The Return

I would like to begin today’s post by introducing the updated version of amatuavestimenta. At its heart, the blog will still be about loving your clothes and finding self-confidence in what you wear. However, I am planning to extend the posts to link into the discussions around clothing and fashions styles to other aspects of my personality. So, I would like to draw more links between my outfits and how they help develop my sense of individuality and also help understand yourself more cohesively as a person.

I believe this will be beneficial as fashion does not exist in a bubble. Or at least it should not do so. It should work to reflect who you are. Thus, having a broader discussion on how my outfits can be linked to other aspects of myself, I believe will be helpful as it will illustrate how your interests and hobbies can influence what you choose to wear.

First, I would like to pre-empt that my interests include reading (particularly historical works or classics), ancient history, Latin, baking and fashion. So overall it might not be a mischaracterisation to term me a young “Grandma.” However, I find these things inherently interesting and believe there to be multiple ways to engage these interests within fashion.

I would like to begin my post by describing the outfit I am seen wearing in this post. I will then expand and talk about how this outfit relates to my area of interest for the week, which is a novel by Umberto Eco, called The Name of the Rose.

In this outfit, I am wearing a deep pink t-shirt. The t-shirt has a high neckline and is ribbed. The basic style and ribbing make the t-shirt a perfect one to match with other more vibrant and eye-catching pieces.

It is this simplicity which makes the top perfect to pair with the skirt. The skirt reaches mid-calf and is close-fitting. It has a flower pattern (this is where the link to The Name of the Rose comes from) and is relatively straight cut. The flower pattern composes pinks, greens and oranges. The green composes the leaves of the flowers whereas the pinks and oranges compose the flowers. The length of the skirt is probably my favourite feature of it. I like longer skirts. The skirt is also perfect for a warm day as it is very cool.

Paired with this I am wearing a pair of sandals. They are light brown and thus match well with the colours in the skirt and also my hair. Additionally, the tonal colour of the brown works well with the brown undertones of the hat I am wearing. The hat is a simple bucket hat, with a pastel flower pattern. As mentioned above the hat has a brown undertone which ties in very well with many of the other pieces which I wear. I am also wearing sunglasses in this photo. They are also a piece which has a brown/orange undertone and thus work well with the broader colour palette of the outfit.

Aforementioned the skirt is the piece which is providing the link to The Name of the Rose as the flowers could be interpreted as roses. This on the surface level seems a very small link but I will expand on it because The Name of the Rose is a novel, I find inherently interesting and thus helps me understand myself and my interests. This understanding of self and interests is never detrimental in understanding and composing outfits. Self-confidence in fashion is key. But to truly have self-confidence you have to believe in all aspects of yourself. If you can do that you will be able to construct a wardrobe reflective of you and your interests and desires – not, simply a wardrobe which is reflective of trends.

The Name of the Rose is a murder mystery, set in the Middle Ages and is based on classical philosophy. I understand this sentence alone may turn a lot of people off the book. I understand it probably is not everyone’s cup of tea and nor do I expect it to be. But it does raise some really interesting ideas and thoughts in my view. This is what I would like to discuss today.

I would like to begin with the idea I’ve just discussed – namely, the book’s niche appeal. This is applicable across a wide range of facets of your life. This is particularly applicable to fashion. Fashion is dominated by trends. And fast fashion only works to amplify this. Increasingly clothes are being made to wear for a season. You buy a top which is inherently on-trend one moment and then you go to re-wear it the next year (if it has lasted that long) and it is suddenly so dated you cannot bring yourself to wear it. This consumeristic nature of fashion is incredibly environmentally detrimental.

But, furthermore, it is also severely detrimental for fashion as a form of individual expression. Fashion is a method in which you can illustrate something about yourself and who you want to be. You should feel confident and happy to wear something which is more niche. Just as you should be confident and happy to read things which are more niche. Looking at the reading list of the last few books I have read, I can promise you they are all niche. Admittedly most of them have been for university essays but even once I have more freedom to choose my reading list the first thing I want to read (which I started yesterday) is a book on the use of geography within Chaucer’s poetry.

I don’t think that it is a problem that before reading this post you may not have heard of The Name of the Rose. There are many things I know nothing about. That does not make me ignorant or stupid - it makes me real. There are so many things to know that we cannot possibly know them all. Fashion is a bit like this. There are so many things you could wear, but you only have limited money. So, what you choose should be something you like and something which means something which contributes to who you see yourself as.

Another key thing from The Name of the Rose I would like to mention is the quote at the beginning of the book which states

‘books always speak of other books and every story tells a story that has already been told.’

I think this quote is crucial to the book. Eco’s work reiterates the continuity of the human experience. That we can always question and puzzle over things. We always want to know who and what we are.

Adso of Melk (the book’s narrator) to me always seemed to struggle with his identity and who he was and what he wanted. I think this is a part of being a human and part of the reason why I enjoy ancient and medieval literature so much is you see people grappling with problems common to us today. Whilst I can’t say you see people experiencing the same things, you see them struggling with self-doubt and self-confidence.

I think fashion provides a crucial way in which an individual can work to establish their self-identity. The clothes you wear say a lot. For example, the hat I am wearing in the photo says I am conscious about sun-safety. Bucket hats are not a high-end fashion statement. Most people my age would be hard-pressed to be seen in a hat. Yet I wear one pretty much every time I go outside over summer. This is just something I do. It is a consequence of being very susceptible to burning.

But, at a deeper level, fashion works to illustrate who you are and who you want to be. But, to step outside of the trends and to really “be you” in what you choose to wear does take guts and bravery and it isn’t the easiest of things to do. To be able to do so successful you need to trust in yourself, who you want to be and your likes and interests. Maybe you have a book which you feel you relate to. I can’t tell you what it is, but I am sure you do. What about it drew you to it. Is there something in that book that can teach you something about self-confidence and self-belief? Or to make it easy for yourself is there something about an amazing new outfit or style you could try.

At the heart of this blog is a desire to show you how you can dress to reflect yourself and how this can create a fashion style which reflects how unique and individual you are. From this point onwards amatuavestimenta will attempt to do this through interweaving a discussion on fashion with my other interests to show how to build self-confidence and a self-identity to allow you to be brave enough to try the wonderful fashion ideas I’m sure you have.