Jinger 29: New House and New Wardrobe

[cascarones]

I don't know that she's a doll or just experimenting, just as someone said dress for the job you want. I know at 22 I was very conscious of how much younger I looked (yay genetics) and as a petite woman in an all male start up, dressed much like Jinger is dressing now. Modest, heels for confidence and to keep me from slouching. Then I started to manage an engineering team and they were wary of that young girl they didn't think knew the difference between Java and coffee. So I downplayed it, tried to dress like them, didn't like it and went back once I realized they didn't care what I wore. When I was with the boyfriend at the time I dressed to please him and enjoyed the positivity from his compliments.

Somewhere along the line I settled into the mindset that fashion matters in how people perceive you, but it isn't the only thing others see and value you on most of the time*. I imagine it's much harder for someone in the public eye who's aware she's being scrutinized for pants.  

*I say most of the time because for her it is a main voice of communication via Instagram. For example, we're not talking about how Jinger's new favorite song on their website is from a Christian synth rock band, no longer the same hymn as Jeremy. I don't know much about Duggar musical rules, other than that dancing leads to corruption and would wager they stick to Christian music or classical almost exclusively. We're chatting about fashion, because that's how she's expressing her public voice at the moment.

[Kak]

On 15 August 2017 at 7:50 PM, Palimpsest said:

 Free Jinger exists to discuss their beliefs not just their clothes and cute babies.

Also, remember there may be casual viewers of the TV show who think the Duggars are just adorable reading here.  It is a good idea to tell them that these families have a very ugly side.

Yes, absolutely agree with this.  And as someone who is not hugely  into clothes and fashion it baffles me how much time is spent discussing their clothing.  

The Alyssa Webster fans are gone? Oh well.

 

[socalrules]

6 minutes ago, Kak said:

Yes, absolutely agree with this.  And as someone who is not hugely  into clothes and fashion it baffles me how much time is spent discussing their clothing.  

The Alyssa Webster fans are gone? Oh well.

 

We spend so much time talking about their clothes because there really isn't anything else  to them. We can only talk about Jinger's clothes because she doesn't go to school, have a job or seem to do anything else other than posting pictures of herself with Jeremy and talking about her wonderful husband. I think if she was out there volunteering so she can save the world we would know about it. We have to try make a change in clothing a sign of growth or rebellion because there is nothing else. Let's be real, none of these newly adult/married fundies are setting the world on fire. They are still in the same fundy box but with better clothing. Still embracing and spreading the same hateful belief system but in skinny jeans. 

Oh and I don't buy that Jinger's clothing is any type of FU to her parents. That's just wishful thinking. There is no evidence of it. She no doubt still holds the same beliefs but has a husband who has allowed her to wear better clothing. My mom has never been into wearing a lot of makeup or anything slightly revealing, more of a buttoned up shirt/slacks type of person. I have no problem wearing any of it. it's not an FU to my mom and we share nearly identical belief systems. It's clothing and doesn't mean jack. 

[Coconutwater]

7 minutes ago, socalrules said:

We spend so much time talking about their clothes because there really isn't anything else  to them. We can only talk about Jinger's clothes because she doesn't go to school, have a job or seem to do anything else other than posting pictures of herself with Jeremy and talking about her wonderful husband. I think if she was out there volunteering so she can save the world we would know about it. We have to try make a change in clothing a sign of growth or rebellion because there is nothing else. Let's be real, none of these newly adult/married fundies are setting the world on fire. They are still in the same fundy box but with better clothing. Still embracing and spreading the same hateful belief system but in skinny jeans. 

Oh and I don't buy that Jinger's clothing is any type of FU to her parents. That's just wishful thinking. There is no evidence of it. She no doubt still holds the same beliefs but has a husband who has allowed her to wear better clothing. My mom has never been into wearing a lot of makeup or anything slightly revealing, more of a buttoned up shirt/slacks type of person. I have no problem wearing any of it. it's not an FU to my mom and we share nearly identical belief systems. It's clothing and doesn't mean jack. 

If Joy had married someone more like Jeremy who didn't care what she wore and let her express herself through clothing (she has stated she doesn't like dresses) she would be in jeans and shorts, probably workout clothes most of the time. She unfortunately has to follow Austins rules about only liking women in dresses...

[Carm_88]

I hope whatever Jinger is wearing, she's doing it for herself. I don't think that's 100% true because I think that Jeremy has a great say in everything because that's what he wanted. He wanted the mild, meek girl that he could mold into the perfect Mrs. Vuolo. So, I guess time will tell. It's still early in their marriage yet. 

[singsingsing]

12 minutes ago, Coconutwater said:

If Joy had married someone more like Jeremy who didn't care what she wore and let her express herself through clothing (she has stated she doesn't like dresses) she would be in jeans and shorts, probably workout clothes most of the time.

I don't think I've ever heard Joy express a desire to wear jeans and workout clothes. I mean, maybe that is what she secretly wants, but how could any of us know that? I think what she meant was that she usually wears skirts and tops, but Austin likes her in dresses so she's trying to branch out. She usually dresses more casually, but she's dressing up for him. Joy so far seems to parrot the strict fundie line the most sincerely out of all the married siblings, so I kind of doubt she's longing to wear shorts.

We also have no way of knowing whether Jinger has changed her wardrobe because it was something that she truly wanted and Jeremy's simply supporting her, or if she's changed her wardrobe for the exact same reason Joy's wearing more dresses, because 'Babe' likes it, and what Babe wants, Babe gets. Submission 101.

[anjulibai]

Anyone ever see that Star Trek the Next Generation episode with the alien woman that changed her personality to compliment whatever man she was around? She would eventually bond to man and that man's personality became her own. 

The Duggar daughters kind of remind me of that. 

[SuhrEnity]

9 minutes ago, anjulibai said:

Anyone ever see that Star Trek the Next Generation episode with the alien woman that changed her personality to compliment whatever man she was around? She would eventually bond to man and that man's personality became her own.

One of my favourite episodes ever!

[nst]

33 minutes ago, Carm_88 said:

I hope whatever Jinger is wearing, she's doing it for herself. I don't think that's 100% true because I think that Jeremy has a great say in everything because that's what he wanted. He wanted the mild, meek girl that he could mold into the perfect Mrs. Vuolo. So, I guess time will tell. It's still early in their marriage yet. 

Jinger doesn't think for herself and that is evident.  Those new pictures just show us that Jeremy dressed her up like the bride she is and she plays a role.   

35 minutes ago, Coconutwater said:

If Joy had married someone more like Jeremy who didn't care what she wore and let her express herself through clothing (she has stated she doesn't like dresses) she would be in jeans and shorts, probably workout clothes most of the time. She unfortunately has to follow Austins rules about only liking women in dresses...

Joy would never have married someone like Ben or Jeremy.  Joy it seems the type likes Austin's passiveness.  They deserve each other.  Ben or Jeremy would have been too authoritative 

[VBOY9977]

1 hour ago, Coconutwater said:

If Joy had married someone more like Jeremy who didn't care what she wore and let her express herself through clothing (she has stated she doesn't like dresses) she would be in jeans and shorts, probably workout clothes most of the time. She unfortunately has to follow Austins rules about only liking women in dresses...

She didn't say he ONLY liked dresses, she just said he liked them but I dont think that excludes other things. Also, I've seen pictures of his half sister Rachael wear jeans on her fb and also pics of his sister Meagan in track pants and leggings on instagram so I still have a bit of hope for Joy. I do think it might take a while though

[singsingsing]

I couldn't care less what Joy (or Jinger) chooses to wear. I care only to the point that I think it's a positive thing if she feels like she has the agency and freedom to make her own wardrobe choices. That's it. Pants aren't necessarily reflective of that. If she switches to shorts and leggings and goes out and gets a tattoo and a nose piercing and dyes her hair purple but her worldview doesn't change, what difference does it make?

I used to know a woman who dressed extremely modestly, basically plain dress. Long skirts past the ankle, long sleeves, high neckline, nothing tight, solid, 'dull' colours, and she covered her hair. She was also a liberal atheist who lived with her boyfriend and went to college. Clothing can be an indicator of a person's belief system but it's not a very reliable one.

[Palimpsest]

Apparently even the vile Lori Alexander has noticed Jinger's jeans.  For once in Lori's sorry life I think she is right that Jinger "honored her parents in what she wore while under their roof and now she’s honoring her hubby. "  Unlike Lori, I don't think "it’s so beautiful!"  It is creepy.
Being discussed on this thread and thanks to @EowynW, for the full quotation.

Honestly this endless talk about clothing is turning into a dead parrot for me (ask if you don't know what that means) but I can keep scrolling on by.

1 hour ago, socalrules said:

We spend so much time talking about their clothes because there really isn't anything else  to them. We can only talk about Jinger's clothes because she doesn't go to school, have a job or seem to do anything else other than posting pictures of herself with Jeremy and talking about her wonderful husband.

Actually Jinger seems to be occasionally busy behind the camera filming dear Jeremy as he now livestreams his nasty sermons to the world.  His congregation is still only about 20 people, including children, on a good day.  

I am rather distressed to see that they have people from different parts of the US and Australia humping his leg over those awful sermons and bible studies.  There is information in those sermons about his beliefs that would save a lot of speculation here.

They update the church facebook periodically if anyone is interested.

 https://www.facebook.com/gcc.laredo

[louisa05]

Clothes are a big deal in that religious world. A very big deal. Especially for women. 

When I worked at Christian school, I was once on the committee to revise the dress code. It took five 8 hour days that summer. There were tears, insults, Bible and theology debates, even some body shaming of committee members (especially me as I was the youngest female and was thin with long legs--both things suspect if not downright sinful)...all over how long a skirt could be or whether shirts could be untucked or not, or the definition of a cap sleeve and what the Old Testament might say about it all and whether or not the New Testament eliminated what the old testament said and whose definition of Godly shoes was the most Godly...

The same school once had a staff meeting where nail polish colors were debated. It lasted hours and included people screaming Bible verses at each other; Bible verses they alleged supported their positions on which nail polish colors were appropriate and Christian and which were not. 

Jinger's choice to wear skinny jeans and shorts was likely not taken lightly. She has lived in a world where everything is spiritualized as good or evil all of her life and clothing and accessories are not exempt from those practices. Even if this is something Jeremy wanted (and honestly, there is no proof that I'm aware of that he has forced her to make these decisions--the fact that he seemed to encourage the shoes in the recent pic is not proof of anything sinister. My husband bought me a pair of Converse right before we got married. He loves them and wears them and wanted me to have a pair---and I was 37, had lived independently since I was 23, have a college degree, and then had a full time job--and I wore the Converse) or indicated that he was okay with, I doubt it was a simple choice for her. And I understand how it seems like a small thing to people who have never experienced a culture where denim as sin or virtue is a real debate, but it really isn't. It really is a change in one standard that may not seem large to those of us looking for a world without homophobia and such things, but is large to someone from Jinger's culture. Because EVERYTHING is a big spiritual deal to them. 

 

[SassyPants]

Here's my take on clothing. I'm fairly certain it's what >80% of the people on the planet feel about clothing. Make sure your private parts are covered when in public.  Others do not want to see your private parts, hence the word private. Next, and this one is really important, dress for venue and occasion. If you're going swimming, wear a swimsuit, going to church, no booty shorts, going to work on a farm or hiking, sturdy shoes with closed toes. 

If you're wearing full body wear or jeans and tennis shoes to swim, you are going to draw more attention attention to yourself, {AKA NIKE, Duggars} than if you wore the appropriate attire.

In other words, modesty does involve using common sense.

And @louisa05^- did you want to gouge your eyes out at those inane meetings?

[louisa05]

9 minutes ago, SassyPants said:

And @louisa05^- did you want to gouge your eyes out at those inane meetings?

At the nail polish meeting, yes. But that was in my second to last year (of six) and by then, I had realized they were all insane and spoke from their own biases while wrapping it up in the Bible. Mostly what it accomplished was that I spent winters painting my toenails green and blue and purple and such as a secret rebellion from then on out. 

 At the dress code committee (which was supposed to take one day--then everyone lost their minds and it was a week of that hell), I was still pretty new--summer between my first and second year of teaching. I was still only 23. I was still under the impression that these were good Christian people. And they were telling me my body was sinful merely due to its existence. My legs were too long and thin, I was told. It was "just wrong" and there was nothing I could do other than probably just wear very long, loose skirts all the time. Because if any male person realized how long my legs were, he would sin and it would be my fault. I was forced to stand up on the first day so an older female colleague could use my nearly knee length shorts and legs to demonstrate that "on the wrong girl" even shorts that long would be a "temptation" to male students and staff. Honestly, it scarred me for a long time. 

[SassyPants]

And another thing to Jinger and all her adult sibs:

Remember a few things:

Your parents' words of Leave and Cleave- JB is no longer your master (and neither is his "neck" Michelle)

#2- When JB and M married and began their lives together, THEY decided  how they would live their lives and build a family- NOT the parents Duggar or Ruark. We all know from the book and his own words, GP Duggar did NOT agree with JB and M's choices with regards to procreation, but did JB or M respect or follow GP Duggar's beliefs? NOPE. You adult , married Duggars get to set the standards and make the decisions, just as your parents did. These decisions do not need to mirror your parents' decisions.

#3- The man is the headship and the women is the neck. Not only does the neck support the head, but it guides and directs the head- without the neck, the head is useless. Women, make sure your man knows the anatomy and how it all works together.

These women have a great deal more power than they think! They need to use it.

[Hashtag Blessed]

2 hours ago, louisa05 said:

It really is a change in one standard that may not seem large to those of us looking for a world without homophobia and such things, but is large to someone from Jinger's culture. Because EVERYTHING is a big spiritual deal to them. 

Thank you for this perspective. I tend to agree with you. While clothing choice may not be quite the same as renouncing all of her family's beliefs, I definitely believe it was and is a big deal for Jinger. Good for her. I hope it is a stepping stone towards further independence. I hope I'm wrong about Jeremy, and they can grow as people and move into the 21st century together. 

[Kak]

5 hours ago, socalrules said:

embracing and spreading the same hateful belief system but in skinny jeans

Exactly. I agree that Jinger is not an interesting person, she is a reflection of the people around her. I'm glad she's not pregnant yet, and that's all I can think of to say about her.

[SassyPants]

35 minutes ago, Hashtag Blessed said:

Thank you for this perspective. I tend to agree with you. While clothing choice may not be quite the same as renouncing all of her family's beliefs, I definitely believe it was and is a big deal for Jinger. Good for her. I hope it is a stepping stone towards further independence. I hope I'm wrong about Jeremy, and they can grow as people and move into the 21st century together. 

Of course it's a big deal.

WHY? Because it's the first things someone sees, even before they open their mouths to speak their beliefs, their clothing speaks for them {PARTICULARLY IN THEIR WORLD,  maybe not so much in the world the rest of us live in, but in DUGGARVILLE, yes}.

Ginger turned her back on a portion of JB/M's belief system without having to utter a single word-

I doubt it will be her only pivot.

For those who believe that JB and M do not really care about clothing, then what was all that modesty BS that they harped on about for years on end? Were they merely blowing smoke? Nah, they care. 

[NakedKnees]

With the exception of the Nikes, I haven't seen much evidence that Jeremy is the one controlling Jinger's fashion choices. He's certainly approving of them, at the very least. But Jinger has always been interested in fashion, was relatively fashion-forward for her community, and was seen lounging around TTH in pants at least once. Compare that with knee-less Jill. To me at least, this is evidence that she might be interested in trying different clothes of her own volition. They're all still quite modest too. We still haven't seen any real swimwear, or exposed thigh or cleavage. To me, that would be mildly interesting.

Also, with the macho-ness of their world, I can't really get into the Barbie/paper doll metaphors. It's one thing to have random small preferences like Gothard's curly hair thing (gag), but I can't see men in this community openly coordinating and showing serious interest in their wife's wardrobe like the "doll" stuff implies. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if Jeremy is such a patriarchal control freak, I would really be surprised if that quality manifested itself in a good eye for and solid interest in contemporary women's fashion.

Disclaimer: Jeremy is a homophobic catholic-hating baby preacher and whether he is or isn't being controlling with Jinger's fashion has little to nothing to do with that.

[Greendoor]

3 hours ago, louisa05 said:

Clothes are a big deal in that religious world. A very big deal. Especially for women. 

 - snipped.

 

You got it, Louisa05.  

These people are the biggest hypocrites ever.  Jesus didn't say that Solomon was better dressed that than the lillies. 

 

[Henk12]

So yeah obviously Jeremy and Jinger have terrible beliefs but I have to say that Jinger just keeps looking more free (not really free, but free for a Duggar) the longer she's married. Comparing pictures and videos of before she got married to now just blows my mind. It looks like she had a million pounds on her shoulders when she was living at home. My heart breaks that she was forced to keep doing laundry and living through that hell after everything that happened. 

I'm also so pumped every time I see a new IG post from her that isn't a pregnancy announcement. I just hope she hasn't had kids yet because that's what she's chosen, not because of infertility. Hopefully her and Jeremy just got really good at NFP. I'm loving all of the outfits she's wearing. I'd love to see her take some classes but at least she can express her creativity through fashion, something she's always been into. The legalistic clothing rules are just insane with these people and make it less about God and more about rules.

 

[Thunder]

10 hours ago, anjulibai said:

Anyone ever see that Star Trek the Next Generation episode with the alien woman that changed her personality to compliment whatever man she was around? She would eventually bond to man and that man's personality became her own. 

The Duggar daughters kind of remind me of that. 

I have an aunt like that, we call her the Chameleon Girlfriend. 

[Tangy Bee]

On ‎8‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 7:15 PM, immodest_countenance said:

That being said. I still find Jeremy kinda creepy, divorced from his ignorant beliefs. No amount of cute, candid, #goals instagram photos of Jinger and him together distract from the serious power imbalance between them. Its not the age either, Im a only couple months older than Jinger and it wouldn't be weird to date someone his age. 

Hands clapping for this! I always wondered if things would have been different if Jeremy had met Jana first. But he was friends with Ben. Jessa is married to Ben. Jinger and Jessa are tight. I really believe Jessa was a strong influence for the relationship. We all know Jana and Jessa have a little negative history because of a jewelry box. Was Jana not "meek" enough??

[patsymae]

On ‎8‎/‎9‎/‎2017 at 7:27 AM, cascarones said:

Maybe this isn't the right place to ask, but I assume it's easier than digging through tons of gossip articles or sermon listening. Can anyone summarize Jeremy's Catholic hate? 

Catholics are hateful idol worshippers.