I was perusing eBay when I came across a skirt that simultaneously captures my delight and everything my mother could hate in a garment, ever:
It starts with a very blank look, followed by an eyeblink, then a gentle distressed cry of "Nooooo. Aya! Nooo. aaaaaaaaaa" with subcurrent of 'why do you like these things? what did I do wrong? is it my fault?' I'm pretty sure this is the exact sound she made when I cut my own hair at age eight.
Then I roll around on the ground laughing for several minutes, hug her, and reassure her I will never wear the skirt in front of her again. But really, if she keeps doing this hilarious thing, she is reinforcing the wrong behaviors because I want more skirts that look like this.
I've started a new tag for my posts in honor of this moment: 'Mom hates this' and it will mark all of my long ragged-hem boho skirts. :D I love you, Mom!
Also I think I genuinely love this skirt, despite my boyfriend reporting that it is hideous and the hippie homeless vibe makes his face hurt. Every now and again I think we all have items of clothing where we're like, "Yeah!" and our friends are like, "No." and we're like, "Yeah! :D" and our friends are like, "... whatever makes you happy. (weirdo)"
What is your special item?
And there's a whole line of 'em! (eBay link, the sizes appear to top out at XL, but I'm not sure which sizes are available for which items.)
Edited to add: Hot damn, there is a shirt! Not that I'd wear the two of them together. I apologize for the mannequin's lack of decency. She just refuses to understand these things.
Ohhh, this is too funny. "hippie homeless vibe" and your new label "my mom hates this". hahaha
ReplyDeleteI think we've all left our mother's aghast with our clothing choices at one time or another.
It's probably a common experience in the growing process. :D Mine does admit she likes the way I do makeup, though.
DeleteYou always brighten my day!
ReplyDeleteI love that the 'my mom would hate this' factor is simply because you can picture her reaction so perfectly and obviously love her for it. When I first started sewing clothing, and adorning things like full-length bright red and gold brocade dusters, I received the 'You're wearing that?' from my mom. I think I might have embarrassed her in the beginning. She now makes me print photos of my creations (including the full steampunk regalia) and mail them to her so she can show everyone she knows.
It seems my room mate (and friend since the age of 7) has taken over this role somewhat. For example, when I bought 3 yards of Marvel superhero fabric and the lady cutting the yardage asks (as they often do at Jo-Ann Fabrics) what I'm making, I say, 'a dress...for me.' And my room mate rolls her eyes. And I say 'You're just jealous you won't have a dress with Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, The Hulk, Spider-man and Wolverine on it.' To which she says in a sarcastic tone, 'Yes. That's it.' Turns out, I don't think I will make a dress. I'm thinking... sailor style pants. :-)
I think the lesson in your story is embrace what you love! And those that love you may roll their eyes (or make loaded 'aaaaaaa' sounds), but they inevitably accept it. Or you can start tagging blog posts with 'Mom hates this'. :-) Too funny!
(apologies for lengthy comment)
Are you kidding? I love your lengthy comment. :D
DeleteYeah, I think once the dissonance wears off, people that love you learn to love what you love, because it makes you happy. And because you can walk around quoting comic book characters.
My mother and I laughed that, while in Japan, the only time we would stop to look at the same window was to look at different things.
Well, some people who love you. Others may remain forever crazy.
DeleteHahah, that cracks me up. My mom and I are extremely different people, and my MIL and I even worse. Most of my family just shakes their head at me because they know I'm going to do whatever anyway. ;)
ReplyDeleteThe resigned sigh and head shake is a precious victory. Hold your arms aloft and glory in it!
DeleteI lurve that skirt. And that shirt. And I might wear them together! ;-)
ReplyDeleteYes! I'm not alone! :D
DeleteOoh, I LOVE that skirt - I would wear that in a heartbeat. I'm always on the lookout for clothes like that that other people think are ugly (strangely, they are easy to find in second-hand stores!). I adore your taste in clothes, Aya!
ReplyDeleteI swear, on the right person clothes with a ton of personality are just right. I can see why people might not like outlier clothes, but it's the thing that drew me to your blog, and Megan's, and Meghan's, and Gracey's, and Ally's... I'm starting to see a trend, here.
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