Over about the past year or so I’ve seriously been doing some soul searching to figure out what exactly my personal style is. Warning: This is kind of a lengthy post so skip to the last paragraph if you’d prefer not to read all of the gory details!
Now as I was saying …personal style is one of those weird things that is constantly evolving and it definitely can get pretty tricky. It all started when one day I unofficially decided that I had outgrown Forever21. Seriously. A major milestone people. A milestone that came with a ton of other realizations as well. I mean, for the majority of my young adult life I swore by shopping pretty much mostly cheaper fast fashion. And then I started to realize that I just wasn’t drawn to it anymore. But truth be told, the signs had been there for awhile and I just hadn’t caught on. Key signs – increasingly not being able to find anything I liked in said stores such as Forever21, being willing to pay more for better well made items, less interest in trends, purchasing of bigger ticket items that could be worn multiple times, craving more versatility and well made key pieces – and the list goes on and on.
Like I said, I really hadn’t caught on to the signs that my personal style was evolving. Maybe I thought I was just stuck in a closet rut, or a shopping rut I dunno. But whatever it is I thought was going on, one thing was clear I just could not figure my own style out. Frustrating isn’t even the word people. Some serious re-evaluating was definitely in order. Of course I immediately took to Pinterest, because I mean, Pinterest has the answers for everything right? I got to work pinning on a couple of secret Pinterest boards – one for a shopping list, and one full of stylish outfits and ladies I admired. And guess what, looking at my new Pinterest boards, my current style was the exact opposite of everything I pinned. An overhaul was very much in order at this point! Enter operation closet cleanout(s). I used that little plural there because I probably have cleaned out and donated/sold about half of my wardrobe in the past 6 months or so. Talk about separation anxiety!
Slowly (very slowly) but surely things are starting to come along style wise for me again. One of the most recent and best things I’ve done has been to seriously look at my outfits (it helps when you blog and photograph most of your outfits) and see what exactly I’ve worn that I’ve loved. I learned so much about my style just by doing this. As much as I pin those ultra stylish ultra chic minimalistic looks, sadly, they just aren’t meant for me. I’m definitely more girly in my style. I love fun pieces, I love prints and color, but whereas before I was just buying all the trends and not really thinking about building a cohesive wardrobe, I’m totally into investing in pieces that I know I’ll get lots of wear now, and I no longer participate in trends if they don’t fit my personal style! I’m learning how to incorporate my love of prints and colors into something that’s a bit more grown up and sophisticated. I’ve begun to build a wardrobe that I can be proud of – full of versatile pieces that reflect my personality. My next style goal is to infuse more chic in my day to day ensembles! But, in a way that fits my personality and general style aesthetic. What do you think – fun chic? Is that even a thing? I dunno, but I am definitely determined to find out!
(image via: All the Pretty Things)
