Wednesday, June 18, 2008

(Seemingly) Dichotomous Pairings

A few weeks ago, a bedridden, sick and reluctantly-rested me peered over her bed, mindlessly bored. I was shunned from the outside world, an outcast. I had caught the flu. But for the saving grace of the internet and newly-discovered blogs (fashion and otherwise), I would have surely perished.

After hours of perusing blogs and shops and of constructing a mile-long mental list of wanted non-necessities, I chanced upon a few interesting posts about the adult teeter-totter of being a professional (in a non-creative field) and preserving some semblance of creativity. How, if at all, do you strike the delicate balance?

Now, for those of you in careers in which a perfect marriage of creativity and professionalism exists (or I suppose for the aesthetically-challenged who don't give a damn anyway), you will not readily understand or, I assume, not to the same depths as others. For the vast majority (of my friends, it appears), however, there is a constant struggle. Some even come to the loathsome conclusion that to adopt a professional identity is to forego one's creative identity. Equally tragic, in my eyes, is the misconception that anyone who is mildly neurotic about aesthetics and/or design must be devoid of any substance.

Imagine my delight when I came across these blogs:

THE SUNDAY BEST and TINLAND: These are two separate blogs, written separately by a budding barrister and/or solicitor couple. That's "lawyer" in the American lexicon, although a dear friend constantly reminds me that the American term "lawyer" does not have a direct equivalent in other countries, including, but not limited to, civil law countries, where the profession may be bifurcated. Yes, I had to clarify. Back to the bloggers:

source: The Sunday Best


The Sunday Best is a staunch advocate of, among other things, the re-buttoning of one's wardrobe and thus a proponent of ushering all of society into the re-buttoning fray, one wooden button at a time. I admit that I, too, am a chronic re-buttoner. How can you say no to cute wooden buttons? I certainly can't. Neither should you.

source: Tinland


Likewise, Tinland quickly dispels the notion that "lawyers" are stodgy, non-creative relics that garb themselves exclusively in the hegemonic navy suit.

DREAMECHO: She once mused, "Fashion + Electrical Engineering = ???" Ummm... after looking over her blog, I'd say, err, greatness.

source: Dreamecho

Enough said.

And I must mention SHOPPINGSMYCARDIO, the author of which is a lawyer by trade, but lovely, fashion-addict by choice.

Refreshing.

3 comments:

TheSundayBest said...

Well it took some searching, but I finally found your blog. Thanks for the mention. I should point out that neither Charlie nor I want to be lawyers, barristers, solicitors, advocates, or otherwise - the balance is not as careful as we might indicate.

All the best.

Sharon said...

Hello! Thank you for the post. I especially share your distaste for the misconception that an interest in anything creative is superficial and without substance.

I haven't decided if I will be continuing Tinland, but I'm glad to have a reader in you.

Anonymous said...

wow, I like rebuttoning everything too. I guess I'm not alone.