Читать книгу The Yummy Mummy’s Family Handbook - Liz Fraser - Страница 15

One of the things I have found it hard to get used to, since morphing from young, child-free babe (or something…!) into my role as ‘mother and member of a family with kids’, is having to wear the Family Uniform. What exactly this uniform consists of varies enormously according to where you live, what kind of friends you have and what your daily life entails. If you work it is likely to be much as it was before, because you’ll be in work, not ‘family’, attire during the day. But when you don’t you’ll find yourself in full family swing, and this, for most busy, playground-frequenting mums, means dressing down.

I live in jeans or casual trousers, trainers or flats, some kind of pretty but unfussy top and any jumper or jacket I can lay my hands on that doesn’t clash with the bottom half. I also come moulded to my bicycle, which has two child seats and a large wicker basket on the front. My hair is rarely anything other than swept back into a child-friendly but unsexy ponytail and my make-up consists of moisturiser and some blusher. In short, it really is as unglamorous as you can get.

As somebody who wears clothes to both reflect and dictate my mood, and devours several fashion magazines every month—despite the fact that I cannot afford to buy any of the stuff inside them!—this is something of a problem for me. Wearing the required Family Uniform day in, day out means I can almost never get away from ‘Mumsy, family me’ and become the stylish me I know must be lurking somewhere under all the stained tops and out-of-date jeans (if I look hard enough…). But wear it I must, not only because I would otherwise stick out like a sore, overdressed thumb on the school run, but also because I would break my ankles trying to chase my son around the playground in high heels.

Wherever you live, whatever the ‘norm’, it’s almost certain that you will conform in some way, and this can become restrictive and boring after a while. So…

Dress up on top. If pushing a pram or chasing children around the park restricts your bottom half to flat shoes and sensible trousers then try to keep the top half pretty, and use accessories like jewellery or scarves to add colour, individuality and style.

Dare to wear. Not all mothers live in tracksuit bottoms all day, thank goodness. I occasionally stray into the very daring world of skirts and pretty shoes, but when I do I’m generally asked what the special occasion is. If I reply that I just fancied wearing something nice for a change, my effort is generally welcomed, not laughed at (at least, not to my face…).

Vary your look. It’s far too easy to slip into wearing almost exactly the same thing every day. Try to avoid this monotony by forcing yourself into a different look every other day: jeans, then a long skirt, then something sporty, then some smart trousers, and then start all over again. Your kids will appreciate this too, as will your husband!

Having a job helps. One huge advantage of having a job is that you can be somebody else for at least a few hours a week. Whether you go to work in suits and heels or just something a little smarter than usual, it gives you the chance to legitimately dress up, or at least dress differently for a while. Many of my friends find this to be a lifesaver.