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Celebrating New Zealand Day

February 6th, commonly referred to as Waitangi Day, is New Zealand's national day. Because there's been so much controversy over the Waitangi bit, many people forget the day should bring us together in celebration of all that is good about our country, so I call it New Zealand Day.

Have a good one!

Happy Garments, part 2

Creating Your Own

This is my Happy Hat. Looking at it makes me smile. It makes other people smile, too. It's particularly productive to wear on grey days.

My Happy Hat is made of cotton knit, the outer layer reinforced by one layer of medium-weight fusible interfacing. I can wear it in varying climates because it has an additional lining of polarfleece that is removable (see images below). The brim can be tilted to accomodate mood or weather. The hat is a sturdy traveller, handling packing routines with aplomb.

Pink Glow is what I call this hat and bag pair. The hat was my prototype for this style (the bag will be covered in a later post). It was made to hide the result of a hairdresser's over-enthusiasm -- another reason why a girl might appreciate having a happy hat handy!

The fabric is a corded polyester suede, originally priced at NZ$60/meter and I got it for $4.

The pattern was a free download from Simplicity, and I altered the shape to take in the features I liked best in the Hats and Handbags -- Free Patterns post.

I learned from my pink prototype that while satin ribbon and diamante buckle look gorgeous, the ribbon isn't sturdy enough to support the buckle and when the hat is folded for travel, the band flops off the crown like an almost severed can lid. I left the ribbon unstitched because I wanted to be able to move the buckle to different positions around the crown. I suggest if you want such adaptability, make the band very sturdy (interface it, or use a stiff braid) so it will remain firmly where you want it, even when it's not on your head. Otherwise, thread the buckle onto the band then sew the band to the crown.

These two images (above and below) show the polarfleece insert I created to make the hats adaptable to climate change.

Here are some things to consider when figuring out what your happy hat (or garment) should be.

• Favourite colours? They should be ones that remind you of positive things [like chocolate, warm sunshine, flowers in spring, people you love, beautiful animals, memorable occasions, etc].
• Textured or smooth, cool or cosy?
• Bling?
• Luxurious or practical? Could be both.
• Drapey or tailored? There are pros and cons for both of these. Drapey could look frumpy, but it could also float over things you want hidden and its looseness allowing you greater comfort and relaxation. Tailored could mean stiff or tight, or that a well shaped garment will do for your appearance what your body is too weary to manage.

Julia Whyte of Havelock North decided that swing coats are her specialty when it comes to happy garments. She named this the Happy Coat because it describes how she feels whenever she wears it.

This chic cover-up works indoors or out, smart or casual. It's fun and frivolous and will take you anywhere, she says. View her online coat gallery www.DianaBlack.com for more examples of the luxurious fabrics and linings she puts together for these glorious overcoats.

Care for black velvet lined with leapard print?
Or a hot pink lining to your periwinkle blue damask?

You don't have to spend a lot of dollars in order to stir up these good feelings. Your happy garment could be a jazzy shoulder bag. Or even simpler to arrange, tie a happy scarf to the handle of your current handbag.

Dull colours tend to be a feature of winter wardrobes, with the bright ones more often reserved for the strong sunlight of summer. If you want to sprinkle some good cheer on yourself and others to lighten this world of climactic upheavals, find/make yourself a happy garment, and I invite you to email a photograph of yourself wearing it!

What's your Happy Garment?

Have you ever thought, "I can't be bothered dressing nicely today," or, "Whose business is it what I wear? It's my life." In other words, Dear World, I'm feeling depressed and I want to look like it. The truth is that what we wear effects both our own demeanour and those around us.

This is my Happy Hat.

Looking at it makes me smile. It makes other people smile, too. It's particularly productive to wear on grey days.

I have comfort clothes that function like chocolate at the end of a tough day -- a green hooded fleece jacket is my first choice -- but that merely gives me pleasure. Knowing that what you wear gives other people pleasure provides quite a different dimension to wardrobe satisfaction.

What's your happy garment?

Pause at the Mirror

"I looked in the mirror," said the woman, "and it was not my friend."

How often do you encounter a passing mirror and grimace in distress at your image? How often do you apply a quick pat, a twitch, a tweak, a dab of paint, and hope that the world will somehow overlook your flaws and be enchanted by your beauty?

I've learned to laugh at myself and not take my appearance too seriously. I have a chronic illness, I see the accruing damage it's done, and I've had to accept the possibility that the vision of gorgeousness that's surely hidden in me somewhere may never be revealed to the world.

The good news is that a priceless, timeless value lies in my inner beauty, beauty that reflects the nature of Christ. Placing primary significance on this gives me a confidence in who I am and how I look that cannot come from what I see in the mirror.

Have you ever met a girl who was unwaveringly confident in her appearance? I mean in her private moments as well as the public ones. I've met cocksure gals whose pride in their appearance is a cover for their secret insecurity. I guarantee there is not a woman on this planet who when honestly examining herself does not flinch.

The body passes away. The soul is eternal. When was the last time you peered at your soul? Did you grimace? What attention did you give to it?--as much and as often as you do to the preparations of your outward appearance?

I pray that we'll develop a passion to "put on Christ" as our inner beauty treatment, and be as devoted to it as we are to our outer body care.

Image No. 1: Shadows distort shape and highlight flaws.
Image No. 2: No makeup, just a different light source.

Check your light source!