Hello & Welcome back to “Where Feng Shui Meets Fashion”! Podcast Episode 8. A place for Home & Wardrobe Inspiration. My name is Laura and I’m a certified Feng Shui Practitioner, Curator and Stylist for you and your Space. If this was a TV show it would be a cross between the Zen of Marie Kondo and the Chic of Rachel Zoe. This hybrid Podcast & Newsletter originates on Substack where you can follow and subscribe for all the visuals, text and Video. My stories about Feng Shui & Fashion are told in part through pictures and visuals in the body of my newsletters here on Substack. So if you’re listening on Spotify or ITunes, subscribe for free on Substack. For all my other content and services check out my Link-tree.
Today’s story is about Stripes, yes Stripes! It’s called STRIPES & INSTITUTIONS! I recently realized I didn’t have any stripes in my wardrobe. It’s not like I’ve never owned any, but when I did they just rarely if ever saw the light of day.
I’ve been completing my Fashion Feng Shui ®️ Apprenticeship so my clothes are going through a comprehensive audit. I don’t just see them as clothes but as my identity which feels like it’s changing. I’ve been going through a process of shedding much like a caterpillar preparing to become a butterfly. I’m making room for a whole new identity and a new chapter in my life.
I have a teacher and mentor called Ellen who I adore and I’m working directly with her on my Apprenticeship. Ellen has helped influence some of the new additions to my wardrobe, most notably all my new Leopard Print pieces. She recommended this print because animal prints are considered Fire element in Fashion Feng Shui. This element helps one garner greater visibility and attention which I want to cultivate for my career and personal life. It’s hard not to notice someone in Leopard Print!
I immediately embraced her suggestion! I love Leopard Print so why don’t I have any I thought? I found pants, a jumper, a skirt, and this dress for good measure!
LEOPARD PRINT / FIRE / VISIBILITY
Imagine my surprise when, I had an entirely different reaction to her next suggestion. Ellen sent me the Picture of the striped pants pictured near the top of this story. I immediately hated them and had a visceral reaction. I thought what is my problem? They are just pants. I figured it was the cut which to be fair is not super flattering or figure conscious. It was deeper than that though, much deeper.
From a Fashion Feng Shui ®️ perspective, stripes represent growth and support energetic endeavors. Ellen was only trying to help. I decided to find a striped pant that I did like so I could embrace her suggestion. I found a really cute jumpsuit in a style much more to my liking and ordered it.
STRIPES / WOOD / GROWTH
Cute right? It’s a striped jumpsuit with a strapless top and horizontal lines on the top. The bottoms are a cropped Aline cut with a cinched waist and the lines are angled in a v shaped. The outfit is a soft stretchy cotton with a white background and thin black stripes. I really want to like it. The problem is after trying it on and styling it, I felt weird. I could see objectively that the outfit was flattering and aesthetically pleasing, but I felt uneasy in it. I made myself wear the jumper for an hour until I couldn’t stand the discomfort and even dizziness I was experiencing. I changed and immediately felt better. It was almost like the outfit had triggered a trauma response in me.
I decided to do some research on the history and psychology of Stripes. Lo and behold, I discovered that Stripes have quite a sinister history!
“Servants and court jesters wore striped cloth; so did prostitutes, madmen, and criminals, not voluntarily but by official orders. The bold, broad, contrasting stripes of their garments seemed to stand for neither-this-nor-that, ambivalence, ambiguity, and a realm of unclear and violated boundaries.”
-John Major on LoveToKnow
As I have come to learn, historically Stripes where the uniforms of people who where jailed or Institutionalized in Insane Asylums. Slaves were forced to wear stripes. Members of the Military were also required to wear them. Later, Mobsters and Anarchists or rebels “chose” to wear them as a way of rebelling against “normal” society.
Perhaps I was experiencing a manifestation of ancestral trauma or some past life experience. Either way, the history is real and so was my discomfort. Not everyone experiences stripes the way I do. Obviously… If you love stripes go for it! Stripes were later embraced by both fashion and rebels and even conservatives! Me personally, I’ll stick to florals and denim for my Wood Element, thank you very much!
As you may have gathered from this story, what we wear communicates something! It impacts both ourselves and everyone who sees us. We are like walking billboards advertising something at all times. What’s your outfit saying? Let me know in the comments how you feel about stripes. Do they make you feel rebellious or confined, or like me dizzy and confused? Many Blessings everyone and Ciao for now.
STRIPES & INSTITUTIONS!