Wearing Memories

Clothes have always been such an integral part of my life that I use them to identify different memories.

Without a doubt, I remember the outfits I wore to certain events - not just special occasions like graduation or my 21st birthday, but random parties I went to when I was 16, or a summer outfit I wore when I was 11. A lot of the time, putting on a certain item can take me back to a specific point in my life, or when I'm feeling a certain emotion I will have a flashback to a certain day and a particular outfit.

I recently bought a pink pair of shorts and a white vest top, and when I put them on it took me back to being 11, playing outside with my friends, before it started lashing of rain and we took cover in a local launderette. Now, I don't remember much from that day, but I know EXACTLY what I was wearing: pink shorts, a white and pink striped vest top, Primark's finest plimsoll, and a glittery pink hairband to top it off. This wasn't really a significant day of my life, and not one I had thought about in years but as soon as I was in that outfit the memories came rushing back, and that's what I love about fashion.

I love wearing things that spark these memories in me, or wearing items of clothes that I wore when I was 16, that make me think of the party I wore them to and the memories I made there. I love wearing things that have the power to make me feel nostalgic.

A few weeks ago I had a job interview, and when I was choosing what to wear I decided on a pair of black boots that I had worn previously to a successful interview. As luck would have it, I got the job! Now I'm not saying i have some lucky boots that magically got me the job, but because I had a good memory of the boots they subconsciously made me feel more confident, which in turn helped me get the job.

I don't really know how, or why, clothes hold such an attachment to me but they've always been so much more to me than just clothes, they're feelings, and people, and memories. There's something special about holding memories in your clothing as well as in your head.

Rach x x x