Modish Matrons: Russian Winter Fairy Tale

Happy New Year!

Here at In The Writer's Closet, we begin it with a new, updated version of our monthly link-up that will start on the 1st of every month and stay open for a whole month. If you are on Facebook, we'll appreciate if you like our new page MODISH MATRONS, and thank you to all who have already liked us! Our team - Tina, Beate and myself - would love it if you get inspired by our themes, but feel free to join us as you are, too. Other than a new date, we also arrange our themes differently now - we take turns, so each month one of us presents a theme that inspires her, and it is represented in our collages too:

Ta-dah! "Russian Winter Fairy Tale" was offered by Beate in my honor, and I am very touched by her thoughtfulness. I wholeheartedly invite you to visit BEATE and TINA for their interpretations of the theme! As for me, there was just one element missing from making this theme truly Russian winter fairy tale - snow, which we got today as I write this, but not on the day that we took these photos, so I included a winter song from a beloved Russian fairy tale movie "Чародеи" (The Wizards). I hope it will help you to get into a truly Russian winter spirit!

I was asked to tell the story about the new name for our link-up. Beate wrote a post dedicated to the name (you can read it in German HERE, or use Google Translate as I do). Once we already agreed on the name, it was a wonderful discovery to all of us that matrons, ancient female deities, originated from Northwestern Europe, and almost always came in three (article in English HERE). Just like the three of us!

My take on the name MODISH MATRONS is this. When Beate offered it, I really loved it in both German (Modische Matronen) and in Russian form (Модные матроны). But I thought that the modern English translation Fashionable Matrons lost the alliteration and a certain zing Beate was going for, so I was happy to discover that there is indeed a word "modish" which sounds a bit archaic in English, but so does the word "matron", so they are in perfect tune with one another. To me, the name MODISH MATRONS carries a healthy dose of self-irony, love of "good old times", and an attempt to make our "respectable age" hip and fashionable again. To me, there is pure beauty in the natural flow of things - and getting older is something to look forward to, not to be afraid of. Any age has its own benefits, but instead of running after an illusory "eternal youth", I believe in embracing whatever stage in life we are and finding in it its own benefits and beauty. Therefore, MODISH MATRONS. Old-fashioned? Pish posh! We are the ones who make fashion, including "fashion" on words, terms, and philosophies of life. Be a trailblazer, a pioneer! Be the change!

  

When reflecting on the theme, I thought that there is nothing more Russian or magical about it for me than...just being myself and celebrating my sense of feminine dressing. I picked this winter-y shade of pink, along with my Russian platok (read its 200 year old history in my old post HERE), vintage style boots, pearls and traditional Russian filigree and hand-painted enamel jewelry. For a warm layer, since it's a Winter tale, I picked a charming tweed coat with a faux fur collar. The Russian platok (shawl) can be worn either around the neck under the coat, or on the head instead of a hat (or even under a hat), or wrapped around the shoulders over the coat, any of these ways would be common.

"Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth." 

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

The sculpture (and the quote) by the Public Library in Bellevue, WA

I don't just dress up for pictures - I actually go out in my outfits, that's what they are for. That day, we spent walking in town and in the mall (returning some items that didn't fit and finding, sorry for technicalities, new bras for me - an extremely important item of clothing about which we don't talk much in our blogs, but they really deserve our attention, and mine were long overdue). I was happy to see many dressed up people that day! And my outfit had a lot of positive reactions from all sorts of people - women, men, little girls... I think the world misses femininity. Otherwise, it wouldn't pay attention to it. I think we, women, can be both strong and willful - and tender and feminine at the same time. It isn't an oxymoron. It is finding a new balance within ourselves. 

  

Dress - Kiyonna (last year)

Coat - Simply Be (last year)

Russian shawl from Pavlovsky Posad - gift from my parents

Filigree and enamel jewelry set - from Russia (very old)

Necklace - Lane Bryant (old)

Bracelet and ring - boutique in Gig Harbor, WA (gift from Justin) 

Tights - via Lane Bryant (love them so much this winter)

Boots - Josef Seibel (old)

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