Persona.

I been out of my mind for years, most will agree. It can be difficult operating on different levels of society all at the same time. For instance, I have long bided my daytime hours in the corporate work world, surfing in and out on the freelance wave. Stepping into meetings with top executives of automotive companies, then later that evening mellowing out in the cool waters of indie rock. There is the person I am with my parents, my friends and my public, and while fragments of this person stay the same, large parts are different. All of this is exhausting, but more important than the exhaustion, is the fact that multiple personas play havoc with my wardrobe. Simply put, I have either forgotten how to dress or who I am.

When you have a lot of facets to your social life, sometimes theme dressing is in order. In the business world of the past, you needed a suit for the corporate meetings, though creative dress is more allowed as of late. My last job, albeit corporate in all the horrible senses of corporate – nepotism, boy’s club, hostile work environment,  irrational hours and irrational ‘clients’, required slovenly attire, more or less layer upon layer in the cold, and tank tops and jeans in the heat. None of it really felt like me, just the wardrobe I put on for the part of the day. Like a theatrical wardrobe, my closet beckons, and regardless of the mood, usually has something to offer. Wacky spinstery 70′s dress? I’ve got it. Floor length hippie patchwork skirt? Yep. Overpriced business suit ala boring? Oh my yes. Sequined pumps and Betsey Johnson hoochie dresses? Naturally. Makeup suitable for a makeup artist kit? Why yes. Wigs aplenty? Certainly. But none of these things take us any closer to defining the self.

Some people have a definitive look or style, and while their closets may be as plentiful as mine, they stay on theme. One theme, and it works for them in spades. They always look put together, while it seems I always lack one crucial element in making my outfit complete. Anthropologie is a treacherous store for one like me, for unless you buy the complete outfit, you are never going to look complete. That’s how they get your money, creating a lifestyle that you think you can buy into. Unless you are that 1% of the population that can rock that look 100% of the time, it’s a complete waste. You can buy a top, or a skirt – but nine times out of ten it’s in the thrift pile two years later. Sure, that blue satin, red striped sailor skirt is awesome – and I wore it once because newsflash, I am not a sailor. Duly noted. Yo ho ho. At least that is one thing I am not, despite a disturbing desire to wear nautical attire, or navy and white themed clothing every spring.

Taking into account the fifty different people I could be because of what is in my closet – and still having little clue of the person I want to be, I am going to embark on an experiment.  Starting by dividing my closet into sections based on character/persona. I will pick five of the most revisited ones and then move the clothes that fit that particular genre.  I will track and tally the sections of which I source from the most, then poof – problem solved. One persona wins out above all the others. Or does it?