. Navigating the transition from one chapter to another. Unsure of the future.
I was an…independent kid. Some might say stubborn (hi mom & dad!). I like to say self-determined. I didn’t always fit in, and I didn’t always want to. My sister still remembers some of my more outlandish outfits, outfits I deeply loved. A chevron rainbow (but also brown?) knit top. A long tan and blue argyle vest. Anything plaid from the Delia’s catalog.
I used my outfits to stand out. Without standing in anyone else’s way. My clothes were my amulets. They warded off bad spirits. But more importantly, they made me feel spirited. They cheered me on. To stand up for myself. To be myself.
I don’t want quiet luxury right now. I don’t want quiet anything. Forget minimalism. Let’s take it to the max. Use our voices. Speak out. Live out loud.
LOOK BOOK
I can’t deny that retail therapy works. And prices will probably be going up next year. So if you’d like an excuse to shop, there you have it lol. I searched for the boldest, dreamiest styles I could find, for our viewing pleasure. (FYI, some of the prices linked below are eye-popping. But it doesn’t cost anything to look!)
EXTRA THOUGHTS
My brain is pretty fried this week, from trying to reflect, react, and understand. I donated to Planned Parenthood, just like after the 2016 election. Here’s the link, if you’d like to as well.
I listened to this podcast. I love Kara Swisher. She always gives it to us straight, even if we don’t want to hear it, in a way that feels honest but endurable.
I dove back into my rom-com novels this week, my ultimate comfort food. I’m reading this one and this one is next in the queue.
WHAT I BOUGHT
I actually did shop this week, before Tuesday. I needed an outlet for my anxiety. I bought these boots (here’s another option), which will now be a good way to ground my desire for out-there outfits.
I also stocked up during J. Crew’s sale, which seems always on these days, even as the product gets better. Retail is a hard biz. I snagged cozy socks, a bold stripe shirt, a cocoon-y coat, and a western denim shirt (which I was planning to wear with navy cords but now would like to wear with those Christopher John Rogers x J. Crew gold pants above.)
Thank you, as always, for reading.
x Lindsay
I've come back time and again this week to dopamine dressing; allowing our clothes to be the armor we show up in. Some of us might need more comfort in our clothes this week, others might need to feel powerful, and (like you wrote) some of us want to feel SEEN!
Forever in my maximalist era 🤩 if more colorful street styles are what we get out of this era I’ll take it 🌈