3-22-02,Side Streets, Kimra Traynor Herb
Matching Accessories out of Hand
By Kimra Traynor Herb
IPS Features
This whole reputation I have for matching and accessorizing has blown all out of hand. I didn't realize it had become such..... AN ISSUE until I went to my Community Bible Study during the Valentine season.
"Oh my
goodness!" One woman gushed, grasping the end of the scarf I had tied
around my hair. "Look, everybody! It has hearts on it!" She leaned in
closer (too close) and put her hand on my earing. "And check it out! The
earrings match too!"
Another woman
grabbed at my pant leg and tugged it up. "See! I told you her socks would
match perfectly!" The group continued to analyze my outfit in detail until
I was left as red as my pants (well, of course they were red- it WAS
Valentine's, you know!). Before I left class that day, they cornered me in the
hall.
"You always
have the best accessories for every occasion, AND, you always are perfectly
matching. Tell us!" They prompted, "What are you going to do for St.
Patrick's Day? What are you going to do for Easter?"
This is pressure
I didn't need. While it is true that throughout my life, I have become rather
adept at putting clothing, shoes and accessories together for any occasion, it
has always been something I wanted to do just for myself. For fun, and well....errrr....
because quite frankly, I find myself strangely unable NOT to do it. Now others
were watching me; waiting to see what I would do next, and I found the whole
thing quite unnerving.
It was with
shaking hands that I assembled my St. Patrick's Day outfit for Bible Study; a
green jumper dress with matching green sandals (yes, okay, so I used clip
shamrock earrings on the buckle of the shoes), shamrock earrings, and my
newly received shamrock and pearl bracelet and necklace. The necklace and
bracelet were gifts from my friend Alicia, who, upon hearing that I had no St.
Patty's Day jewelry to speak of, made it her mission in life to accessorize me
in the style for which I had become...... quasi famous, on a very local circuit.
Alicia handed me the jewelry a week or so before the holiday, stating, "I
just COULDN'T let you go out without the total flow."
And so it was
that I flowed, totally, into my group in full green regalia. Immediately, the
inspection began. "OOooooooh! Look at the necklace and bracelet!"
"Did you
see the shoes? They are green!"
"I want
that jumper!"
"You always
dress so perfectly for every occasion."
"I can't
WAIT to see what you do for Easter."
I was
uncomfortable with this scrutiny right down to my green painted finger nails.
How in the world, I wondered, as I shivered in my green shoes, would I ever be
able to pull together something for Easter which would live up to these women's
lofty expectations? I mentally rummaged through my wardrobe, and realized that
as I freaked over not having pants emblazoned with Easter eggs, that my whole
focus in accessorizing had changed for the worst. I used to dress this way
because it was fun for me. And, as I mentioned, I really couldn't not dress for
an occasion..... as long as there was clothing in my closet, and accessories in
my jewelry box, I would don them with spirit.
Now it has
totally changed focus. My fingernails, carefully painted to resemble tiny Easter
eggs, were not created just for the joy of doing so..... nooooooo, now I am
working just to maintain my status quo and to keep the ladies of bible study,
choir, and the soccer field happy.
And yet, what to
do? To consider NOT matching or to totally disregard a holiday for which I might
have the perfect accessory would be as inconceivable for me as...... say, going
out in public in my glasses. IT'S JUST NOT DONE. At least by me. My husband is
always urging me to forgo makeup entirely and to give up putting my contacts in;
"just leave your glasses on and let's go hit the Home Depot!"
To which I
reply: "A. I don't LIKE the Home Depot. and B. ARE YOU RAZY!??? GO OUT WITH
NO MAKEUP AND MY GLASSES ON? Don't you know there are PEOPLE out
there?!!!!!!"
"You are
just as beautiful in your glasses and no makeup; you don't need all that
stuff." He tells me. Now, is it any wonder I love
the man? He's not pulling up my pant leg to see if I have on my Easter socks
(though I probably do) and he knows that when I dress for the season from head
to toe, it is not because I am trying to impress anyone, but just because I
cannot help it. I told Alicia that I am hoping that this added pressure
from the outside doesn't cause me to go round the bend to the point where I
become absolutely obsessed with everything I wear.
"Aren't you
already?" She questioned. I mused that for a moment and realized that she
was absolutely right; the world around me had not added much in the way of
pressure to an already sick and twisted mind which was already trying to figure
out how to match clothing for all three boys' soccer teams which featured
different colors and were playing on the same day.