Even Though We Are Quilters, We Still Have To Wear Clothes!!!

Lets take a little break from the quilts, shall we? If you have read this blog for any length of time you may remember that I am originally a garment Sewist. While that is rather rare these days I find that one still needs to wear clothes. Te-He. Unfortunately, I do not possess the great sewing and fitting skill of my friend from Florida but I can still conjure a decent seam. I am very rusty though and that's the truth. I rarely purchase anything other than t-shirts because the quality I expect I cannot find in a price point that I am willing to deal with.

Enter the

the current example

Fashion blogger Extraordinaire, Janice Riggs of  The Vivienne Files. Her amazing talent to wardrobe is a go-to if you sew or not. The ideas she presents can help you create the fashion function that you require and save you money at the same time!

stripes do not like me

 The weakest part of my wardrobe is the warm weather section. I just am a slug when it come to working on that. Since I still want to look put together but I am not really fashion focused I need to get a move on, warm weather is on the way. Janice has a system that works for any age group (well, not the Gothy teens) and budget. You just need to curate your likes and dislikes and choose those items that suit your lifestyle.


My requirements are:

1. Comfort. I have enough aches and pains and prefer not to bind or chafe anywhere. Your clothes should suit you...not the other way around. That includes shoes. Disclaimer: I do have lots of one hour shoes, Church shoes I call them and they are staying just so you know. They are an investment that will not be set aside.

2. Age Appropriate. I am Of a Certain Age and that is fine with me. However, finding clothes that I feel are appropriate for my lifestyle can be boring or downright tricky. I have another friend who makes scarves, painted beautiful silk scarves and I use those to add color pops to my otherwise boring palette. There will be no exposed abdomens, arthritic knees or upper arm flaps for this girl, no way.

Janice frequently uses fine art to illustrate her point

3. Complimentary Color. I find that as these post-middle age years descend that my skin tone is changing. Always fair, with freckles and dark hair I see the loss of that little bit of pink hue that I have always had.  Colors that I used to wear regularly, such as red, totally wipe me out. When I am around friends in the health professions that want to draw blood and check for anemia! Black is doing the same thing, as is orange, some blues, most certainly yellow and green...well lets not even talk about green! A limited color range provides versatility and function at the same time. The above photo shows how a few pieces can work for most skin types. Now, the short shorts etc. would not work for me but the idea is one that I could translate. 


4. Style. My life has changed after retirement. My needs are different. My activities are different. I wear loose and comfortable clothing at the gym, no spandex for me. At home I wear comfy elastic waist pants and t shirts with a cardigan if it is cool. In public I try to be understated and classic.  

Well this has been a bit cathartic I think. I usually don't do fashion. But it is impossible to completely avoid the subject.  Don't forget to check out The Vivienne Files, Janice spends hours and hours and hours compiling her posts and curating trends for us. Gotta love that lady. And yes, she does permit me to piggy-back her ideas here. Again, a generous and talented person.