In thinking of things I would like to try, I decided to challenge myself in wearing a skirt out for the whole month of January. Why? Honestly, just to see if I could. And with it being one of the coldest months of the year for us, it is good practice in case I ever live somewhere where I would need to wear skirts and they also have cold winters. It was an interesting challenge for myself. I think the strangest thing for me was that no one noticed. I did not do it to be noticed, but I really only wear skirts to church, so it was funny to me that I was not asked about it. I suppose that is also a good thing as I tend to evaluate the dress of others far too frequently in my mind, and to realize that if people think any thing that they also just keep it to themselves and I would never know.
My strangest incident was being asked at McDonald's one day if I was Mennonite. That I was not expecting, but I found it humorous and thought, "Yeah, I guess I do look kind of like a Mennonite." I have also joked about living with the Amish for 6 months to learn how to do everything from scratch, which added to the humor for me.
Mentally it was good. It made me realize how clothes make you feel. Obviously it does not give the same feelings to everyone, but for me I felt very feminine and "homemakery" (yes I just made up that word) while I wore the skirts. I felt different but in a good way. Because it was a personal challenge I probably over evaluated things while I wore them, but it definitely helped me in knowing I can wear skirts, life can be done in skirts and that they are very feminine. I also discovered if I were to wear skirts continuously I would need to make many of mine ankle length so I do not trip up the stairs. :)
If you are a woman and don't like skirts, challenge yourself and see if it opens up something new for you.
I'll be sure and let you know if one of the blogs I follow does "Summer of No Pants" again this year...you take a challenge to sew a certain # of skirts in a month, to be ready to wear them during the summer! This summer you can sew them AND wear them!
ReplyDeleteIn Moldova, most of the churches expect women to wear skirts to church, but hardly anyone wears them outside of church... especially in the winter! Funny, the Moldovan women at our small village church were all fairly new Christians (they weren't raised in Baptist families) and wore pants to church, but our school was run by fundamentalists (not Eric, whom I talk the most about, but the others) and required the student girls to wear skirts to church, so I had to, too "to be a good example." I HATED IT. Our church rarely had any heat at all, and when we did it wasn't sufficient, and here I was trying to wrangle a wild toddler in a cold, tiny church with a skirt on. I've never looked so forward to summer. I actually wear skirts a lot in the summer just because they are cooler and more comfy. I agree that they make me feel more feminine, but no way would I choose to wear them in the winter!
ReplyDelete:)