Clothing is powerful: just as a carefully rolled cuff might speak to an eye for subtlety, or a tiny gold nose ring, a wayward edge, the sweep of a neckline might be a first step toward finally saying "I am a woman."

In the closet, somewhere between the favorite dresses and perfectly worn-in t-shirts, hand-me-downs, this-old-things, and pieces never worn but somehow impossible to throw away, ideas also live. Clothes can help answer questions about who we are, what we value, and what we want to express to the world.

Five people across New Hampshire and Maine open their closets and explain the choices behind their clothing.

This story was originally broadcast on NHPR in 2019.