November 7, 2007
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Devil Wears Payless
Opportunity knocked on the door yesterday and I answered in my underwear. Well, close enough. When getting dressed for my two temp agency appointments yesterday, I went for a snoring kaki/cardigan combo, complete with a pair of hideous $12 Payless loafers. All clothes were purchased for their ability to be dirt cheap and function in a “I’m-a-clean-cut-office-worker” kind of way. They are in no way reflective of my personal flair for fashion, which is often decided by me unearthing a crazy patterned, completely un-practical thing and declaring,“Wow! That is ugly in just the right way!” Unfortunately, its been a few years since I’ve been able to indulge in having a personal style; other needs take financial precedence and I’m happy to let them do so.
ANYWAY!
When I was putting on my cheap but respectable get-up up in the morning, I would never have guessed in a million years that I would be sent on a same-day interview at a high end fashion house. Before I even took the typing test or demonstrated my Excel mastery, the recruiter took one look at my lanky six-foot self and decided I was what the fashion industry was talking about when they requested a “polished” temp-to-perm receptionist. Unfair? You betcha. And I would have said something to stand up for such not-so-subtle discrimination against my fellow humans if I wasn’t so desperate for money. Instead, like a dolt, I asked, “when do they want to see me?”
An hour later, I was on my way to the garment district for the interview when I caught my reflection in the mirror. Now, I’m not sure if other people experience this, but unless I am in the bathroom getting ready in the morning, I am startled by my physical presence in mirrors. Its like, I’ve totally forgotten about my body and the fact that other people can see me. Sometimes I catch a glimpse of myself passing in a store window and think, “that girl has the same coat as me.” It takes a minute to realize that its my reflection. This is good because unless I have a massive, painful zit that demands attention, I move un-selfconciously through the world most of the time. I’m like Einstein and his same clothes for every day of the week: I don’t think about my appearance and that saves brain-space for other, more fun things. However, moving unselfconsciously through the world also means that I will interview in a high-end fashion house while wearing plastic $12 loafers, sale kakis that are too short on me (like most pants tend to be on a six-foot tall drink of water), and a sad cardigan. But I, me, the face and person beneath the clothes: she is beautiful in her own Amazonian way.
Anyhow, the interview was the shortest interview of my life. Either they saw a talented “polished” woman dressed in tragic clothes or they saw tragic clothes and had to get such a blight from their offices lest they contaminate anything. Its hard to tell. People in the fashion industry tend to have bitchy looks on their faces regardless of if they are pleased or displeased. And if I get the job, its not like I’m going to have money to go all out and splurge on cool threads. Spending loads of money on clothes just isn’t a priority for me. Plus, there’s little I hate more than shopping. So, perhaps its best that I didn’t have any time to prepare for the interview and think too hard on it – they saw what they would get. And if I did get the position, it would certainly give me some funny shit to write about, that’s for sure. I find out tomorrow, but I’m certainly not holding my breath.
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How aware are you of your physical self as you move about the world?*4.23 Edit:
My recruiter man called to confirm that I did not get the job in high-fashion. No funny stories about fashionistas for me. Shocker, man. But fingers crossed that the PR firm he’s sending my info off to likes me. In the meantime, I’ve been busy firing off resumes. I’m getting sick of trolling MediaBistro.com every minute of the day. Sigh.*5.25 Edit: My recruiter dude is very hard working. He sent my resume along to the PR firm, but they are dragging their feet. In the meanwhile, he set me up with a gig doing office stuffs at a big cosmetics company tomorrow. I plan on consciously looking hot and “now,” just in case it proves useful to me. Damn, do I even own anything that fits that description? I’ve got lots of pretty scarfs and some cute shoes with skulls on them. I own a handful of hip necklaces and a wooden ring that I like. I have a beautiful square locket that my grandparents gave me for my High School graduation; it has a picture of Shaun inside, clutching a flower in his teeth like a Spanish dancer. The photo was taken in 1998, at his prom and I wore it on my wedding day. I have a crazy purple polka-dotted dress (with a lime green sash!) and a real silk shirt in a pretty 1930′s cut (blue, with flowers!). I have a brown leather pencil skirt, but no matching shoes. Will any of these things prove useful? Anyhow, at very least, I am pretty good at doing myself up a bombshell face of makeup, thats for shizzle. I’ve also mastered the art of 1940′s starlet hair, which I think looks both hilarious and sexy: a winning combination! Regardless of how my primping turns out, I have a feeling that some funny stories will be forthcoming. Cosmetics. Ha!
Comments (7)
Well cool on the job lead anyway. Someone thinks you are polished and that cannot be a bad thing either. Sweet!
I used to be very much like you in not looking much, but with my little sister working in retail for so long her biting evaluations of my overalls and black pants and shoes (oh man, she was heartless about my shoes), I began taking some pointers from her for basics.
Now I know if my socks are both on right side out. No that I change them if they aren’t but now I am aware of it. And it has helped to be more aware that way too. There is a line of separation that attire can make that is gentle yet firm. Like a uniform distinguishing a job, professional clothes make it easier to be accepted in certain roles without having to prove it all the time. Not fair, but it’s just one of those things that makes life easier.
I hope that if you do get this job and it is required that you shop more, that you find some way to have fun with it. You have killer observational skills so yeah, at least the stories will be excellent.
I hope you get it and that it pays well and has some cool bennies to boot!
I hate the fact this popped into my head, but you totally had a The Devil Wears Prada moment (and no, I didn’t see the movie, but I read the book a few years ago and when I saw it was being made into a movie I was *shocked*).
I live and work in a relatively unfashionable part of the world. I can get away with not looking like a million bucks all the time. It doesn’t mean I’m not worried about my outward appearance. Today, for example, I’m wearing a black suit. I’ve washed the pants a few times, so they’re “washed out black” but I’ve never washed the jacket which is “ordinary jacket black.” It doesn’t quite match and that’s ok, but I still notice. So, yeah, I know what you mean on all fronts here.
And I’d like to add that I left that comment before I read the title of the entry. Heh.
Yeah, that recruiter is on the ball. Very cool. Cosmetics. Oh my. Hopefully there will be some colorful observations to make.
Maybe thrifting will help flesh things out if you need more clothing. But you are a natural beauty too. You could carry a flour sack and make it look good!
I am so going to be your cheerleader on this. You are one hardworking woman even when you are looking to find work. That rocks.
For all the stories would have been worth, could any of us sane, non-material people stand more than a few days working with fashion people with a (pardon mon francais) long stick up their ass all the time? Maybe it’s for the best.
But a w00t! on you having the hardest-working recruiter in show business.
This weekend involved an emergency trip to Payless, because there aren’t a lot of places to buy shoes in this town (nothing impressed me at JC Penney, my usual place), and I didn’t have time to run to Syracuse or the outlet mall in Seneca County. Yet my brown dress shoes imploded and my black shoes take on water. So we’ll see how quickly these State Street models last, but at the price they can be written off as temporary fixes … though I must say they look pretty nice.
I have no idea if any of what you just described is fashionable. My only barometer is what I think looks good.
Hey I’m going to visit NYC sometime soon because my sis wants to go for her bday. So maybe I can take you on a shopping excursion and try to make it something that you don’t loathe.
so now you are living in new york
so you must discover daffy’s
cheap clothes but italian labels
they get overstocked items from past seasons
so there are a lot of clothes to muddle through
but I never leave without one beautiful item.
so I think there’s one near the macy’s herald square area
but you should google it because i haven’t been thinking correctly today.
anyway that is the solution to all your fashion woes.
they have shoes too.
the end!
(also I loved your post about moving to new york. I just moved to the boston area and am going through a lot of adjustments especially since my boyfriend is just starting out here too. Anyway I would like to write more about this but I have to go!)
good luck with the job hunting!
Larisa