Today in the Lockdown Clothing project we’re catching up with Dr Ingrid E. Mida (aka The Dress Detective), who answered the original questions back in May 2020. Despite being extremely busy working on the manuscript of her next book, Ingrid got in touch to share a couple of insights on how her approach to dress has changed in the last six months.
1) Has your approach to clothing changed since you submitted your story to us?
When I first submitted my story, relatively early in the pandemic, I was careful to dress each day as I had before work. Over the summer and during the warmish days of early fall weather, I was often more casually dressed since I had a heightened desire to be outside as much as possible. As the fall approached and the weather changed, I returned to a more formal manner of dress. Pandemic weary and with a sense that it will be a long brutal winter, I felt that I needed that boost I feel from ‘dressing up.’ I can feel my mood shift as I put on clothing that makes me feel elegant and stylish – even if no one other than my husband will see me dressed that way. Plus I have many lovely things to wear and feel like I may as well wear them instead of buying more casual clothing. I find it really interesting that I am able to better focus on my work when I dress. I also noticed that it helps make a distinct demarcation between my work and my leisure time as I change into more casual clothing at the end of the day.
2) Has your approach to purchasing clothing changed as a result of lockdown? How so?
Before the lockdown, I tended to dress in neutral colours such as gray, black and beige. Now I am looking for vivid colours that read well over a screen, particularly if I am giving a public lecture of some sort. For my book launch, I purchased a very vivid blue silk dress – something that I probably wouldn’t otherwise have worn. I have become a fan of colour!
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