Not to get too philosophical, but when it comes to image, transformation is not where it’s at.
We all love a good ugly duckling swan story, but parts of the definition of transformation are too radical: a thorough and dramatic change in form or appearance; a metamorphosis. Indeed, all of life is a transformation.
In your wardrobe, deconstruction is where it’s at.
Deconstruction holds a different place in our lives than metamorphosis.
By definition it is: to take apart or examine in order to reveal the composition of – often with the intent of exposing biases, flaws or inconsistencies.
To be clear, I do not advocate for women or men to expose or dwell on flaws they perceive about their body. I want them to recognize flaws in their thinking as that thinking relates to their own creativity and divinity
I want them to uncover all the biases they have about their items of clothing, and resolve those biases without feeling exposed or raw.
Last week I took a small jewelry box to a local designer. In it were several small gold rings that were either broken, very old or a gift from my grandmother. As I showed Doug (from D Street Designs here in Reno) what I had, I felt compelled to tell him where each piece had come from, why I kept it (knowing maybe that it wasn’t even real gold or stones), and why, perhaps, I might need to continue to keep it.
I realized afterwards that I had just taken pieces of my life and exposed them to him.
My clients do this when I walk into their closets.
They tell me where and how they bought each piece, what significance it has for them, and they look longingly at me in hopes I won’t say “that needs to go.”
While that statement is not in my repertoire, I do often ask gently if perhaps their attachment to something is inconsistent with who they are and where they are going. That’s deconstruction.
Another distinction: I prefer deconstruction in the closet a lot more than in clothing itself. Deconstruction in clothing looks like this:
But taking a garment apart, tearing it, or not sewing the edges is different from taking a wardrobe apart. The latter is much more personal – and just like me with my little box of rings, my clients want someone to confirm it’s ok to have those pieces.
It’s ok to want something different or better, and it’s definitely ok to keep what you want as you also discard things which no longer serve you.
It’s a process.
Not a huge transformation, but a smaller, more revealing of the truth event that leaves our hearts intact.
And, when we don’t feel like we have to leave behind all of us for something entirely different, we can relax and enjoy the process of exposing our hidden internal assumptions about our clothing. We get the opportunity to re-construct a wardrobe that more accurately reflects our inner selves – that is image from the inside out.
If you want to know more about how the process of “deconstruction” could work in your closet, please email me: Kathleen@YourAuthenticImage.com
