How do you put your outfits together each day? What's your process for getting dressed?
These are questions that Jill Chivers of Shop Your Wardrobe and I have been asked to discuss, our own processes (and we talked about choosing colours here), what we think about, what goes through our heads each day.
A Systematised Approach To Putting Outfits Together
Jill explains how her process has changed over time. In the past she used dressing charts to ensure that she could dress stylishly and easily for her frequent business trips (for an example of this see my Weekly Outfit Planner and my Capsule Wardrobe Guide if you want to get an idea of how to do this).
Her process now is based around practical creativity, she almost always chooses one item and then bases her outfit around that item. Jill tends to lay out her outfits the night before if she has something important to do the next day. On other days, she may just decide that she wants to wear something (it may be an accessory or shoe) that she then builds her days outfit around. Jill almost never changes her mind once she has an idea of what she's going to wear as she feels attached to it.
Jill tweaks her outfits, a small adjustment to make the outfit work if something is not quite right, but never is there a 'floordrobe' of items that have been tried on and discarded as that would feel overwhelming and chaos in her head she couldn't put an attractive outfit together under those kinds of circumstances.
Jill's wardrobe is built around versions of the same thing. It's an inch wide in styles and colours and a mile deep in options. She has curated it over time, constantly refining her style over the years. She has created her own formula for getting dressed and so each day is deciding which pieces of her formula she'll put together to create her outfit.
The Inspiration Fairy Approach to Putting Outfits Together
For me, I have a different process, and in fact may change my mind on the entire outfit that I may have thought about the day before (after checking the weather, my diary and what I will be doing), as it just doesn't feel right, in the way I had hoped it would feel when I thought about wearing it.
I'm waiting for a visit from the inspiration fairy. I need to put on an outfit that feels mentally right for me that day, so even though my clothes are physically comfortable, they also have to suit my mental mood of the day as well, and that's not something that is easy to define, but I know it when I feel it.
Matching up an indefinable mood can be tricky, but when I hit it I know it, which is why I will try on and discard items until I hit that match (it's kind of like the feeling when you hit the jackpot on a fruit machine and all the fruits align).
I like to challenge myself to regularly to create new outfits from all my existing clothing, rather than just wear tried and true combinations. Inside my head I may think two things will work together, but sometimes the physical reality is not successful and so that outfit idea is discarded.
Then there are the fat days, when the outfit isn't making me feel good and so then I will want to change and put on something that does make me feel physically attractive.
It can feel like I have a foggy picture in my head that isn't coming to fruition in the physical world when my outfit idea isn't working.
When an outfit is not right it becomes a big distraction for me, so much that I can't think clearly or creatively when I don't feel right, which is why for me changing my outfit into something that does feel right is worth doing..
My wardrobe is more eclectic than Jill's, some days I dress dramatic, other days creative, sometimes more classic, and then others feminine or relaxed. So until I figure out exactly what I'm feeling or want to feel that daI, i can't pull the right outfit together.
If I strike upon an outfit that I really like, and nobody got to see it that day, I will often wear the same outfit the following day. This is something that Jill find's as an idea, something she'd never do.
So there you have it. A little bit more about how we think about getting dressed each day. Whether it's building an outfit around a certain item, or waiting for a feeling and mood to strike and be revealed in clothing form, two very different processes.
The Processes We Both Follow
What both Jill and I do know, is that our wardrobes are full of clothes that work for our figures and colouring, and are an expression of our style recipes. This work we have done over time and there are thousands of blog posts here to help you get that information, and if you want to know more about what really suits you both physically - body shape, colouring - and mentally - personality dressing style, then do consider doing my 7 Steps to Style program which will walk you through the " what to wear" to flatter you and help you dig so much deeper into discovering your most fabulous style.
We'd love to know what you think about when putting outfits together? Are you more process driven like Jill, or waiting for a visit from the inspiration fairy like me?
More Tips on Creating Fabulous Outfits
Your Ultimate Guide to Creating Wardrobe Capsules
Before You Throw It All Out for a Minimalist Wardrobe Read This
W is for Wardrobe Capsule
This is How to Put Together a Fabulous Outfit In Minutes
How Many Clothes Do You Need in Your Wardrobe?
Bored with Your Style? 5 Solutions to Have You Looking and Feeling Great Again
What's The One Thing You Must Do to Be Stylish
What Are the Patterns in Your Wardrobe?
