Back in the summer I challenged myself to wear dresses for a whole week. I loved it!
As summer came to a close and fall descended, I began to wonder whether I had a sufficient autumn wardrobe. I didn't want to spend money on anything new if I could help it, but I knew that I really did not have enough clothes to wear dresses every day. In fact, I wondered if I had enough clothes, period! So I decided to pull out my cooler weather clothes and take stock for a week, before deciding whether or not I truly needed to buy anything else. (Although at the end of the summer I did purchase new jeans--because the ones I bought last fall were too large--and a rust-colored sweater.)
The whole exercise reminded me of Matthew 6:28-29: "And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."
As it turns out, I really didn't have any cool-weather dresses. So most of my wardrobe this week consisted of wearing trousers. However, I tried to make the outfits look nice and feminine, even if I had to wear jeans!
Day One: On this day I homeschooled my children, and then took them to Spanish class, where I took a walk while they were in class. (Thus my tennis shoes and vest!)
Day Two: I am not even sure what I did this day! But I love this striped swingy top, I think it makes jeans look a lot more feminine. When I had to leave the house, I paired it with a wool scarf that my parents bought me in Scotland.
Day Three: A dress! This was a Sunday. I wore a summer dress that I'd purchased for our trip to Disneyworld in May, but I wore it with a red wool Ralph Lauren sweater (thrift store, $3) and a scarf.
....and this is how it looked when I was doing a few kitchen chores and felt chilly: an apron and a cashmere sweater (a castoff from a neighbor!).
Day Four: I believe this was co-op and ballet day for us. I wore this sweet top which is essentially a sweatshirt (very cozy) with a peplum-ish border with....
...the most darling rickrack trim!! I wore it with a pearl necklace that came from my grandmother.
And when I was at home, I wore it with my pink polka-dotted birthday apron.
Day Five: While I was at home I wore a green summer dress with a black cashmere sweater (another castoff from a neighbor) and one of my favorite vintage aprons.
When I left the house, I paired it with a wool tartan scarf. I love this scarf! I think this came from a grandparent at some point.
Day Six: This is the sweater I purchased in early autumn, along with my new jeans. I wore them with my April Cornell apron at home.
And when I left the house, I wore it with a crocheted infinity scarf that I bought at a Silent Auction fundraiser at our church a few years ago!
Day Seven: My striped swingy top, covered by a navy blue cotton sweater that I've had for years, and worn with a blue necklace that was my grandmother's.
And I wore it with my vintage apron at home. I love how an apron can make a jeans-and-sweater outfit look so feminine.
I was pleased with my fall wardrobe after trying it out for a week, and it convinced me not to spend any additional money on more clothes for autumn!
I did decide that I wanted to purchase a couple of dresses for winter weather (because the grey and green dresses I wore here are very thin, and not at all suitable for true winter), so I did that a couple of weeks ago. I'll show those in the winter edition! :)
And I'm still trying to decide about footwear: the only non-athletic winter shoe options I have are calf boots! I'm trying to find a shoe that will be comfortable and will look good with skirts or trousers.
It was a good exercise for me to wear my clothes and find satisfaction with what I already owned. I am something of a minimalist, and we try to be thrifty and careful with our money, so I didn't want to purchase anything extra that I wouldn't need. It's also such a blessing to look back at this and see how many things were gifts, or inherited: a pair of black pumps, a couple of necklaces, two pairs of earrings, two cashmere sweaters, a vintage apron, black trousers.
That makes me feel like one of the "lilies of the field," and it makes me feel grateful.
Thanks for sharing. I think you did a great job and I look forward to seeing your winter dresses.
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