Material girl? Material city.

I have never been one to need a lot of material possessions. Besides travel, the majority of my money has always gone to things of necessity: food, college loans and shampoo. I love shopping, but usually end up waiting in line thinking up ridiculous comparisons like “Instead of buying these two shirts for $50, I could save the money and only need another $150 for a plane ticket to Philadelphia. I’ve never been to Philly before.” I believe people refer to it as buyer’s remorse.

Within weeks of moving to Chicago I purchased (with a little help from my mom) rain boots, a down coat for the winter, a second pair of winter boots, two new pairs of flats – one black, one brown (simple necessity, you know) – an umbrella, a small purse for the bars and a tote bag.

It quickly came to my attention that while Chicagoans may have good fashion sense by major metro default, much of their trendy attire actually does serve a purpose. Frostbite and pure misery will occur without a long, heavy coat. Boots save work pants from dragging through the slush and also prevent heels from wearing out on the daily walks to work. Big purses and tote bags keep our books, lunches and work shoes compact on the crowded trains. Umbrellas…well we all know what those do, and it rains a lot here. The other day I even saw a girl using an umbrella to shield herself from the sun while waiting for the bus. She also had on a black zip up sweater in the 90 degree heat, but I suppose that was her choice of material necessity.

My point here is I have had to do something few girls have probably ever had to do before: force myself to buy clothes. I do not just mean buying tank tops from Forever 21. I’m talking coats, dress pants, jeans, a few different sized purses and several pairs of several kinds of shoes. These are the necessary material possessions of Chicago. It may not seem like it, but the seasons still change four times a year here, and with each change comes an entirely new inevitability for essential attire.