Thanksgiving is upon us. Manipulation season has begun. Sale prices surround us. What’s a recovering professional shopper* to do!? (*actual job I used to have)
I like to think of it like this…
1. Objects.
Everyone has at least one piece of favorite clothing. It hits you right in all the right places. You can eat in it without feeling uncomfortable afterwards. The color and fabric are just your style. Hell, it makes you look attractive.
Similarly, the entire conception of signature perfume is based on the same foundation. It’s a smell that clings to you just right. There’s no time of day or night when it feels wrong. Every note is just your style. And it makes you smell whatever “good” is to you.
Owning the right object can feel really good.
2. Feelings.
There are many reasons why people tout “signature” perfumes and fits, but generally it’s about money. Your insecurities are the best money-making tool any retailer can have… and urging you to find that “just right” thing is a brilliant way to put a benevolent mask on blatant exploitation.
The unfortunate thing is: signature fits and smells actually exist. Wrapped up in my black pencil skirt, probably the most simple and perfect skirt I’ve ever owned, and smelling like lemony raspberries, I feel like the best possible version of me. If you’ve ever cared enough about fashion and beauty to find an actual just-right thing - you know how magical it can be.
So how do we know who to trust?
3. Answers.
It’s obnoxious to me, as a writer, that all of our culture’s trite truisms are true. Be authentic. Follow your heart. Listen to your needs. Be honest. It would be way more fun to write something else. The truth is, we already have the answers. We already know what we need and want. We already know what works for us! But sometimes our insecurities guide us, instead of our beliefs and values.
We let our friends and loved ones pressure us, we let retailers bully us, and we sublimate our real desires into manufactured ones. These are first world problems, for sure, but buying the wrong thing feels bad. So why do we continue to let our decisions be made by others?
This is the season of over-indulgence and anxiety. Whether it’s also the season of mindless, unsatisfying consumption is a choice that we have the power to make, ourselves.
