My husband and I are watching the long-running (14 seasons!) show Vera on BritBox. If you haven’t seen it, the star is a curmudgeonly older detective, no longer svelt, with a brusque style and an unusual wardrobe. Out in the field she wears a mackintosh with a green hat. (You can buy a copy here.)
But it is her indoor outfits that interest me. The clothes have no particular style and she makes no effort to “show off her best features,” standard advice given to the older set. Instead, she wears frumpy looking dresses or skirts and long-sleeved blouses, almost always with an LL Bean style quilted vest over them. Occasionally she appears in baggy pants. With skirts and dresses she wears tights or knee socks. She always has on flat slip on shoes, all the easier to change to boots when the outside weather is rough.
Her clothes are completely practical, and you have the sense that she wears whatever is clean, maybe reaching into her closet when it is still dark. However, one element fascinates me—her long scarves that she has on indoors and out. Why the scarves indoors? Some older women wear scarves to cover their wrinkled necks, but Vera doesn’t always do this. (I couldn’t find a picture on line to document this, so you will have to believe me.) The scarves rarely compliment the rest of her outfit.
I have decided that the scarves are Vera’s one source of beauty in her dress. She knows that she will need them outdoors to protect against the wind, so she doesn’t bother taking them off inside. Although some look ordinary, I imagine they are the softest cashmere. And the one she wears above is extraordinary. Don’t we all need beauty in our lives?
I love Vera…..I believe the author was influenced over time by Brenda blythen performance as she was only a few books in when it was shown on TV…….I am an indoor scarf person too! And figure I wear them 9 months of the year…..I seem to get a cold neck if I dont
I just discovered “Vera.” A few episodes aired on German television, and I hope more will follow. The clothing caught my eye as well, and your description (“…have the sense that she wears whatever is clean”) hits the nail on the head.
Best regards, Mema/Mechthild
Nail on head, girl! Love this show and am always amazed at her getups. Brenda Bleythens is a universal treasure. I think you’re right about the scarves equating with a love of beauty. I find myself tending more that way as I age — whatever is clean! Oh? they don’t match? Cie la vie! xoxo — Marianne
Love the show! It would be interesting to talk to the costume designer(s) to see the reasoning behind the wardrobe choices.
An interview with the costume designer is clearly called for! As a chilly neck person I always assumed the scarves were addressing a similar tendency on “Vera’s” part, but like the more philosophical idea about a nod to beauty. Also the scenery and landscape in this series is really exceptional, at least to me.
Ceci