Suburbanista

The other week I wanted to have a clear out of clothes. I do this every now and again as some kind of mental cleanse to help keep my mind clear; Tidy home, tidy mind and all that shit. Anyway, going through my clothes I went into some kind of erratic freak mode and had two bin bags of clothes, shoes and bags to give away. In one of the bags was a pink and black aztec print jumpsuit I bought a couple of years ago. I’d only worn it once in a Summer long gone so I thought it would be better off with someone who would get more use out of it. On the Saturday of that week, with high separation anxiety, I dropped my bags off at a local charity shop that supported mental health. Coincidence? I think not. 

The following Tuesday night I was scrolling through my Instagram and came across an image of a woman rocking a similar print playsuit. My first thoughts were ‘that’s similar to my jumpsuit. I could cut the legs off and turn it into a cute playsuit. Perfect for Summer. But wait, I gave that away!’ And from that moment on I had major anxiety to the point where I was awake at 3am. All sorts of irrational thoughts were rushing through my head. I thought maybe if I went there the next day I could ask for it back. Maybe I could buy it back or try to swap it with something else I would rather have given away. I even thought the same situation had happened to Carrie in Sex and the City and was trying to think what she did. After trawling through all the shopping sites to see if I could buy something similar, the most crazy thought I had was to go down to the shop (at 3am) break in and take my jumpsuit back. It’s hardly stealing if its mine right?

The thing is, looking in my wardrobe I have so many other things I would rather given away. Things with the tags still on that I haven’t worn and don’t plan to wear any time soon. In the midst of the night the panic took over me. ‘Maybe I’m bipolar’ I thought. I often get erratic highs with dramatic lows but I always thought it was just my genes. Being Italian I was always told I was a drama queen from a young age. But maybe I wasn’t just a drama queen. Maybe I was legitimately cuckoo. 

The next day my anxiety was still present to the point where I rang up the charity shop to see if they still had my beloved jumpsuit I only wore once. I needed something to make the decision for me. Some higher power to tell me I couldn't have it back, otherwise I would never stop thinking about it and would always wonder, what if? Apparently the shop didn’t have it as they didn’t think it was sellable, so it got sent to be recycled...as rags. My heart broke a little because to me it wasn’t rags. Nothing I own are rags. I had images of all of my things being churned and squashed through big industrial machines, only to come out as mush.

Now you may be thinking what a crazy bitch I am, but the thing is, even during all of the madness there was a side of me that knew I was being silly. It’s like I have a split brain; Half crazy Italian, half sane English. 

Anyway, enough jibber jabber. The moral of the story is to not give away clothes so hastily. Even if it’s for charity, charity starts at home. For all of those who wondered what all of the fuss was over, here is a snap of the jumpsuit. RIP.

This Spring Summer, my two favourite patterns are coming together to create an ensemble of clashing, edgy, beautifulness. Yep thats right, SS 2014 is the year of stripes and leopard print. Think fabulous French chic on safari with the added bonus of denim as a cover up. At last I will have a reason to wear the impulse purchase leopard print silk joggers (what a mouthful!) I bought over a year ago but had no idea how to wear them (and to be honest I was a bit worried if I could pull them off). Just make sure to keep footwear simple; Think ballet flat, gladiator sandals or Converse. And if you really want to dress it up you could add a statement necklace. B-E-A-Utiful.