I’m resolutely not addressing the fact that it’s the holiday season and I’m crumbling into pebbles!
So I get stats for the posts in this newsletter, right, and it tells me which links people are clicking on; this month, the only link anyone was interested in was the Bad Sweater. So in the spirit of that festive hell-garment, this month’s question is What’s the worst thing you’ve ever worn?
I remember one very bad sartorial choice I made and it wasn't that it was a bad item of clothing per se, but it was absolutely the WRONG item of clothing. I had this dress in grade 4 that had a stretchy white bodice (that puckery fabric that would look doll-sized on the hanger but stretch to fit a person, you know) and a black skirt and off-the-shoulder sleeves with a sunflower print. Objectively, not un-cute! For 1992! But I wore it to school on a regular sort of a day and I was so overdressed that I was ACUTELY visible. Even at age 10 I realized that that was a bad idea. Lots of questions, lots of looks, lots of ~remarks~. I had forgotten not to draw attention; I had forgotten what I looked like, and therefore, who I was. It took me a long time to want to wear anything that wouldn't make me disappear after that.
I have an aunt who's also my godmother and she would give me an ugly sweater for Christmas every year. Now that ugly Christmas sweaters are cool I wish I had appreciated them more as a kid. They were very homemade, with sequins and glitter glue and pom poms. I have a strong dislike for itchy clothes though, so I'd wear it the night she gave it to me and never think of it again after that.
Oh wow, do I have many things. In high school I fancied myself something of a fashion pioneer, so I would do really stupid shit in the name of "it looks cool." My go-to move was a skirt over pants (we're talking mini-skirt over flare jeans here). I did that multiple times, often on stage. I also thought it was cool to wear one sleeve of a t-shirt rolled up with the other just normal—the asymmetrical look was rad. Oh and I bought a corset at Charlotte Russe and wore that a lot too. To high school.
I also loved to play dress up, so I would sometimes dress in completely random outfits for the hell of it. I did what I called a "snow queen" look where I wore fuzzy knee-high boots and a short skirt. And many MANY times I used my green plaid skirt and/or red plaid skirt to basically disney-bound as a Hogwarts student through the halls of my high school.
This is so extremely you (or, at least, what I understand to be Teen Emily) - although the skirt-over-pants look was a whole thing for everyone, so you can't be blamed for just being au courant!! But like, of course you had a corset. Of course you had a snow queen outfit!
I remember one very bad sartorial choice I made and it wasn't that it was a bad item of clothing per se, but it was absolutely the WRONG item of clothing. I had this dress in grade 4 that had a stretchy white bodice (that puckery fabric that would look doll-sized on the hanger but stretch to fit a person, you know) and a black skirt and off-the-shoulder sleeves with a sunflower print. Objectively, not un-cute! For 1992! But I wore it to school on a regular sort of a day and I was so overdressed that I was ACUTELY visible. Even at age 10 I realized that that was a bad idea. Lots of questions, lots of looks, lots of ~remarks~. I had forgotten not to draw attention; I had forgotten what I looked like, and therefore, who I was. It took me a long time to want to wear anything that wouldn't make me disappear after that.
I have an aunt who's also my godmother and she would give me an ugly sweater for Christmas every year. Now that ugly Christmas sweaters are cool I wish I had appreciated them more as a kid. They were very homemade, with sequins and glitter glue and pom poms. I have a strong dislike for itchy clothes though, so I'd wear it the night she gave it to me and never think of it again after that.
So at least the Yule Cat wouldn't get you
Oh wow, do I have many things. In high school I fancied myself something of a fashion pioneer, so I would do really stupid shit in the name of "it looks cool." My go-to move was a skirt over pants (we're talking mini-skirt over flare jeans here). I did that multiple times, often on stage. I also thought it was cool to wear one sleeve of a t-shirt rolled up with the other just normal—the asymmetrical look was rad. Oh and I bought a corset at Charlotte Russe and wore that a lot too. To high school.
I also loved to play dress up, so I would sometimes dress in completely random outfits for the hell of it. I did what I called a "snow queen" look where I wore fuzzy knee-high boots and a short skirt. And many MANY times I used my green plaid skirt and/or red plaid skirt to basically disney-bound as a Hogwarts student through the halls of my high school.
This is so extremely you (or, at least, what I understand to be Teen Emily) - although the skirt-over-pants look was a whole thing for everyone, so you can't be blamed for just being au courant!! But like, of course you had a corset. Of course you had a snow queen outfit!