After one of those nerve wracking Monday mornings that consisted of not knowing what to wear, Matilda Kahl asked herself the usual questions, "Is this too formal? Is that too out there? Is this dress too short?". When she finally decided on what to wear she regretted her choice before she hit the subway platform. As the art director of one of the top ad agencies in New York, she has full discretion of what she wears to work. There is no strict dress code which actually made life more difficult.
Matilda showed up to work late for an important meeting, her was sweater inside out, and her stress level significantly increased. All because she did not feel comfortable in the outfit she was wearing. Matilda decided on that day (three years ago) that it would be the last day that she would feel this unnecessary panic.
The frustration of being late due to a wardrobe crisis stuck with her. She asked herself should it really be this hard? Matilda noted that men are taken seriously no matter what they wear and they definitely weren't spending the meticulous time she was in planning an outfit. She knew something had to give and thus her work uniform was born.
The solution to all of Matilda's problems were 15 silk white shirts and few pairs of black trousers. To add a touch a personal flair she wears a leather bow. In the colder months, she will wear a black blazer. She bought all the pieces in one day which cost a pretty penny, but has saved her tons in the long run.
Initially she got mixed reactions. People often asked her, "Why do you do this? Is it a bet?" Matilda could not help replying with, "Have you ever set up a bill for online auto-pay? Did it feel good to have one less thing to deal with every month?"
Today Matilda feels great in what she is wearing. Why? She didn't have to think about it.
As a girl who has suffered many late mornings due to having trouble deciding what to wear I have to applaud her for removing this issue from the equation. As a blogger and fashion lover it would be hard to wear the same thing day in and day out, but I can definitely see the benefits! I spend at least 15-30 minutes choosing an outfit daily and usually change at least once. Maybe if we all took the complication out of it we would be a lot happier.
Original story can be seen on Harper's Bazaar
