Arm Party

Arm Party

There are some trends that I just skip over. In my twenties, I was more likely to fall for every look, believing many of them were new! Now, I giggle to myself thinking of my mom saying "nothing in fashion is ever new" when I was growing up as I see overalls, tie die, crop tops, and even Doc Martins in style again. I will be passing them by this round. 

But, sometimes a style catches my eye and sticks with me, time and again. Over the past few years, a cringe-worthy phrase has been used for piling a bunch of bracelets on your wrist: the arm party. If we didn't have to call it this, I would feel much happier. What about...lots of bracelets? bracelet layering? Can't we just call it stacking bracelets like when Madonna did it back in the '80s? 

Regardless, I went with it the second third time around. The first time, my sisters and I wore black jelly bracelets that my mom's cool friend Johnny wore and we coveted. I think we got some from those plastic eggs you paid a quarter for at the Ames. In Vermont, everything is "the" something because there's usually only one. The second time, in college, I wore neon jellies on both wrists, for some reason, likely purchased on South Street. It must have been a thing. 

And although it's less trendy than awhile ago, I still find myself doing it, just a bit differently. At the very bottom, you'll see how I...stacked my bracelets...last summer. In the middle, a thinner, more unified look in the fall, and just below, how I'm currently using the cuffs of my jacket (the inside is green) along with a bi-colored sweater and my Target men's watch to create a similar layered effect without having so many individual pieces on.  I also found that the clanking on my computer at work drove me nuts so this softer approach works better. 

What I love about this is how it feels, actually. I feel very powerful, kind of Sheerah-esque, when I wear a lot of bracelets on one arm. And for me, that won't change regardless of the trends so I'll probably continue to play around with this look for awhile. I just hope next time it has a less annoying name than "arm party." There! I said it.