Panties by the Ounce
The other day I found myself, once again, traveling through Heathrow airport. Whether landing, departing, or transiting through, I always try to find the time to stop at the charmingly delightful Fortnum & Mason dining bar. In the company of friends, travel companions, and my favorite of all, my husband, we always have caviar & champagne no matter what time of day or night it is. There is something about the combination that is always celebratory & slightly wickedly decadent. Who wouldn't enjoy capturing such moments?
That got me thinking about lingerie & the comparative similarities. By its very definition caviar is a delicacy, consisting of salt-cured fish eggs of the Acipenseridae family of fish; I believe that translates to the Sturgeons, first eaten in the 15th century. Those delicious little eggs are very expensive! So exclusive they are sold by the ounce; now consider if lingerie were sold by the ounce! I think it's just as elusive & difficult to craft such delicacies as lingerie, spun from the imagination.
Those audacious little fish eggs called caviar signal an occasion marker that used to be attainable only by the rich & famous. Sadly, some still feel that way about beautiful lingerie. Caviar is so precious and delicious that it commands you to savor the moment, much as an exquisite lingerie set will take your breath away & you will forever remember the first time it was worn. Now, here is where the comparison in ounces really diverges.
Indulgences from either caviar, events, or lingerie, will live on in your memories. However, once you've consumed the caviar, that is the memory. With your monies invested in gorgeous lingerie, every time you see it you will remember with a smile the joy of the original occasion. Plus, once you have it on again, there is the chance to create new memories or revisit the original moments of joy. This is the divergent point, where the perceived value of luxury can transgress a moment and not only hold it's value over time, but create added value in future memories.
Most of the worlds caviar is exported from Russia or Iran. Most of the exquisitely designed & hand crafted lingerie, is created in Italy & France. Caviar is sold by the ounce, lingerie by a different measure. But what if they were both in the same currency, by the ounce. Would you still see it as an extravagance, or would you value the potential longevity of your investment? Both are an investment in joy. Release yourself to joy & the ounces fly away!
-Jane