This old pattern caught my eye. The girl on the right looks JUST like Tiffany Case; to you non James Bond fans, that's Jill St John. You know, in the movie with Sean Connery as James Bond, when Oh James was a bit of a thug, before he was dappered and English gentlemanized by Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan (My favorite).
I had a dress just like this when I was in 6th grade. Mine was pink and looked just like Jill's dress (unfortunately, being only 12 at the time, I did not look like Jill St John.) Since we women have relationships with our clothes, it's not unusual that a little image can bring back memories associated with certain outfits that we loved (or hated.) I remember when I wore that pink dress, where we were (Lion Country Safari in Irvine CA) and how old I was then. My sister still complains that our mother used to dress us alike for pictures when we were little. She can describe the clothes in detail and describe exactly what she liked or disliked about every single outfit. Most women can tell you their whole life story based on their favorite outfits. We remember exactly what we were wearing on all the important days of our lives. I am sure that men don't even THINK about their clothes like that. I had a dress I used to love that I was wearing the day I got laid off from a job - I never was able to wear it again. I held it against the dress as if it were a friend that had let me down. What I should have done was wear it immediately to a happy occasion to get the bad karma off of it. Instead it hung sadly in the closet, passed over for years until I finally admitted I could never wear it again and put it in the donation box for the Salvation Army. It was like a break up. On the other hand, I will always think kindly of my wine colored Diane Von Furstenburg knock off that I wore in 1977 to get my boyfriend's attention. It was slinky in all the right places. It DID get his attention and we've been married now for 29 years. That's the power of a good dress! I still have the dress, I've never been able to part with it but I don't think Mr. Hunting Creek kept his yellow button down shirt. (I bet he could not even tell you what he was wearing)
Do you remember what you were wearing on the most memorable occasions of your life? Everyone I asked this question has told me a story about their favorite dress, or the sweater they stole from their sister, or the skirt that they had to wear to choir practice. It's because for women, they aren't JUST clothes; they are nothing less than the costumes that we wear starring in the movie of our lives.
Happy Sewing!
4 comments:
There's a great little book called Love, Loss, and What I Wore that tells the story of a woman's life through the clothes she wore. I really love it. http://www.amazon.com/Love-Loss-What-I-Wore/dp/1565121112
I can certainly remember significant outfits--the first thing I *loved* that I remember was a red calico dress with a quilted bodice, long skirt, and lace trim I had when I was in kindergarten and first grade. I wore it as often as I could. Back then it was a popular project in school to roll out butcher paper, have the kid lay down, and trace them out on it so they could color in a full size self. I drew myself in that favorite dress and I remember working so hard on the details to make sure I did it justice!
How funny! I was just going to reference that exact same book Trena mentioned! Ok, you must go get it.
Fate has spoken! I have ordered the book
I had a dress I LOVED when I was in third grade that had a blue skirt, white top and little embroidered ribbon suspenders (reminiscent of the traditional Octoberfest outfits, actually)
A dog bit me while I was walking to school in it, and I never wore it again.
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