This post has been a long time coming, and I have zero excuse for the delay.

I was alerted to the existence of an amazing company in October ARSH 2019 that makes semi-custom dresses – semi-bespoke is really the word – for very little money, and with excellent quality and labor practices. The company is out of India and is called eShakti.com , and many of you ladies might already be aware of them through weddings, etc.

I cannot say enough about this company. You set up a profile and enter over two dozen sartorial measurements. Their computers then form a custom pattern for you – semi-bespoke – and then you choose from their 1000+ dress patterns. But wait. It gets better. Every dress on their website can be modified. Usually 8+ necklines, 8+ sleeve lengths, and 8+ hem lengths. And you can SEE on the “virtual model” what each modification looks like. As of a month or so ago, they have now added a feature whereby if you find a dress pattern that really works for you, you can choose the fabric from their entire selection of the same fabric type.

This is the benefit of being totally “on demand”, driven by a database. The computers tell the fabric mill what to cut, and the machines how to cut and stitch it. It’s an absolutely brilliant business model, and has totally changed my sartorial life. Buying clothes used to be almost impossible- IMMODEST, too short, bad fit, ugly, etc. But now, I open my closet and it’s a genuine pleasure to pick which dress I’m wearing today.

After the War, something like this MUST be started in North America.

I get stopped and complimented every single day. Every day, and I live in a pretty “fashionable” place, or at least where there are “fashion people” slithering around. 🤢 And I’m low-key setting the tone. Folks, the counter-Revolution has to begin somewhere. Brushfires of… fashion? Why not?

So here is a photo essay of me today. My huge project this summer is wearing white wrist gloves – as all ladies did until ARSH 1965 or so.

The more I see fat, naked slobs walking around and rolling into shops and restaurants in slovenly garments that I literally would not sleep in, the harder I COUNTER-REVOLT. Hence the white summer gloves.

Ann, today, a Tuesday in June:

Navy blue with white polka-dot zip-front, ruched-waist, cap sleeve, mid-calf full skirted dress. I optioned for the neckline to be 2″ higher. This dress cost me $55, including the $10 semi-bespoke customization fee. I’m not kidding.

I have red espadrilles, which are very sharp with the blue, but today I’m wearing white.

Matching blue and white straw hat with wide brim. I bought this hat eight years ago for $15.

Finally, yes, white viscose gloves. Cheap ($15 per pair), and they can be washed frequently. I bought three pair right away so I can always have a clean pair. I actually recommend viscose and not cotton for the ease of care. Glove etiquette says a lady shakes hands WITH, but ALWAYS removes to eat or drink. Keep gloves on in church except to get Holy Water at the stoop upon entering and exiting. I do have to remove at least my right glove by necessity when using DivinumOfficium.com as my missal/breviary in order to use the touchscreen. I had to look glove etiquette up, because I had no idea, given my age. I was born in ’76 and thus missed the glove culture.

Folks, I dress like this EVERY DAY.

How ironic. All these girls walking around almost nekkid, or in uber-expensive designer trash (but I repeat myself), and it’s the 45-year old slightly-squishy woman rocking it like it’s ARSH 1951 in a $55 dress that everyone notices. Gentlemen chastely and respectfully appreciate, ladies appreciate and inquire. Children smile and stare. And I smile back. Occasionally I wink. 😉

The ultimate counter-revolt is being yourself, that is, being who God made you according to your true state in life, including dignity, and beauty. God did not make you a gutter slag or a fat pajama-wearing slob. Dressing with dignity and beauty (in both the feminine and masculine senses) is a sign of SELF-respect, and more importantly a sign of fundamental respect FOR OTHERS, including total strangers (Second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary – the Visitation; Fruit of the Mystery: Love of Neighbor, Fraternal Charity).

Even though I am nearly alone for now in my aesthetic, remember, beauty and fraternal charity are OBJECTIVE STANDARDS, and therefore I am the normal one, and the rest of society, naked or in pajamas, no matter their relative numbers… they are objectively ABNORMAL. They are not intrinsically inferior-quite the opposite is the entire point! Let us help our fellow men and women reclaim NORMALCY and their own inherent dignity by our good example, and by always radiating the joy that comes with the frequenting of the Sacraments.

I would point out that the priestly cassock is just about the sharpest masculine form of dress, and that real nuns literally wear wedding dresses and wedding veils every day of their lives. Why should we seculars not emulate this standard? Ugliness is NOT humility. Quite the opposite. Humility is knowing and acknowledging both what you are not (!!), but also what you ARE. Acknowledge your dignity as a rational intellect created in the image and likeness of God, and redeemed by His Most Precious Blood. Respect yourself and respect others. Get dressed. And I mean DRESSED. Every single day.

UPDATE: How could I have neglected to mention the impetus for married ladies to dress well… your husbands!!! Make them proud. Never take them for granted. Including around the house. Sweatpants have caused more divorces and male online self-abuse situations than any of us can imagine. Get up and get dressed, wives. You don’t have to be perfect – it’s the EFFORT. The charity is in the EFFORT.

I hope this helps.