Can What You Wear Help Improve Your Mood?
♥
By: Georgia Smith-Marr
As I’m writing this, I’m currently sitting in the living room of my apartment in Medellin, Colombia. It’s a beautiful clear sunny day, and I can see the mountains from my window.
However, like most people around the world, Covid-19 has meant that I cannot leave to soak in the sun– unless it’s my day and time I have been allotted to leave to go grocery shopping or go out for some exercise. The restrictions here and across the globe are for good reason.
I’m lucky to have a roof over my head, an online job, large windows, and food. However, like many in quarantine I imagine– I am struggling with my mental health. I live alone and I am away from my friends and family. Being so distant from everyone is tough, and the lack of physical touch is melancholy at times.
GROUNDHOG DAY
Since I can’t leave the house, and a week or so ago we weren’t allowed to exercise– everyday seems monotonous– especially being surrounded by the same blank walls. Not to mention, the imminent threat of a virus being something we are only beginning to understand and it does not currently have an end in site.
I try to follow every bit of advice I read online about staying healthy, both physically and mentally. One might say that I’m obsessed with it. I try to exercise, stick to a routine, and speak regularly to friends and family via the internet. It goes without saying, doing those things are easier said than done. Overall, I still wasn’t feeling myself. Everyday was the same. I felt like I wasn’t able to express myself. After work I would just sleep. Then I’d get up, talk with friends, eat, and repeat.
Then I realized what I was sorely missing– FASHION.
MISSING PIECES
As it turns out– I missed the act of getting dressed and trying on different outfits. I missed having no idea what to wear, finding new combinations, and having to find situation-appropriate outfits. Even if I changed out of my pajamas, it would be to get into trousers that were equally as comfortable with a plain T-shirt. Yes, I guess it’s practical given the stay-at-home orders with COVID situations, however it was uninspiring. Usually I dress in bright flamboyant colors with various textures and a lot of pink.
Growing up in London, I was lucky to be surrounded by a city that encouraged weirdness and expression with fashion. But now with everything that has been going on– I felt like a shell of myself. And I felt like the way I looked reflected that.
CHANGE OF MIND
So with that in mind, I decided to make a change. I knew I needed to make a change before I would start feeling any better. So, I decided to dress how I wanted to feel. If my day is filled with a lot of work or meetings, I wear something more formal such as my vintage leopard print dress.
Another example of making this change is when I had a Facetime date. I wore a purple see-through fluffy number from Rhianna’s Fenty over a short back dress and I even did my makeup.
When I feel a little down– I purposely put on a bright colorfully bold outfit to lift my spirits. Even when I feel lazy, I put on a pleated skirt and T-shirt. It’s comfortable, but it gets me out of my pajamas. Putting on clothes like I normally would do has added a sense of normalcy to my days in a way that exercise, work, and constant video calling just hasn’t done.
It has allowed me to find a way of expressing myself visually as well as in reflecting my personality.
FASHION AS ART
Over time, clothes and fashion have had a strong connection to resistance and self-expression.
As we have seen in history, wearing clothes can be a symbolic act against an oppressive regime. In her article, Resistance and Self Expression: Fashion’s Power in Times of Difference, Katherine Fox argues the notion that interacting with fashion makes it a powerful art form. Fox draws on the example of East Berlin and those who used fashion to rebel against the strict rules that were imposed on them– arguing that fashion can not only be used as a means of protest, but is a daily act of self-expression and it has the power to “change, to be, and to fight.”
While the current world situation is very different to that in East Berlin, Fox’s examination of the role of fashion demonstrates that fashion and clothes are important to self-expression.
Fashion has definitely had an impact on my mood during quarantine immensely. It has allowed me to be myself and allowed me to fight off feelings of anxiety and depression.
FASHION STATEMENTS
Another prominent female figure and writer, Virginia Woolf also noted the importance of fashion and acknowledged its power to help us change our outlook on life.
Woolf wrote, “Vain trifles as they seem, clothes have, they say, more important offices than to merely keep us warm. They change our view of the world and the world’s view of us.”
It’s very normal and easy for the anxiety and fear of a worldwide pandemic to take over our emotions, so we must try to express ourselves creatively and an easy way to do this is through fashion. Expressing ourselves through clothes and fashion during quarantine is an act solely for ourselves and is a true act of self-expression.
For me, it has meant the difference between being able to do my daily activities versus lying in bed, unable to get up. Of course on some days, I just think ‘no way,’ but force myself at the very least to do my eyebrows. While a small act, it is one that makes me feel a little more normal.
Perfectly shaped eyebrows may not solve the issues of the world, but it just may help you get through the day.
Can What You Wear Help Improve Your Mood?
♥
By: Georgia Smith-Marr
As I’m writing this, I’m currently sitting in the living room of my apartment in Medellin, Colombia. It’s a beautiful clear sunny day, and I can see the mountains from my window.
However, like most people around the world, Covid-19 has meant that I cannot leave to soak in the sun– unless it’s my day and time I have been allotted to leave to go grocery shopping or go out for some exercise. The restrictions here and across the globe are for good reason.
I’m lucky to have a roof over my head, an online job, large windows, and food. However, like many in quarantine I imagine– I am struggling with my mental health. I live alone and I am away from my friends and family. Being so distant from everyone is tough, and the lack of physical touch is melancholy at times.
GROUNDHOG DAY
Since I can’t leave the house, and a week or so ago we weren’t allowed to exercise– everyday seems monotonous– especially being surrounded by the same blank walls. Not to mention, the imminent threat of a virus being something we are only beginning to understand and it does not currently have an end in site.
I try to follow every bit of advice I read online about staying healthy, both physically and mentally. One might say that I’m obsessed with it. I try to exercise, stick to a routine, and speak regularly to friends and family via the internet. It goes without saying, doing those things are easier said than done. Overall, I still wasn’t feeling myself. Everyday was the same. I felt like I wasn’t able to express myself. After work I would just sleep. Then I’d get up, talk with friends, eat, and repeat.
Then I realized what I was sorely missing– FASHION.
MISSING PIECES
As it turns out– I missed the act of getting dressed and trying on different outfits. I missed having no idea what to wear, finding new combinations, and having to find situation-appropriate outfits. Even if I changed out of my pajamas, it would be to get into trousers that were equally as comfortable with a plain T-shirt. Yes, I guess it’s practical given the stay-at-home orders with COVID situations, however it was uninspiring. Usually I dress in bright flamboyant colors with various textures and a lot of pink.
Growing up in London, I was lucky to be surrounded by a city that encouraged weirdness and expression with fashion. But now with everything that has been going on– I felt like a shell of myself. And I felt like the way I looked reflected that.
CHANGE OF MIND
So with that in mind, I decided to make a change. I knew I needed to make a change before I would start feeling any better. So, I decided to dress how I wanted to feel. If my day is filled with a lot of work or meetings, I wear something more formal such as my vintage leopard print dress.
Another example of making this change is when I had a Facetime date. I wore a purple see-through fluffy number from Rhianna’s Fenty over a short back dress and I even did my makeup.
When I feel a little down– I purposely put on a bright colorfully bold outfit to lift my spirits. Even when I feel lazy, I put on a pleated skirt and T-shirt. It’s comfortable, but it gets me out of my pajamas. Putting on clothes like I normally would do has added a sense of normalcy to my days in a way that exercise, work, and constant video calling just hasn’t done.
It has allowed me to find a way of expressing myself visually as well as in reflecting my personality.
FASHION AS ART
Over time, clothes and fashion have had a strong connection to resistance and self-expression.
As we have seen in history, wearing clothes can be a symbolic act against an oppressive regime. In her article, Resistance and Self Expression: Fashion’s Power in Times of Difference, Katherine Fox argues the notion that interacting with fashion makes it a powerful art form. Fox draws on the example of East Berlin and those who used fashion to rebel against the strict rules that were imposed on them– arguing that fashion can not only be used as a means of protest, but is a daily act of self-expression and it has the power to “change, to be, and to fight.”
While the current world situation is very different to that in East Berlin, Fox’s examination of the role of fashion demonstrates that fashion and clothes are important to self-expression.
Fashion has definitely had an impact on my mood during quarantine immensely. It has allowed me to be myself and allowed me to fight off feelings of anxiety and depression.
FASHION STATEMENTS
Another prominent female figure and writer, Virginia Woolf also noted the importance of fashion and acknowledged its power to help us change our outlook on life.
Woolf wrote, “Vain trifles as they seem, clothes have, they say, more important offices than to merely keep us warm. They change our view of the world and the world’s view of us.”
It’s very normal and easy for the anxiety and fear of a worldwide pandemic to take over our emotions, so we must try to express ourselves creatively and an easy way to do this is through fashion. Expressing ourselves through clothes and fashion during quarantine is an act solely for ourselves and is a true act of self-expression.
For me, it has meant the difference between being able to do my daily activities versus lying in bed, unable to get up. Of course on some days, I just think ‘no way,’ but force myself at the very least to do my eyebrows. While a small act, it is one that makes me feel a little more normal.
Perfectly shaped eyebrows may not solve the issues of the world, but it just may help you get through the day.
About author: Georgia Smith-marr
Georgia was born and raised in London, and is currently living abroad in Medellin, Colombia while working online as a podcast editor.
She is passionate about being able to blend in creativity with her work and writing.
Facebook: SassySnowflakeSaysHi
About author: Georgia Smith-Marr
Georgia was born and raised in London, and is currently living abroad in Medellin, Colombia while working online as a podcast editor.
She is passionate about being able to blend in creativity with her work and writing.
Facebook: SassySnowflakeSaysHi
