A Signature Quirk

~ Kana Smith
“Are you done yet, Mom? Or do you have to write about your monochromatic closet now?”

My husband snapped this photo of my Writing “Helper” this evening–and aside from Her Royal Cuteness, what made me smile at this picture was the background view of my own closet.  Notice anything goofy about it?

I’ll give you a hint: if the lighting were better, everything in that closet would show up in some shade of teal or turquoise.

If I were a famous person, maybe fashion pages would refer to this as my “signature color.”  Since I’m NOT Somebody, it’s just this funny quirk I have. And hey, it makes life SO much easier!

The fun purse I found, with its sassy western/biker bling?  Deep turquoise, goes with everything in my closet.  No need to schlepp all my junk from one purse to another with each day’s outfit. Life is easier.

The wool dress-coat? Deep turquoise, goes with every suit, skirt, blouse, and sweater I own.  And I can leave my lipstick in the pocket because it’s the same coat I’ll be putting on next time.  Life is easier.

goes with everything…

The sassy turquoise beaded sandals?  Scarf, sweatshirt, earrings? Everything goes with everything. Makes it easier to shop, easier to get dressed in the morning, easier to plan and pack for a trip…  Everything I own is mix-and-match. Heck, even my tattoos and my reading-glasses match everything. Life is easier.

I’ve had the luxury (at least, back when I had a professional career that afforded luxuries) of spending more on an item than I might have done if I thought I’d wear it only occasionally–like the pair of turquoise and silver earrings I found at Yellowstone years ago, and still wear all the time.  I could invest in that one really nice dress coat, that one purse I love, a couple great pairs of shoes, the gorgeous pair of boots…  Knowing that I could wear them all the time.

And since I’m no longer in a position to buy anything new (or used, for that matter) I’m fortunate to have a ready-stocked wardrobe which will last me for a long, long time.  I’m still ready to dress for court, for jobs, for Idaho outdoors, for travel, for a spousal seduction, for a motorcycle ride…  And yes, it will always be in turquoise. (And yes, if anybody wondered, I even got married in turquoise.) For all its monochromatic scheme, my closet still has a lot of personalities.

My Writing-Helper has a few personalities too, but that’s a blog for another day.

always teal–down to the nose-stud and the reading glasses..

56 thoughts on “A Signature Quirk”

  1. Hmm, maybe I have the same affliction! What color goes well with bluejeans! Even in my paintings, I’m trying to get away from so many landscapes! I love color – all gazillion of them – except periwinkle blue. That’s sad, because I thought I loved them all – just can’t wear them all!

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  6. I love the kitty. And the color.

    My closet is color-coded. Aside from my bookshelves, it’s the most organized part of my home.

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  8. Has your color “always” been teal/turquoise, from when you were very young, even? My 4 year old has been a purple girl since she was old enough to say “purple”. We just bought her first pair of dress shoes that are not the requisite black Mary Janes… and they are purple with black lace over them – her choice, lol. My eldest daughter wants a pair because they have black on them. She was born an Emo-girl, I think. At 7, her wardrobe consists of pink….and black. A lot of black. Of course, looking in my own closet, it’s pretty easy to see why my girls might like purple and black so much…! Eeep. Fun read, thanks for posting! Your writing assistant is Adorable.:o)

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    1. I’ve always had a lot of blues in the closet, but I didn’t really narrow down the spectrum (or ditch the other colors) till around the time I gave up the stay-home-mommy gig for an office job–I suddenly had both the income & the need for a new wardrobe, and did sort of an all-at-once overhaul of the closet. In the years since, I’ve ONLY visited the turquoise-racks in a store. ;)

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  9. Despite not liking green as a colour I tend to wear a heck of a lot of it. I don’t have a particular colour but I am always mismatched in all I wear!

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  10. You look utterly radiant in teal! No wonder it’s your color. Teal is from a primary (practical) color yet it is playfully vibrant, willing to risk and stretch itself to the outer limits of its hue. Not afraid to try, to speak to others with its unique brightness, but always mindful and respectful of where it comes from. Teal has Kana written all over it! That’s my analysis, and I’m stickin’ to it. :)

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    1. I’m afraid I’d stick out like a sore thumb (green thumb?) in the hip-hop community, but I confess I’ve had a (re-written) JayZ rappin’ away in my head since I read your comment a couple hours ago… “All teal everything” sounds All Bad… ;)

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  21. Lots of color on the bulletin board, is that a workplace for you?

    Help! I need a personal shopper – I HATE THE MALL or trying on clothes. Working at home makes dressing simple. My closet, full of nondescript stuff is at least by color. Panic when someone invites us to an upscale restaurant. Some color. You seem to have made us all rethink what we wear and why. Teal, along with carious shades is also in my closet.

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    1. Ha, clearly I can’t claim THAT level of simplicity! I may have narrowed the range, but I still Shopped Like a Girl within that range… ;)

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  24. All this time, I’ve been fighting my tendency to have only green and blue clothes when I should have been embracing it! I knew I was making this clothes thing too hard…

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    1. You’ve exactly highlighted one of the things I’ve been coming to realize about myself… If I’m fighting a tendency, I probably need to step back and take a look at WHY. Some things are obvious (I’d better keep fighting my tendency toward substance-abuse, for example, because if I don’t stay solidly in Recovery I’m not any kind of worthwhile human being) but sometimes I’m spending a lot of energy on something I don’t have any reason to fight. There’s no REASON why I should dress myself in pink (or whatever other color) when I’m so perfectly MYSELF in my turquoise. ;)

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  25. Love teal, love turquoise, and the closet looks perfectly reasonable. Unfortunately, mine is mostly black. Love Her Royal Cuteness, too. I have a couple of those, but helping is the last thing on their minds.

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  27. OMG – I do the exactly the same thing with earth tones. My entire closet matches. I even decorated my house in earth tones, so I didn’t clash with my couch! It’s so much easier, and you are right — you always look put together!

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    1. Yup, right there with you. Wall colors, curtains, bedspread, shower curtain… Our teenage son rolls his eyes and says he can’t even FIND me in this house–I’ve got my own personal camouflage-thing going on… (But who WOULDN’T want to, with teenagers in the house?) ;)

      The one-room exception to the decor is our seven-year-old’s room, which is painted to HER taste. The boys didn’t care about their room, so it’s the same color as the rest of the house; HERS, however, is pretty much like standing inside a bottle of Pepto Bismol. Absolutely Awful. But Miss Sparkle thinks it’s the best thing ever, so okay. I just wear my sunglasses when I tuck her in at night. ;)

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  29. I think it is a great idea you have and this would make for a good “fashion” article, too. Using a color scheme is a great idea. I like the colors you chose, too. Very nice. Nice to keep things so uncomplicated when it comes to dressing, too. Take care. Sincerely, Connie

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    2. You’re probably onto something with that–here’s a “fashion plan” that could be marketed to HUSBANDS! ;) (With the added bonus that it’s super-easy to shop for your wife–just make a beeline for that ONE color and ignore the rest of the store…)

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  39. I wonder why we are attracted to a particular colour. There is no PLANNING. It just happens. I wonder if our subconscious is on alert leading us a down a certain path. It seems to me I also have made choices unconciously and now EVERYthing is mix and match. I also have a lot of tourqoise and teal in my closet but I also have black. Maybe it’s my age. But I can STILL mix and match.
    Lucky for me.

    Lucky for you. You are most likely a very flamboyant personaltiy. Good for YOU.

    Loved this post.

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