The Wardrobe of Ordinary Magic
The clothes that help us cook, clean, carry and create deserve a little attention too.
· 4 min read · Tania Cottew
This morning was grey and wet, and I was still sore from moving things out of our commercial office. Sunday was not looking like a quiet day. There was a kitchen to clean, dinner to put in the slow cooker, madeleines to make for French class, another attempt at choux pastry, a crystal chandelier to put back together after hours of dismantling and cleaning, a new meeting room to set up and Journal content to work on. If the weather cleared, there might be another load to bring back from the office.
I wanted to be comfortable. I also wanted to feel bright.
Elemi suggested a floral jumper that would have brought plenty of colour to the day. I love it, but it was too good for flour, cleaning and carrying boxes. I’m saving it for tomorrow’s appointments and French class instead.
So today’s outfit is my pink ribbon embroidered top and track pants. The top gives me the bit of cheer I was looking for; the track pants let me get on with things. If I need another layer, I’ll put on my cream Kathmandu fleece jacket. It got dirty yesterday, and I’m planning to soak it tonight, so I don’t need to worry about keeping it pristine today.
It isn’t an outfit I planned around looking polished. It fits the day I’m actually having. That matters.
Start with what the day asks of you
When you’re getting dressed for a busy day at home, think about what you’ll be doing in those clothes. Will you be bending to clean a cupboard, carrying something downstairs, standing in the kitchen or stepping outside in the rain?
The answer can be more helpful than asking what “goes” together. Clothes that pull when you reach or need adjusting every time you bend are going to make an already full day harder. Ease and movement are worth choosing deliberately.
Add one thing that makes you feel like yourself
Practical doesn’t have to mean dull. For me today, it’s the embroidery on a pink top. For you, it might be a colourful T-shirt, a favourite cardigan or a pair of socks that makes you smile.
It only needs to be one thing. The rest of the outfit can do its sensible work.
Let useful clothes be useful
Some pieces are lovely, and you’re quite right not to wear them for every job. My floral jumper can wait for a day when I’m less likely to cover it in flour.
Other clothes have already shown they can take part in the messier bits of life. A fleece that needs washing, comfortable trousers and shoes with a good grip may be exactly the right choices for a day of cleaning and carrying. There’s no need to apologise for wearing them.
Look after the clothes that look after you
A working outfit still deserves care. Put on an apron before baking if there’s a top you want to protect. Choose steady shoes for the tasks that need them. When the work is finished, wash or soak what needs it, then put it back ready for another day.
These clothes may not be the ones we dress up in, but we ask a lot of them. They help us feed people, make things, move house, tend to our homes and get through days when our bodies are tired.
That feels like an important part of a wardrobe to notice.
A question for you: What’s your gets-things-done outfit? What do you reach for when you need to move comfortably through an ordinary, busy day?