(Wow…it’s been awhile since I’ve written a blog post. I’ve got to get better at this blogging thing….)
So I just finished a new draft of a novel that I’m sending over to my amazing agent, Jim, tomorrow morning…but I am seized with that awful post-novel drain, that nebulous floating feeling that comes after you pour an entire year (or more) into a project that seems to consume your very existence.
When I finished The Big Rewind, my post-novel come-down manifested itself in a series of poems about TV. Finish this novel has resulted in this insane urge to completely redo my entire wardrobe.
I’m not kidding.
My wardrobe consists of the following general pieces: black skirts, skinny jeans, concert shirts, casual dresses, Doc Martens, a handful of cardigans that are more functional than fashionable (I never quite figured out how cardigans work. Some people rock them; I look like a homeless grandma) a couple of incredible vintage pieces I take extremely good care of and a ton of hats. (I rock hats.) It’s a look that works for me; it’s a little edgy and a little sweet and easy to wear and I can throw on a blazer for work if I need to.
But somehow, I have it in my head that I need to completely shake things up and redo the whole thing. Jumpsuits! Weird baggy shirts worn as dresses! Pants in exciting colors! And yet, when I get to the store, none of it works for me.
I have always loved clothes. I was a goth girl in high school and still have the binder of DIY tricks salvaged from pages of YM & Cosmo Girl. I am a master of the thrift store and decent enough with a needle and thread to upgrade and fix a favorite piece. My style icons over the years have been Patti Smith, Tom Waits, Courtney Love, Cyndi Lauper, Debbie Harry, Victoria Beckham and my friends Natalie & Ari, whose effortless leggings/tee/cardigan/scarf/boots was a combination I could never quite get to work for me, much to my chagrin.
I want a look that is funky and fun, easy to wear and comfortable. I want a look that says writer/record nerd/glam/rebel. I want to look like I work in a fancy office for a high-end music magazine but also be chill enough that I can take a nap in whatever I’m wearing.
I want someone to design a wardrobe for me. Take me shopping and help me pick out some new pieces for spring.
Help?