mad style is just that

i love the tv series Mad Men. This is not news. One of the reasons for my affection is the impeccable set design and the award-winning costuming by Janie Bryant. i, of course, have absolutely zero knowledge of life in 1960s Manhattan, not even peripherally, so it's all very foreign to me in a strange way that Americana can be foreign to an American. (i don't know if that makes sense, but do me a favor and pretend it does.)

Mad Men is packed with subtext and nuance and the costuming is no exception. i didn't realize just how thoroughly realized the show is until some of my favorite bloggers, Tom and Lorenzo, took on the mammoth task of analyzing the costuming of a range of characters on an episode-by-episode basis. Tom and Lorenzo ("TLo" to their followers) entered the blogosphere via their affection for Project Runway and fashion in general. Lucky for me, they also developed bloggy obsessions for Lost and Mad Men and they introduced me to the marvels of RuPaul and the wonderful world of drag.

Their Mad Men recaps and analyses consistently expose me to entire levels of meaning both in the writing of the show and in a cultural history i would otherwise know very little about. To say i am a devoted fan of theirs would be an understatement. i thought my affection was complete, and THEN they started doing 'Mad Style', the aforementioned analyses of the costuming, and my brain exploded. They notice EVERYTHING about a given character's outfit in a given scene: how it clashes or blends with the set, how the fabrics, fit, colors, prints, shape and accessories clash or coordinate with the other characters in the scene, how it falls in the arc of the character's development, how it fits or doesn't fit into the character's social standing, etc, etc. EXHAUSTIVE and FASCINATING. Here's a tidbit example:

We LOVE this dress, which is a bit of a herald for the mod styles that will come in only a few years. Joan would never wear the mod styles and truth be told, such a graphic dress is a bit unusual for Joan, but she'll wear a dress that forces men to look at her and this one fits the bill nicely.
The graphic quality helps to highlight some of the emotional turmoil she's feeling regarding Roger. She's normally a solid column of color or tone on tone and every now and then breaks out a high contrast skirt and blouse combo, but this is entirely outside her wheelhouse as we've come to understand it. Bottom line: the relationship with Roger is getting dangerous from an emotional standpoint (something she's normally good about avoiding) and it's reflected in this dress.

Obviously, TLo's series of posts is a must for any Mad Men fan, but it would also be of interest to anyone with experience with or curiosity about 1960's fashions and customs, or the arts of set design and costuming and how those work together with writing and casting a film or television show. Before you go devour the (15 and counting) posts, be advised that they contain plot spoilers. If you ever plan on watching Mad Men from the beginning, you should start now and wait to do Mad Style until you have S1 under your belt. Season 4 starts next month (July 25, i think), so if you want to jump in midstream now (totally doable, by the way- it's not one of those shows you MUST watch from the beginning), and you want a good analysis/recap of the first 3 seasons along with some excellent insight into costuming, you should totally tackle Mad Style.

Do you trust me? You should, and if you do, you will take up Mad Style (and Mad Men, if you don't already watch. Which...if you don't, i don't understand whyyyyyyy)

not miserable

Being that i'm just shy of 7 months pregnant, and being that the genetic lottery has determined i'm a relatively lithe person, and being that maternity clothes are UUUUUUGLY and i have no budget for them anyway so i'm just stretching my regular t-shirts and tank tops over the basketball attached to my torso, it's safe to say i'm noticeably pregnant. This of course leads to strangers engaging in conversation with me about my 'state'. The checker at Chevron, the guy at Costco, strangers at church, people in parking lots....en totum. It usually goes something like this:

How far along are you?

When are you due?

Oh, all summer huh?

Do you know what you're having?

Do you have a name picked out?

Is this your first?

Are you excited?

Friends and acquaintances ask if i'm tired of strangers getting all up in my biz and asking awkward questions, but i'm honestly not. (And not just because the questions are usually accompanied by compliments about how great i look.) So far no one has asked me anything terribly personal and, aside from the aforementioned Chevron checker asking 'so are you totally miserable?' i haven't fielded anything i wasn't prepared to answer. The way i see it, people see 'pregnancy' in flashing neon and an instinctual excitement clicks on and they want to connect with it in the only socially acceptable way available to them: conversation. We pass a hundred people every day in the grocery store, coffee shop, bank, etc and have no known way of connecting with them beyond a gripe about gas prices or a comment on what's in the produce section, so when there's something that inspires a fundamental sense of shared experience, who am i to begrudge what comes out of that? Every person born becomes a part of our experience as citizens, and in Times Like These, when things are being slashed and tightened and restricted and hoarded, anything representing abundance and growth and future has an extra measure of wonder thrust upon it. i'm fine with that. You should be too. As thinking and feeling as we humans are, we are also primal creatures. Primally, when our species reproduces, it means we'll have someone to care for us when we're old and infirm and it means the work we accomplish in our lifetimes will not have been in vain because there are future members to take advantage of it and to continue it on to greater purposes. It doesn't bother me when strangers quiz me about my state of fertility, not because i'm soooo enlightened, but because it's obvious they're excited and since i'm excited, why can't we all be excited together? It's good for the tribe. i obviously don't speak for every pregnant woman waddling around in the world right now and there are certainly those who guard their privacy moreso than i do mine, but this is me telling you that if you encounter a pregnant stranger, it is okay to engage her in polite conversation in order to express your primal joy. (Remember: it is not okay to touch her stomach any more than it is okay to touch a non-pregnant stranger's stomach.) Saying, "observing your fertility has made me excited" is NOT a good idea (especially if you're a man) because she'll think you're a dangerously weird pregophile, but you can say, "a baby on the way! That's exciting! Gooo species!!" or something to that effect. Okay? Glad we had this little chat.

**Edited to add: Erin K. reminded me of one line of questioning i've received that, although frightfully prevalent, does NOT fall under the umbrella of 'appropriate' or 'polite' and that is the, 'Were you trying to have a baby?' or 'Was this planned?' angle. i simply do not understand what answer people are looking for with this question. If the answer is 'yes', well then.....boring. If the answer is 'no' then, isn't that awkward? "Oh. So you didn't want to have a baby right now but you're pregnant so.....i'm sorry?" It's just a bizarre line of questioning that yields no fruitful conversation AND is NONE of your business! Honestly. Just be primally enthusiastic that the species is continuing and don't concern yourself with whether it was due to months of temperature-taking and strategically timed hankypanky, one night of boozy inhibition, or anything in between.

Here's something completely unrelated that restores my faith in humankind: