All our clothes carry stories – stories of who made them, who wore them and our memories from when we are wearing them. Today I share with you three short stories from my wardrobe, items with different origins and stories to tell. And I invite you to share a story of a garment you love in the comments at the end too.
First up is this lovely summer skirt. It was originally my Mum’s and has sat in my wardrobe, under appreciated for a few years. Some of that time I was pregnant and it didn’t fit but I wanted to hang on to it because it is so lovely and I just adore the colours and print.
It had a couple of tears where the buttons were too, so it needed a bit of mending. I decided I would wear it more often if I shortened it as well, so I took a bit of length off and used the off cuts to create a new button stand and facing, rather than repairing the tears. Now I wear it often and it’s one of my favourite pieces in my wardrobe.
I asked my Mum if she remembers when she purchased the skirt and wore it. She told me she bought it around 1984/1985 as a work skirt – before she even met my Dad! She said she used to pair it with an orange tank top and a cream tunic-cardigan. I think it’s pretty cool that’s lasted so long!
My second story is of my most favourite and most used accessory – my belt. I really wanted a belt, a good leather belt, so for Christmas one year my parents bought this one for me and I genuinely didn’t think I could love a belt as much as I love this one! It’s got a wonderful secret, its reversible! One side is tan (my favoured side) and the other is black; making it such a wonderful and versatile accessory. I almost never wear jeans without it these days (and I love to wear jeans). It was a little too long when I received it, so I took it down to the local key cutter and they shortened it for me. I did think I had made a mistake because it suddenly felt very, very short, but it turned out to be the perfect length and I honestly think it was the best decision as the tail tucks in perfectly and doesn’t hang out too much.
The third little story is of a me-made item in my wardrobe. It’s funny because you’d think being a seamstress I would make most of my clothes, but I haven’t really done that except for a few special occasion pieces until recently – and I am loving having more and more pieces that I’ve made myself that I can wear daily!
Anyway – this one is my cute fruit tee! You may be aware I do love a good fruit print, and fun and bright colours are my go to. I’m also a fan of the designer of this fabric – Jocelyn Proust. So when I saw it on sale I just had to grab some. It took me a little while to decide exactly what I wanted, but I created this simple every-day tee that is easy to wear and so so comfortable! I love the pattern so much I’ve created a second shirt in a whale print and I have another piece of fabric with a lorikeet print on it that I’m pretty sure I’m going to create another one of these in too! What can I say – I love prints haha!
I hope this inspires you to look at the stories in your wardrobe, and please, if you feel like it, I would love to hear about your fashion stories. Share in the comments, or create a post on instagram or facebook and tag me in it – @raspberriesandsoda . I can’t wait to see what you share!