'Normal' bodies

I went today to an exhibition of 1930s fashion at the Museum of Costume and Lace in central Brussels. (The exhibit is open until February next year and is free on the first Sunday of every month. Details here.) The collection is not huge but there are some really stunning dresses.

As we walked around, two things struck me. Firstly, how modern many of the clothes look.

Secondly, how much the female 'silhouette' (such an innocent-sounding word for something that prompts people to push themselves to extremes of diet, corsetry etc to imitate) has changed over the decades. The silhouette on which fashions are modelled dictates an idea body that has somehow become the only acceptable body.

Looking at many of these clothes, I was particularly struck that my body shape is actually very similar - specifically the high waist and generous hips - to the 1930s silhouette. These clothes look so glamorous and get I look very awkward in modern clothes. The exhibition really drove home that this is because I am wearing the wrong clothes. Modern trousers divide the body at the hips rather than the waist, which makes me look frumpy and square. My natural waist is much higher than the waist on modern clothes, and this does not make for a comfortable or an elegant fit.

Project 333 has really driven home that, rather than having too many clothes, I in fact have too few clothes that I love, that fit beautifully and make me feel beautiful wearing them. And this is in part because the clothes in my wardrobe do not reflect my real body shape - or to be honest my evolving taste/style.

Time for a 1930s-inspired sewing project, perhaps?

Blogs: Simple living inspirations

I have realised that my blog does not accurately reflect my inspirations. A recent comment from a reader about how great a fan I seem to be about a particular blogger gave me a moment of pause - because in fact I don't follow that particular blogger. I thought this blog should better reflect my influences, by perhaps taking a moment to tell you why they inspire me.

We all need simple living inspiration - blog porn that we can drool over while we ignore our humdrum, cluttered, modern surroundings. It helps us to articulate where we're going and how we're going to get there. There are a huge number, many of which I am only just discovering, but I wanted to share some of my favourites. As I have quite a few, I'm breaking them down - some blogs I go to for the crafting, some for the recipes, some for home beauty treatments, some for budgeting tips, some because I really relate to their journeys. Here are three of my favourite blogs for thought- (or envy-) provoking posts and inspirational pictures, reminding me of the life I want to lead.

Down to Earth - www.down---to---earth.blogspot.com

You can't really talk about simple living blogs without mentioning Rhonda's blog Down to Earth, it's almost an institution. Her gentle musings on the meaning of simple living, the joys to be found in your own home, and the important things in life; her encouragement of people starting out on this journey; and her simple tutorials for getting started - whether baking bread, making soap, using green cleaners or brewing ginger beer - are a godsend for the wannabe simple-liver. My sister has just bought me Rhonda's first book for my birthday - but it's waiting in the UK for our next meeting so I can only bite my fingernails with anticipation.

Purple Pear Farm - www.purplepearorganics.blogspot.com

Kate and her partner Mark live on their farm in Australia raising animals and plants and kids, not necessarily in that order. Enough land (and commitment) to take on the challenge of raising animals is a long way away for me but I really enjoy the peeps that Kate offers into the running of their farm, from organising birthday parties (oh how I wish I was ten again so I could have one of their parties!) to moving pigs from one area to another. Kate's blog makes me wish we were neighbours so I could ask her over to help me out with a difficult gardening challenge, or an epic jam-making session, or just a knitting bee.

Soule Mama - www.soulemama.com/soulemama

 
Amanda Blake Soule's blog is the ultimate visual feast, if like me you cannot get enough of pictures of quilting and knitting, home dairying and whatever happens to be on the kitchen table at the time. And they have sheep about to lamb! If planting seedlings is so exciting, what must your first lambs feel like? It's reassuring that even someone as far along their journey as Amanda still has new things to discover, but mostly I just love the colours and textures of her home and family life.