Tag: Clothes

A top I bought ten or twelve years ago?

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What’s the oldest things you’re wearing today?

It’s nylon and cotton. A maroon and white striped top. It has a couple of pockets. I bought it for work, I now wear it as something comfortable around the house.

Why not? I’ve lost weight, but it’s one of those baggy tops that doesn’t look bad even now. My thoughts are that I’m not bothered about fashion. If it fits and it looks OK I’m not bothered if its old. I don’t understand why people buy clothes every few months or weeks. I know people can get addicted to shopping. But in a time of austerity, why spend on clothes that might fall apart after a few washes. It’s also harmful to the environment to waste resources on clothes. If it covers you and keeps you warm? Then it’s OK.

I probably have older clothes, but I don’t remember when I bought them. They get washed on low temperatures, then folded and put away till I want them. Some are in a dusty cupboard, I might have some eighties classics!

Too much stuff

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I have too much stuff (plants, ornaments, paintings, clothes), but I remember how I got every bit of clutter and just find it very hard to let go of them. I have moved things around and chucked some stuff out. But the majority of it remains. I would like to tidy up the place and would start by with living room. That would be my plan if I had to chose a new years resolution, but I can’t suss out how to get rid of more things!

Elegant

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Sunday’s #bandofsketchers prompt was elegant. My elegant idea was to draw a sewing pattern with a figure in a dress. I was inspired by 1970’s patterns which had elegant ladies sketched onto the sewing pattern cover. But my drawing does not really get the feel. It’s more like something I would have drawn as a teenager! I’m also showing my age. I’m sure I had a stripey skirt a bit like this, that flared out when you moved.

Coat on chair

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Woollen tweed coat, maybe Harris tweed? The wool woven on a Scottish Island into multicoloured flecks that look brown at a distance. Tweed was often dyed with natural dies, for example onion skins to make yellow or heather and lichens. Then steeped in a mordant to ‘fix’ the dye. A mordant is a chemical that prevents the dye running if the cloth gets wet. Urine was often used. It used to be collected from residents for the process.

Tweeds are very insulating, they can absorb a lot of rain water but still keep you warm. The sheeps wool is very useful for making materials like felt too for caps and hats.

Pattern

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Pattern for a cushion cover?

I keep thinking I should use some of the patterns I draw and paint to create prints on fabric, I’ve certainly done enough over the years. I even have a pair of trousers with a similar pattern on them. I don’t know if I should try one of the online sites to do this, but I don’t know if they would print them well enough. I once bought a dress and a cardigan with a Gustav Klimpt painting and a Van Gogh painting on them, both were really blurred when I got them. I only wore them once, (not thrown away though). I was really disappointed.

Clothes sizes

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I was talking to a friend about buying clothes and she said although she has lost weight she still thinks she’s a size twenty. She said the woman serving her said the clothes in the shop only go up to size eighteen. My friend was so embarrassed she decided to say she was buying for a friend. She tried on an eighteen and a sixteen and they both fit because she has lost weight. But I think the shop and its owners are missing a trick. The majority of women in the UK are over size sixteen. I think the fashion industry disenfranchises a lot of customers. They struggle to find affordable clothes that will fit. How many size ten to fourteen clothes remain unsold and go to landfill? If they sell ten percent of their clothes the rest will probably not be recycled. What a waste of resources and money.

Clothes

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Well actually clothes horse with clothes on. At 3am this morning I was feeling rough, sore throat and achy so I decided to get up and draw. This was sketched in tippex and metallic pens on black paper. Photograph was late at night under electric light. I could take another photo but don’t feel well enough.

Today’s #bandofsketchers prompt was clothes.

Cold

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I’m sitting here with my fleece on and a dressing gown on top of my normal clothes. It’s not that cold, around freezing outside. The heating is on, and a little oil heater. But it’s drafty. When it gets this cold in the house I sometimes put my gas cooker on. I can cook a meal and warm the house up. If I get too cold I’ll go to bed and read a book. We have a radiator on in the bedroom. I am trying to save energy. Gas and electricity prices which have been capped are set to rise around 50% in April. Many people will struggle to pay. One energy company recently gave some energy saving tips:

‘cuddle a pet’, ‘eat porridge’ and ‘do star jumps’! It’s nice to know they care.

Meanwhile our ruling political party seems to have turned into a ‘Part-aaay’ over the last couple of years! Marvellous leadership… Not.

Stuff

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Too much stuff, I’m attached to my books, my paintings, paints, brushes, handbags, sort toys, cushions, ornaments…. My house is full. Bikes, saucepans, old clothes. Everything could be disposed of one day I suppose? What happens when I’m gone. Who will want it all? I’m not a hoarder, but I could be one day. With the pandemic it’s not easy to pass things to charity shops and I don’t like waste so I don’t take things to the tip. Some of this should be repurposed. X