Thursday, January 6, 2022

Featuring Purple In My Clothing

 When I Am An Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple


So, are you familiar with the poem written by Jenny Joseph? If not, here is a portion. 

Warning
by Jenny Joseph
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
 With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves


I hope you will look up this poem and read it in its entirety. (You might want to read it before you read my post). It's such a fun piece. I'm not certain why wearing purple is presented as such a scandalous thing in this poem. Or, why wearing red with purple should be even more so. The truth is, I love purple (and any shades derived from it) and have quite a few clothing items in my closet that are in the purple hues. Today, I'm going to share a few of those looks with you. 

Just because I want to. 

And because I love purple. 

And because you might like to add a little purple to your life. Maybe even mixed with a little red, who knows? 

But, I wouldn't spend your pension on brandy if I were you. That might not be such a good idea. 😉


You know, it's funny how things work out. One of my sisters gifted me with this lovely handbag for Christmas. It came with a scarf that matches the pattern on the pocket flap and a necklace that matches the color of the handbag. I love this bag! It's roomy and has helpful pockets and I wish I had it when I flew back in November. But, I digress. The handbag colors are also purple (you might call it mauve or plum) and I already had this purple jacket and the multi-color purple Skechers shoes and the outfit just kind of created itself!


I really didn't plan to wear mostly ALL purple shades that day but, somehow, it just happened without planning. When you have certain dominant colors in your closet they can show up at the same time for a party! As you can see, I even wore my purple sweater on this day. 


And can you see that I am wearing my amethyst ring, as well? 


Now, I didn't do any sitting on pavement or pressing alarm bells, but The Mr. and I did eat outside at a table on the pavement. This particular day was our anniversary and, because it was New Year's Day, many places weren't open. So, we ended up at a local sandwich shop. Really fancy way to celebrate 39 years, right?! But notice how the red in his shirt goes so nicely with the purple in my coat. See? Jenny Joseph knew what she was talking about!


I guess I could have run my stick along the fence railings seen in this picture. But, they were kind of covered in snow and I didn't want to mess up all that prettiness. I do like the effect of the lavender scarf against the purple coat, though. And the gray popping out looks good, too. Have you tried pairing gray with purple? 

Does wearing purple make up for the sobriety of my youth? Hmm...I doubt it. But, it does make me happy. Purple, in my opinion, is a very happy color. So, I enjoy wearing it often. 

I looked up meanings for the color purple and found that it denotes creativity and spirituality and, of course, is tied to royalty. It can have the effect of being uplifting and encouraging. And I have found that this color does uplift my mood when wearing it. 

If we remember our elementary school art classes, we know that mixing red and blue creates purple. So this color is tied closely and blends well with the other two. I do have a love for blue as you well know. And red has been calling my name a bit more lately. Perhaps that is because I'm becoming old?? Nah!!!!'

In my opinion, the "Warning" poem by Jenny Joseph reminds us, no matter what our ages, to have fun. Try new things, be bold, play with color. After all, if you are wearing purple and red, you definitely will be seen!

 So look in your own closet and see if there is a dominant color or two in there that YOU love to wear. What do those colors mean to you? Do they make you happy when you wear them? Have fun with color. And be sure to tell me about what you find in your closet in the comments section. 

But, for goodness sake, don't learn how to spit! Yuck!! (wink)

Until Next Time,
Debbie

*All writing in this post, with the exception of the brief poem excerpt by Jenny Joseph, is my own writing and my own opinions. 
*Photography by William Ross

3 comments:

Sharon said...

Oh, how I loved this blog post, Debbie! I smiled and chuckled all the way through. I do like all your purple clothing and accessories, especially your new handbag! I had fun reading Jenny Joseph's poem again too. It has been years since I first read it, but reading it as an "older person" now does give it a bit of a different meaning! I used to wear quite a bit of red and used some red decor in my house. Now I gravitate toward the blue family, particularly shades of teal. That's the dominant color in my closet and in any newer home decor items as well. I noticed my tendency to buy and wear that color while in a fabric store a few years ago. The person checking me out commented that I was dressed in the same color as the fabric I was buying. Happy Anniversary to you and the Mr.

Debbie Styles Life said...

Thanks, Sharon. Teal is such a beautiful color and you are so gifted with how you have sewn items and used the color in your home decor! Thank you for the anniversary wishes. Can't believe that 39 years have gone by so quickly!!

Iris said...

I do love purple and loved your purple jacket.

I cross stitched that poem years ago. It still hangs in my office and I enjoy just reading it occasionally and reminding me that I'm old and I should be out doing those things.
Iris