Dressing for a quieter present… and a noisier future

Three years ago, a few months after I had left my job as a fashion editor on a newspaper – saying goodbye to a crazy schedule of deadlines, the usual office politics and a boring commute – I started going for a daily morning walk with my dog. I never expected that mundane act to be a helpful tool in coping with a global pandemic, but it turned out to be exactly that. It showed me that actively embracing the quiet and making it a regular part of your day can have a transformative effect on your mental health. 

I live in a village in Surrey, not a particularly picturesque one, but it has its moments. After I had taken my daughter to her primary school, my dog Meg and I headed across the school playing field, down a long leafy path and into the graveyard where I would do a winding loop of the whole thing and then walk along the river path for a bit. The whole walk took between 30 and 40 minutes. 

I could hear the birds singing as they flitted between the trees, I could watch the seasons change beneath my feet – white snowdrops and purple crocus in January, followed by daffodils and primroses, and in May gloriously, tall frothy cow parsley that turned a section of my walk into a kind of dancing fairy path. No, I wasn’t scaling hills or hitting 20,000 steps at a time – I was, let’s face it, taking a turn around a suburban graveyard – but this daily portion of exercise was so much more than a quick leg stretch. It was a meditative act, a mind massage, a valuable boost to my well-being. 

My walk has stayed important ever since. Even more so when last year it became the only thing for which we were allowed to leave the house. But even in these pandemic times, the noise hasn’t completely stopped. The headlines keep coming, social media continues to have opinions, the products that will change our lives are still out there asking to be bought. 

So it’s important to actively seek out the quiet. Make it a part of our day. In fact, make it the same part of our day, at the same time – then the quiet bit becomes part of our rhythm, as much as the sun coming up. The consistency, as yogi friends of mine have told me, is helpful because if you do it daily, you’ll miss it when you don’t and that’s how good habits are made. Having a set time and place helps make quiet a necessary part of your day.  

It doesn’t have to be a walk, of course. You can really go to town and meditate or do an online yoga session in your bedroom – never underestimate the power of Yoga With Adriene. Maybe it’s only a 15 minute session, but the duration and the energy spent aren’t really the point – a sit-down meditation or reading a few chapters of a book could probably achieve the same sense of peace and well-being that you get from the yoga session with fewer benefits for the behind. But it’s allowing yourself to have the set time for quiet, for pause, that really matters. 

In some ways, I’ve applied the same thinking, less consciously, to other areas. While I continue to be preoccupied by fashion for my job, I’ve actually found it a relief not to have to pay much attention to my appearance and my clothes for the last year.

I have a very quiet wardrobe at the moment. It’s largely practical for walking and for yoga. I haven’t bought into the new exciting homewear trends. There have been no pink feather-trimmed pyjamas, no statement Zoom earrings. This winter, my essentials have been trainers and rain boots, soft denim jeans and a chunky down coat for outside, leggings, over-sized sweatshirts and shearling-lined sandals for inside. It’s made me feel more comfortable, of course – I don’t want to sit at my desk with a stiff waistband – but it’s also less to think about.

It makes me realise how much thought and time I have put into dressing in the past and maybe I need to lose a little of the anxiety around that. From now on, I’ll probably take it a little easier on the trend-based buys and think more about the quiet investment pieces that I can wear for a long time.

Which is possibly why during this time of, ahem, peaceful reflection, I have bought not one, but two rather fabulous black party dresses. And an ivory tuxedo jacket. And a pair of high-heeled leather ankle boots. And maybe all of these items are currently sitting in my wardrobe, as yet unworn, just waiting for their moment to arrive. Because life is about balance, isn’t it? It’s only natural that after the last year we’re going to want to have some fun and remember again what having a good time feels like. Embrace the quiet in your life, yes, and now and again make some room for a little noise, too.