The other day, when I was in one of my favorite thrift stores (Buffalo Exchange on 26th street FYI), buying not one but two pink sweaters, it occurred to me.
I have a thing for Pink Sweaters.
And actually, Pink Sweaters comprise the majority of All of My Sweaters. There’s 3 black-and-white striped ones, one multicolored fuzzy one that makes me look like a Yip Yip, Or, an oversized pipe cleaner… and 6 pink sweaters. Depending on how kind you’re feeling towards me when you’re making the comparison.
A soft pink sweater is like, a flirtation that you can wear.
I say this even though I’ve actually been dumped in two of my four pink sweaters on two separate occasions. “Dumped” is a harsh word, let’s say, “politely rejected by men who’d previously strung me along.” You’d think this would sour me to the seductive power of the pink sweater. Or maybe, lead me to try a BLUE sweater. But no, I keep on believin’ in the power of Pink.
Pink is a powerful color.
Obviously, the color pink has strong feminine and weak connotations. This is fine. There’s nothing wrong with being feminine, or being “weak.” There is great strength in admitting your weaknesses and embracing your vulnerabilities. And, of course, the “weak feminine pink” stuff is bullcrap. Until the 1950’s, pink was the color associated with baby boys, because it was seen as a “juvenile” version of RED, the “strong masculine” color. Which is kind of the opposite connotation that pink has now. Your gendered perceptions of color are a construct! Also, why not have both? Why can’t pink embody both feminine and masculine energies? Or both? Or neither? Why can’t pink be strong, and vulnerable? This is how I like to think of pink: tender, but not to be trifled with.
They say that “confident men wear pink.” I don’t disagree. I add to that: in a world so rife with misogyny, it also takes confidence as a WOMAN to wear pink.
I fully believe this and that is why I have like, five pink sweaters:
The Chenille Retro 90’s One
This is a Forever 21 sweater from last year — yes I know, they’re evil, I’m trying to #KnowBetterDoBetter. I desperately wanted a retro-90’s-cut chenille cropped sweater, and based on the fact that it’s sold out on F21’s website, so did everyone! I wear this one all the time, and have for the past year, and it’s starting to shed fluff everywhere like if you’re wearing black, you shouldn’t hug me OR ELSE!
The Kitteny Soft One
This is one of the two pink sweaters I bought at Buffalo Exchange on 26th street which I referenced earlier in the post. It’s acrylic & nylon & SO SOFT. This is probably the sweater I wear THE MOST. Out of ALL OF MY SWEATERS. ? I KNOW BITCH. I love the way it fits: cropped so it’s perfect with high-waisted vintage jeans, but the sleeves are long enough to cover my wrists and who t f wants chilly wrists, I ask you? I can’t remember exactly but I think this was like $12. So worth it.
The Dramatic Kate Bush Sleeve One
I think this is technically a sweatshirt but if I was British I would still call this a “jumper” so whatever, it fucking counts. It’s Lucky Brand, and this is the second pink sweater purchased in The Great Buffalo Exchange Pink Sweater Purchase and it was also like $12, and it’s the sweater I wear if I’mm not wearing the other one (damn, that was a good shopping trip). It has an almost velour-like texture, and the puffy sleeves are really wearable and actually comfortable under coats! I love the slight costumey nod of the sleeves. I feel billowy. It’s hella hard to feel billowy in the wintertime, but this jumper makes me feel like Kate Bush in the “Wuthering Heights” video aka BILLOWY. Worth it.
The Wacky Crafty One I Bought Because I Saw It In A Vlog
It’s literally the first and last time I’ve ever done this, but I saw a vlogger wearing this sweater and I knew. I. Knew. that it needed to be mine. The vlogger was Megan Ellaby and no, I’m not going to search through all her videos to find The One where she’s wearing this sweater, but I owe her thanks. I bought this one last January from Zara and I’ve worn it pretty much any time I want to show off. Yep. I don’t wear it that much around because the yellow fringe is actually long loops and have a tendency to get caught & snagged on things, so it’s not very practical for the workshop. Oops.
The One I Just Got For Christmas!
I put this on my Amazon Wish List, where I put everything that I kinda like but can’t see myself spending money on myself for, and my brother actually bought it for me for Christmas! I love the cozy, laid-back, Blogger Vibez of this loose-knit bell-sleeve striped sweater, and it has a lovely weight and feel to it! I haven’t worn it out as much as I want to yet because like the one above, it’s a bit of a Statement Sweater and looks like it would snag on power tools easily, but I can’t wait to wear this on warmer days!
The Trendy Sort-Of Pink One That Makes Me Feel Like Ariana Grande
I fell in love with this on Amazon (where it is currently unavailable) and I’m in love with it despite the odds, and here’s why. It’s smaller than I expected, and I sized up to be safe! The sleeves are actually very short on me, but I don’t really hate that, because it allows me to show off my new forearm tattoo, and they’re not *uncomfortable* too short, they’re like, *comfortable* too short? The white material is also very sheer, but as it’s very cold, I’ve been wearing this over thermals or t-shirts for extra warmth anyway. It’s rather cropped, but it’s also just the right length to French tuck into my high-waisted vintage jeans! So while it does run small, it’s still one of the shirts I reach for the most lately, and if you want a higher-quality version you could get this one and tell me if the sleeves are long enough.
AND! My Furry Pink Hoodie
When I saw this was $13 at Beacon’s Closet down the road from my apartment, I knew I couldn’t pass it up. First of all, Beacon’s Closet is PRICEY. Almost NOTHING is less than $20 at Beacon’s. It’s in perfect condition and it’s SO SOFT. The best feature is the oversized hood, meaning I can wear my hood up over space buns! It’s lined in a pink silky fabric, so it feels like pure luxury through and through. I fell in love with a furry hoodie at DragCon but passed on it because it was like $250, so finding this one in PINK — MY COLOR — for $13 was a no-brainer!
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