What a pleasant surprise to see PeaceBang unveiled as Victoria Weinstein of Norwell, Massachusetts, in an article in the Boston Globe.

PeaceBang has a blog where she gives beauty and fashion tips for ministers, but I think it’s relevant for all. She often writes of the importance of treating yourself and your work with respect, partially imparted by your clothes.

The primary message I received growing up about clothes was, “This is not a fashion show.” Unfortunately, I grew up in Southern California, and, in fact, it was a fashion show much of the time. My mom still doesn’t quite get that.

In my training as geologist, I developed an appreciation for flannel, whiskey, and for dressing as a cowboy. While it might look well on some, it is not a good look for me. Partly because I don’t wear men’s clothes that well. Partly because whiskey makes me fat. And partly because I’m not a man.

Later, as a teacher in a Catholic school, I often dressed as a nun; I was extremely successful at this, mostly because the nuns gave me their cast off items, because they felt guilty for paying me very little. I “earned” a number of striped sweaters from the 1970s. Wowzer. The colors aren’t so awful, but they didn’t fit very well, and were terribly worn. The nuns didn’t want them to go to waste. It is of some surprise that I met my husband during this period.

It’s only recently that I’ve begun to pay attention to what I wore. I’m still trying to dress better, at least in part inspired by PeaceBang.

You can read her blog here, the article in the Boston Globe here, and play around with fashion plates to dress the minister to hear PeaceBang’s advice here.