ISO STYLE

I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror this afternoon and laughed out loud. I was a lot Helen Bonham Carter , the fabulously deconstructed British actress, and a lot Miriam Margolyes, who also happens to be a fabulously deconstructed British actress and a lot me, just fabulously deconstructed.

The deconstruction is most evidenced by my ISO style which today has lent itself to faux sheepskin knee high boots of a rather nasty brown bought in London when I could not stand the cold any more ( and it was probably early Autumn ), and a long green speckled lounging frock which has never been worn due to how it looked on my person when it arrived. Its has not improved greatly in its enhancement of my form however due to the fact that this frock is sleeveless I have camouflaged the more not flattering bits with a bright blue long sleeved polystyrene jumper, long past the pebbly stage but fabulously warm. This fetching ensemble is further enhanced by a rather gorgeous set of very expensive turquoise earrings. Oh and fingerless black gloves. I nearly forgot.

It is of course, freezing today and I could excuse my ensemble on the basis of random clothes layering to defeat the cold . This however is not true. I have become aware in the past weeks of limited venturing into public ,that I have been making use of the last three levels of my wardrobe , not the first three.

For those of you who do not subscribe to the six level wardrobe shelf divide, and /or are ignorant of the the notion of "house"clothes, I best explain. At the top levels of my wardrobe are the "best"as in knickers, bras, leggings, jumpers. These are the go to shelves when I am venturing out. Logic would say that shelf three down from the top is for shopping clothes , the everyday clothes I am not afraid of meeting people in the supermarket in. The shelves from here down are clothes I am afraid of meeting people in, with the ones on the very bottom for chook house cleaning which gives you an idea of the transition. Top ...a social function where judgement will apply, bottom, chook house. Not jugement.

My ISO wardrobe appears to be drawing more from the bottom three layers of my wardrobe, than the top and an eclectic mix it is too. Yesterday It was the hand knitted multicoloured, multi patterned socks given to me by my neighbour, accompanied by the hole in the behind leggings, paired with the short fair dinkum UGGs I bought for my mother and reclaimed after her passing. This outfit was overlaid with a very very bobbly black sweater, a little too figure hugging for public comfort, and fabulous faux pearl chandelier earrings.

On reflection , the sense that I have in these days of ISO and these clothes of ISO, is one of comfort and whimsy and weird and a sort of style recklessness that celebrates a part of me that I will not reveal to the world when I venture forth. I do hope however that it finds celebration somewhere in my post ISO wardrobe. I like it.