Items

2020-07-01

Defender of Target

During COVID-19 I worked at Target. I was freshly 21 and like everyone else, was shocked by the intensity and severity of the pandemic. What had begun as a part-time gig quickly became my entire world. In the state I lived in, our store was considered an “essential business,” and therefore remained open. It was my job to stock and fold children’s clothes, maintaining a clean store front in the midst of the chaos. Throughout the early days, I would stand behind my folding table watching full-grown adults battle over toilet paper. They would line up outside of the store hours before it opened to ensure they’d receive a package of the holy grail. Suddenly, folding Peppa Pig shirts wasn’t my only duty. I became the protector of fitting rooms, the hunter of lost and contaminated clothing; gathering items that had been illegally tried on and stuffing them into their quarantine room, to “disinfect” for 3-5 business days. Being an essential employee during the pandemic made me jaded. It offered me insight into the human mind, a glimpse of what panic and fear can do to a person. I saw the worst, but also experienced kindness and empathy from people who understood what it was like to be caught in the midst of the hellfire. For some, Target turned into a safe haven, a place that remained open and reliable despite the madness going on in the world, while others gave up their sanity to keep it up and running. I will always think of my time at Target as a glitch in the matrix; a bizarre patch of time that tested the strength of a part-time sales associate, and humanity.

2020-03-16

A Warm Hug

This personal item is a jacket I received from a customer back during the Spring of 2020. I was an essential worker at Lowe's at the time and quarantine had just been mandated. It was an extremely cold and rainy day; cold to the point of where the wind was blowing the doors to-and-fro and I could not ring up a customer without stopping to put my hands in my pockets. As I worked, a middle-age guest, comes up to register and noticed that I was shivering nonstop. She paused as she got ready to hand me her payment and asked if I needed another jacket. I smiled and told her “No, I’m okay,” but she persisted and asked again. I reassured her that I was okay and she nodded and smiled sweetly and told me “thank you” and to have a bless day. After she left, I did not think much about the encounter besides the fact that she was genuinely a sweet and kind woman. About 30 minutes later, the same woman approached me in my line again, but this time with a Target bag in her hand and jacket in the other. With a sweet smile again, she told me that she used the last bit of her cash she had on her to go buy me something warm so I would not freeze the rest of my shift. While it was a small act, it meant a lot to me considering that she was stranger and was willing to go that far to make sure I was okay. I was not able to give the woman a hug after the exchange (we actually gave each other a "COVID fist bump" out of solidarity,) but it honestly felt all the same. Her act showed me that despite race, gender, age, or orientation, we were all one in the same in that moment and that we were all going through the same trials, worries, and circumstances. To this day, I still have the jacket in my closet and I always wear it at home or outside when I need a warm hug. Whether there is an pandemic a war, or any crisis, going on in the world that experience taught me that it does not cost anything to be nice to another human being. Although there were many more hardships I experienced that year, I always looked back to moment for comfort and remembered that there was a sweet lady out there giving me love and endurance.

2020-03-22

Apocalyptic Wear during Pandemic-A Funny Meme

In the early days of the pandemic, life was very scary. There was a lot of uncertainty as to how long things would last, who would get sick, and how to adjust to all of the rapid changes taking place. It often felt a lot like a looming apocalypse. This meme just struck a cord with me. In a moment of stress it caused laughter. I only wish we did end up wearing some form of apocalyptic wear. I am disappointed that didn't happen.

This is a picture of a red long sleeve shirt, which has the message "Staying in is the new going out" printed in white lettering on it.

2020-09-18

Corona Clothing #1: "Staying in is the new Going Out"

I took this picture in a Ross store in Round Rock TX last summer. It reads "Staying in is the new Going Out". This is the first instance I had ever seen of a clothing item referencing COVID-19. The shirt implies that with all the stay at home orders, lockdowns, and closures taking leisure time at home is the new way to have fun and enjoy yourself. Noticed that it is also lounge wear. I did not realize it at the time, but many items of Corona themed clothing are casual or lounge wear likely both as a funny gesture and to suit the natural desire to wear comfortable clothing when confined at home for extended periods.

2020

Canada Strong Coming Together

A clothing line produced by Collins Clothers to help support small businesses

April 10, 2020

Clothing and Display Policy – Pennsylvania Target

This sign in the infant and toddler clothing section depicts the temporary policy at a Target in North Wales, Pennsylvania that asks customers to not try on clothing and not touch displays.

2020-07-27

Lockdown Clothing Project

We are two London-based fashion scholars – Lorraine Smith (aka Lori) and Jana Melkumova-Reynolds – who have always been curious about how others dress, and how this relates to identity. Recent social changes (due to the coronavirus pandemic) have increased that curiosity. How are people dressing when in lockdown and isolation situations? How is this different to the way they dressed before? Has it affected their sense of self? This project aims to shine a light on those changes and reveal some of the many and varied personal stories relating to fashion and dress in 2020.