Experiment: No Pants, No Problem

I’m done wearing pants.

Talk about unprecedented amounts of freedom.

Psych! But, seriously, if it weren’t for Twitter (www.twitter.com/tdungjen - Tweet, Tweet!) I would have no idea that a Chicago-area woman gave up wearing pants for an entire year.

Yeah, that’s right. No pants for 365 days. She’s even wearing nightgowns to bed, according to an interview with The Chicago Tribune. (The only times she has worn pants since last October is to go to the gym and as part of the Steep’s Theater show, “In Arabia We’d All Be Kings,” she is in. It wouldn’t be wise to upset a costume designer.)

Lily Mojekwu, 33, of Edgewater, Ill., made the decision to go pants free when she began observing women in her neighborhood not wearing pants as part of their culture
or religion.

“I would see Orthodox Jewish women who only wore skirts; there’s a lot of Muslims in the neighborhood, same thing; and I’d see people wearing saris,” Mojekwu said. “I remember being in a gym and seeing a woman on the elliptical machine all covered up, wearing a long skirt.”

If it’s cold in Cincinnati, it’s even colder in Chicago. Plus, it’s the windy city and all that wind can’t be doing avid skirt and dress wearers many favors when unexpected gusts of wind cross their paths.

The idea of giving something up is generally a noble one and it could easily tie into the idea of Lent, if you’re into that sort of thing anyway. But, always one for a challenge, I want to know if I could give up wearing pants for any period of time.

Given my affinity for pants, I’m not sure how I’ll make this happen. I mean, it’s not like I’m talking about putting my pants in a drawer and saying ‘See ya next year,’ or anything quite as drastic as what Mojekwu is attempting. But, let’s be honest, for as often as most college students do their laundry, nixing pants for a year is not really feasible. And since I cut up my credit card – it was much needed – there’s no splurging on a new pants-free wardrobe.

(Although I wish I could – I have not bought one article of clothing in, like, at least two weeks. That is a serious accomplishment, not something to be taken lightly.)

So, here’s the deal:

Next week, beginning Sunday, March 1, I will attempt to give up pants for an entire week. No matter how cold or how rainy, I’ll turn a blind eye to my jeans drawer and try to be resourceful with what I’ve got to work with in my bursting-at-the-seams “closet.”

Until two years ago, when I really started to branch out, I wore jeans exclusively. Didn’t matter where I was or what the season, there was no substitute for denim. In fact, on a family vacation to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, the most unnecessarily hot place on Earth (that I’ve been to), guess what I packed in my suitcase?

Yup, pants. (By the way, the average temperature during the “cool” season in Punta Cana is 84 degrees. We were not there during “cool” season.)

So, curious as to how others might function in this scenario, I’ve enlisted a few friends of mine: Jillian Strunk, a second-year international law student and Rachel Mason, a third-year graphic design student. (To this point, my experiment and their participation have been purely conversational. Now they’re stuck.)

Sunday to Sunday Jillian, Rachel and I will chronicle our adventures of what it’s like to be pantsless on my blog with photos and write-ups.

To prepare for the week of tights, skirts and dresses, I think I’ll even do my laundry ahead of time. (It might take until March 1 to have it all taken care of.)

So, that’s what’s up. No pants for a week. Sounds a little friskier and kinkier than it really is, but it should be interesting regardless.

Remember, I’m always up for a challenge. So, if you have a suggestion, bring it on, my friend.

Interested in participating in our little fashion-related social experiment? The more the merrier, I say. Shoot me an e-mail, dungjet@email.uc.edu, if you want to partake and become a guest blogger at The Fashion Dungjen for a week.