i dressed like fictional characters for a month and this is how it went.

   Does this sound like a BuzzFeed article? Good. All I read at this point is BuzzFeed. Something about knowing what mix of Parks and Rec and The Office characters you are really takes your mind off the, you know, global pandemic (I keep getting Leslie + Darryl, btw. What’s up with that? Does that even makes sense? Literally message me ASAP if you have insight on this). Speaking of the pandemic (see, that intro was going somewhere), I’ve been social distancing for about 12 weeks now! I haven’t left the house other than to pick up food since March 12th. So, after a while, it got boring. I rarely want to change out of my pajamas, and as much as I’d like to deny it (and god do I deny it. just ask my mom), that’s not good for my mental health. It just makes me more lazy and unproductive. After a few weeks in quarantine, I started noticing that people started doing themed dinners to liven things up. Being the uncreative person I am, I totally ripped off that idea and made it mediocre. So, on April 6th, I began dressing like fictional characters each day. Now, most of these characters were from television (specifically sitcoms), as my one personality trait is obsessing over tv, but there were some movie characters sprinkled in! Honestly, picking a character and planning an outfit every day was fun. It brought some order to these poorly structured days. It allowed me to have a creative outlet other than my twitter account. 

HERE'S THE CHAIN OF OUTFITS- LOOK AT THIS BEFORE CONTINUING!

Here’s what I learned over those 32 days. 

   Costume designers are amazing and we should recognize them so much more. They put so much heart and soul into their work and somehow make the most amazing costumes that encapsulate the character’s personality and aesthetic and sense of style while still making it feel authentic.

    My clothes are not super versatile. 90% of the things I wore were from my mom’s closet. My shirts are either all fandom-related or just like... not something a distinct character would wear.

     I found my tv fashion idols: Mindy Lahiri, April Ludgate, Angie D'Amato, and Jessica Day. Now hear me out- all those characters have distinctly different personalities and styles. Mindy is confident and unapologetic, which comes across in her outfits- lots of colorful fitted clothing.

 April is quieter and sarcastic but wears sensible items, much like things I have in my closet. Lots of sweaters and skirts. Angie is headstrong but has a more casual look- jackets and graphic shirts and shorts. Jess is creative and intelligent, and she wears lots of retro style clothing, which is like my dream style. These are some of my favorite characters in general, and their personalities have always inspired me, but this helped me realize how much I adore their style as well.

     Social media terrifies me... but I’m getting over it. I spend so much time online and I've grown up with social media. It really should not scare me as much as it does, but it's just so stressful. I mulled over whether or not I should post these outfits for days before just pressing send and doing it, but after that, I ranted about how I was insecure about it. Because...yeah. I’m scared of people not liking me or judging me, and I think that’s why I'm so hesitant to ever do anything creative. And it’s dumb that I feel like that because I want to work in comedy, for god’s sake, but posting these and having people positively respond made me kind of remember why I want to do tv. I want to put something out into the world that makes people happy & creates some light in a dark time. I’m not saying that weird selfies of me in costumes were some light in the tunnel for people because they most definitely weren’t, but I think you get the gist. also, I’m finally a little ~bolder~ on social media. Meaning that my accounts have a little personality now. Like sometimes, I actually use my Instagram stories! I post nice threads on twitter every once in a while! Sometimes I’ll get a TikTok idea! This is grossly cheesy, but I guess I'm coming out of my shell a bit.

       I'm glad I committed to this project- it was a nice escape and a learning experience of sorts. Honestly, it's kind of wild that a silly Instagram chain helped me realize some of this stuff, but I have tons of time to overanalyze right about now. I've gone back and forth on posting this for a month because it's kind of weird, but I've realized that this site is mostly a diary so... this is a nice time capsule. Plus, it shows that I can be creative sometimes!

    I hope whoever is reading this is staying safe and social distancing- and participating in the Black Lives Matter movement! Here's a link to all sorts of resources if you need it.