Special Occasions and Every Day

I wondered something today.

Why are so many of us willing to spend a lot of money on an outfit for a a special occasion but so little on the clothing we wear each and every day? Wouldn’t it make more sense to have it the other way around? Special occasion clothes are often only worn once or a few times at most. There is no need for them to stand up to wear or constant washing.

Often when we buy something for a special occasion we are also willing to have it altered to fit beautifully and to be the exact right length. We buy the perfect undergarments to make the clothes look their best and so we look our best.

I used to watch that show called What not to Wear. One thing I noticed was that even though the people on the show didn’t necessarily buy couture or expensive clothes. They did buy quality clothing and they always went to a tailor to have the clothes altered to fit them well.

To have a dress or slacks hemmed to fit you right it’s only around $10-20. Other alterations will often be less than $30 and the transformation is priceless. I have well fitting clothes that I have been wearing for 7 or 8 years because I invested in pieces I loved and then altered them to fit me perfectly. But if these clothes didn’t fit me as well and so I didn’t feel great in them I never would have kept them in my closet which leads me to my next point.

The fact that people go through clothes as quickly as they do….is it because they don’t feel great in their clothes and are continually looking for the next outfit that might help? Or is it because they are buying the least expensive things which look old and not great after just one or two washings.

I have a story about something along those lines. I used to buy inexpensive purses. They were usually under $25. I would look them over and make sure they had all the pockets and features I liked and I would carry the bag for 2 or three months but I was never happy so I would buy another one. Over a year I would spend between $100 and $150 on purses. Eventually i decided to invest in a bag by Dooney & Bourke. That bag, if I remember correctly, cost around $200. That was 20 years ago. I still have that bag and I still use it. In the last 20 years I have invested in a few more good bags and I use them all and I love them all.

My point is, I have none of those $25 bags anymore but I still have the $200 one. That means that bag cost me only $10 per year. Yes, it was a big investment at the time and I had to save for it but it was worth it. I have a 12 year old skirt that fits the same narrative. It was a high quality skirt that I paid $225 for and I still wear it. This is what I mean when i talk about clothes as investment pieces.

So let’s go back to the idea of special occasion and every day. We expect a sequin skirt to cost some money but we are somehow upset about cotton skirt costing a bit more. The thing is that there are different qualities of cloth and different qualities of construction and these qualities will help decide the price. but I would prefer paying $200 for a skirt I can wear for 10 years or more than $200 that I will wear only once or twice. The cost per wear breakdown is much more attractive to me.

Just saying.

And just one more thing. If you are looking for a cute sheep t-shirt I have them on my webstore for preorder right now.