30 days meme; day 10 "What You Wore Today"
Remember when I said that I was switching today's prompt? Well, I'm switching it back. Turns out that I had way more time constraints than I thought I would, so by the time I was able to start this, laundry had been done for hours. Plus, this will be easier to write than the one about my siblings.
Simple answer: Maroon shirt, black skirt, pink-maroon shoes, striped sweater.
Pink-Maroon Shoes:
I didn't know pink-maroon was a color until I got these shoes. Admittedly, I made up the name pink-maroon, but I didn't know how else to describe it. Maroon has a red base, right? Well, this color looks like it went through the same darkening process, only starting with pink.
Regardless of its name or how it came to be, it's a pretty color.
My mother gave me these. She bought them for herself, but the heel turned out to be too high for her. That was lucky for me, because they are damn cute shoes. I get compliments on them pretty much every time I wear them. They're open-toed slip-ons with a 2.5" heel. The top of the shoe is a curved leather strip with a braided belt detail, complete with buckle. All of it is the same pink-maroon color.
Cute as they are, they're not really walking shoes, and I had to walk a fair amount today. More than 5 miles, definitely. However, the weather was nice enough that I just had to wear them. Soon, it'll be too cold for them. Also, my vanity kicked in and overruled any practicality.
Black Skirt:
This one is another hand-me-down. My neighbor went through a minimalist period and gave away most of her clothes. I took this, and boy am I glad I did.
At first glance it looks like a plain black skirt, slightly flared. Then you put it on and realized that it is not a simple skirt. The fabric is unusual and very quick-drying. As to the slightly flared aspect, it's actually a full skirt that is discreetly gathered. Spin in it, though, and it fans out fabulously. Wind shows the fullness of it, too.
Speaking of wind, this skirt is another example of vanity overruling practicality. See, it's is very sensitive to breezes, and what with the gathering, there's a lot fabric to hold down. Long story short, as soon as a breeze comes up I have to hold the skirt down. Still, it's very flattering to me. A good length and all that, and I just like skirts. I like them far better than pants, and wearing them makes me feel kind of... happier. Because I'm silly.
Maroon Shirt:
Guess why I chose this one? I bet you can figure out at least one of the reasons. Yup, that's right. I picked it because it's cute on me. I also picked it - and this is actually the major reason - because it goes with the pink-maroon shoes. That color is hard to match, and this shirt is the only one I have that goes with it and isn't black. (I couldn't wear a black top, my skirt was already black.) And I just had to wear those shoes.
This one is a form-fitting knit polo shirt - well, women's cut polo. When fully buttoned up, it doesn't actually reach my neck, it just forms a v-neck that doesn't show cleavage. I'm okay with that. I have other shirts to wear if I want my collarbone covered. The best part of the shirt, and the reason I bought it, is a small embroidery on the left side, just below the shoulder. It's a shiny gold jolly roger, except that instead of a skull there's a heart. It's adorable.
Striped Sweater:
This is not mine. It belongs to my brother, but I appropriated it after he hadn't worn it for a year. It should not be languishing in a closet, considering how we got it.
My sister (who is this brother's twin) bought it for him in Ecuador. We'd gone to run a summer camp for a couple of weeks, and then we took a couple of days to relax, in Quenca. Quenca is pretty high up in the Andes - we passed 2, maybe 3 cloud covers while driving up - and it stays about 50 degrees all year long. I had not anticipated this, nor had my sister. All we had were shorts, light shirts - you know, the sort of stuff you wear in a place that's 85 degrees on a cool day. Here, though, we were freezing.
The first thing she and I did was run to the nearest shop we could find that would conceivably sell clothes. We stumbled into the Women's Market. (The origin of that name is a mystery to me. It did not sell women, nor did it sell handcrafts only made by women, nor was it only staffed by women.) In it here was a sweater shop with exactly two attractive sweaters in it - the one I'm wearing, and another one that I bought for myself. My little sister thought the one I'm wearing now was perfect for her twin, so she bought it - but then refused to wear it, because now it was a gift. We had to keep walking for another 45 minutes before we found something for her that was both attractive and warm.
Clearly, we share a vanity thing.
I'm also carrying two purses and wearing my every day jewelery. (No, I don't mean everyday. Everyday implies common. I mean that this is jewelery that I wear every single day, because it's important to me.)
Usual Purse:
A brown leather handbag. It kind of bugs me to be carrying it, because it clashes with the black skirt, but it already had all of my stuff in it, and as I mentioned in the introduction, I'm lazy. The other purse is for my overnight stuff, as I'm not at home tonight. It's got my pills, a change of clothes - you know, the usual stuff. It's a good purse, though, and it works well for me.
Overnight Purse:
More interesting than the usual handbag, it's a shoulder bag made out of green some-kind-of-loose-weave fabric, with a metal circle on the front that has an elephant stamped on it. It's from Thailand, hence the elephant. I got it at the market vaguely near ragingamazon's old house. When I carry it, the happy memories come rushing back. The Ecuadorian sweater has the same effect. That's why I buy physical things when I travel. I like having something to handle when I come back home. Memories fade, especially the details, but the object won't, and it'll help me remember.
Claddagh Ring:
A birthday present from my parents. It's the traditional Irish piece of jewelry. The design is hands clasping a heart from each side, with a crown atop the heart. It's supposed to symbolize love, friendship and loyalty.
A claddagh ring is a really useful piece, actually. It can be worn 4 ways, each with its own meaning. Worn on the right hand, crown down, it means that the wearer is single. On the right hand, crown up, the wearer is being courted. On the left hand, crown down, the wearer is engaged, and left hand, crown up means married. Some people wear it as their wedding ring.
Jade Necklace
Chinese tradition says that if someone who loves you gives you a piece of jade, it will break for you. One of my best friends gave the circle of jade to me for protection. I'm not much into the protective powers of precious stones, but good friends are a sort of protection all by themselves, and I'm reminded of them every time I touch the jade.
P.S. This is another unedited one, because I am way, way out of time.
Simple answer: Maroon shirt, black skirt, pink-maroon shoes, striped sweater.
Pink-Maroon Shoes:
I didn't know pink-maroon was a color until I got these shoes. Admittedly, I made up the name pink-maroon, but I didn't know how else to describe it. Maroon has a red base, right? Well, this color looks like it went through the same darkening process, only starting with pink.
Regardless of its name or how it came to be, it's a pretty color.
My mother gave me these. She bought them for herself, but the heel turned out to be too high for her. That was lucky for me, because they are damn cute shoes. I get compliments on them pretty much every time I wear them. They're open-toed slip-ons with a 2.5" heel. The top of the shoe is a curved leather strip with a braided belt detail, complete with buckle. All of it is the same pink-maroon color.
Cute as they are, they're not really walking shoes, and I had to walk a fair amount today. More than 5 miles, definitely. However, the weather was nice enough that I just had to wear them. Soon, it'll be too cold for them. Also, my vanity kicked in and overruled any practicality.
Black Skirt:
This one is another hand-me-down. My neighbor went through a minimalist period and gave away most of her clothes. I took this, and boy am I glad I did.
At first glance it looks like a plain black skirt, slightly flared. Then you put it on and realized that it is not a simple skirt. The fabric is unusual and very quick-drying. As to the slightly flared aspect, it's actually a full skirt that is discreetly gathered. Spin in it, though, and it fans out fabulously. Wind shows the fullness of it, too.
Speaking of wind, this skirt is another example of vanity overruling practicality. See, it's is very sensitive to breezes, and what with the gathering, there's a lot fabric to hold down. Long story short, as soon as a breeze comes up I have to hold the skirt down. Still, it's very flattering to me. A good length and all that, and I just like skirts. I like them far better than pants, and wearing them makes me feel kind of... happier. Because I'm silly.
Maroon Shirt:
Guess why I chose this one? I bet you can figure out at least one of the reasons. Yup, that's right. I picked it because it's cute on me. I also picked it - and this is actually the major reason - because it goes with the pink-maroon shoes. That color is hard to match, and this shirt is the only one I have that goes with it and isn't black. (I couldn't wear a black top, my skirt was already black.) And I just had to wear those shoes.
This one is a form-fitting knit polo shirt - well, women's cut polo. When fully buttoned up, it doesn't actually reach my neck, it just forms a v-neck that doesn't show cleavage. I'm okay with that. I have other shirts to wear if I want my collarbone covered. The best part of the shirt, and the reason I bought it, is a small embroidery on the left side, just below the shoulder. It's a shiny gold jolly roger, except that instead of a skull there's a heart. It's adorable.
Striped Sweater:
This is not mine. It belongs to my brother, but I appropriated it after he hadn't worn it for a year. It should not be languishing in a closet, considering how we got it.
My sister (who is this brother's twin) bought it for him in Ecuador. We'd gone to run a summer camp for a couple of weeks, and then we took a couple of days to relax, in Quenca. Quenca is pretty high up in the Andes - we passed 2, maybe 3 cloud covers while driving up - and it stays about 50 degrees all year long. I had not anticipated this, nor had my sister. All we had were shorts, light shirts - you know, the sort of stuff you wear in a place that's 85 degrees on a cool day. Here, though, we were freezing.
The first thing she and I did was run to the nearest shop we could find that would conceivably sell clothes. We stumbled into the Women's Market. (The origin of that name is a mystery to me. It did not sell women, nor did it sell handcrafts only made by women, nor was it only staffed by women.) In it here was a sweater shop with exactly two attractive sweaters in it - the one I'm wearing, and another one that I bought for myself. My little sister thought the one I'm wearing now was perfect for her twin, so she bought it - but then refused to wear it, because now it was a gift. We had to keep walking for another 45 minutes before we found something for her that was both attractive and warm.
Clearly, we share a vanity thing.
I'm also carrying two purses and wearing my every day jewelery. (No, I don't mean everyday. Everyday implies common. I mean that this is jewelery that I wear every single day, because it's important to me.)
Usual Purse:
A brown leather handbag. It kind of bugs me to be carrying it, because it clashes with the black skirt, but it already had all of my stuff in it, and as I mentioned in the introduction, I'm lazy. The other purse is for my overnight stuff, as I'm not at home tonight. It's got my pills, a change of clothes - you know, the usual stuff. It's a good purse, though, and it works well for me.
Overnight Purse:
More interesting than the usual handbag, it's a shoulder bag made out of green some-kind-of-loose-weave fabric, with a metal circle on the front that has an elephant stamped on it. It's from Thailand, hence the elephant. I got it at the market vaguely near ragingamazon's old house. When I carry it, the happy memories come rushing back. The Ecuadorian sweater has the same effect. That's why I buy physical things when I travel. I like having something to handle when I come back home. Memories fade, especially the details, but the object won't, and it'll help me remember.
Claddagh Ring:
A birthday present from my parents. It's the traditional Irish piece of jewelry. The design is hands clasping a heart from each side, with a crown atop the heart. It's supposed to symbolize love, friendship and loyalty.
A claddagh ring is a really useful piece, actually. It can be worn 4 ways, each with its own meaning. Worn on the right hand, crown down, it means that the wearer is single. On the right hand, crown up, the wearer is being courted. On the left hand, crown down, the wearer is engaged, and left hand, crown up means married. Some people wear it as their wedding ring.
Jade Necklace
Chinese tradition says that if someone who loves you gives you a piece of jade, it will break for you. One of my best friends gave the circle of jade to me for protection. I'm not much into the protective powers of precious stones, but good friends are a sort of protection all by themselves, and I'm reminded of them every time I touch the jade.
P.S. This is another unedited one, because I am way, way out of time.