indecision - a long, skippable ramble

Had lunch today with a friend today, and we got to talking about clothes. We agreed that more and more so, we were learning that the "wardrobe must-haves" decreed by fashion magazines were becoming less and less a cliche, and more often than not, they were very useful things that make a girl/woman's life so much easier.

A smart black tailored jacket, tailored black trousers, a black pencil skirt, a white shirt, the perfect white t-shirt, a little black dress (both casual and formal), a stack of reliable cardigans, black pumps - these were things we agreed counted as necessities.

I've so far escaped actually needing any of this because I can get away with dressing like a student for my work, but a simple switch of job and I could find myself, like my friend, REQUIRING this stuff in my life to make a good impression, while looking good.

I am thinking about all this because I am right now in the middle of pondering over two things at Zara. Because I have planned for two dive trips in September, I need to mind my budget and I've decided I can only buy one. And one falls into this classic-classics category.

One is a lovely black tux jacket, narrow in the shoulder and waist, cut long in a way that somehow streamlines my hips, trimming my broad shoulders but still comfortable to move in, lightweight-ish in material. It's a very reasonable S$159, and a classic - it will look smart when I need it to look smart, and it will look pretty cool with a short dress or jeans.

The problem(s)? It's very hot here, so a jacket is never a necessity. And, in my 10 months of work (and two years of working in the same line while an undergraduate), I've never needed a jacket. A jacket is also as nowhere as versatile as one of my countless cardigans, because it can't be rolled up and tossed into a bag, and I'm on the go a lot.

But it fits, and jackets rarely fit me well. I have long arms, broad shoulders, small-ish head - a jacket that somehow harmonises all that is precious indeed. But a precious I don't need.

The other Zara gem is a denim tulip skirt - a beautiful shade of blue, made of butter-soft, well-washed denim, with delicate folds that flow but still cut with structure, and POCKETS. It sits beautifully on the waist, and hits the spot just above the knee, a good length for me.

I love tulips skirts, and have trouble finding one that fits the way I like it. Tulip + denim = ACNE/Lanvin collaboration, but at a more affordable S$125. It's a classic with a twist, something I see myself loving and wearing often, good for work days and weekends, goes well with the things in my wardrobe as it is.

Should I buy the classic-classic, which for once, fits me and I love, but I will find little occasion to wear? Or the classic-with-a-twist which I will wear often, but will not quite contribute the occasion-appropriate touch (in the conventional sense) which my wardrobe is so lacking in.

I can buy both, and then eat grass when I pay for my dive trips.

Is this one of those rare, stars-in-alignment moments where there are actually not one but TWO perfect things that I shouldn't pass up?

(By now, I am annoying myself with my inability to decide)

I can't believe I am having a shopping dilemma. I have enough and I love what I own - I want to give myself a good smack because if I go into shops and try on stuff telling myself that I just need to get it out of my system, then this sort of headache is bound to happen.

I have a feeling I'm going to end up all passive-aggressive about this and REFUSE to buy either, and then spend plenty of time regretting this later, months and years from now.

Image from xkcd