polychromatic (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
polychromatic) wrote2019-02-06 05:09 pm
polychromatic) wrote2019-02-06 05:09 pm
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For most of my life, the importance of clothing has been somewhat lost on me. Not the fact that it exists and I need to wear it - I'm no exhibitionist after all! But not too long after being old enough to choose my own clothing, I went ahead and decided it wasn't that important and put little to no effort in at all. Sure, it had been fun to wear cute dresses when I was really young, but it was pretty apparent early on that I was going to be awkward in every definition of the word, and clothing wasn't going to help. So I pretty much lived in baggy Club Monaco logo sweatshirts and loose jeans. It was easy not having to try and coordinate an outfit, especially if no one was going to take notice anyway. To this day, a few of my friends will still reminisce about how that was pretty much my uniform. I felt like an ugly duckling and it was easier to dress for that mentality, to reinforce the idea that I didn't really care how I looked anyway, so no point drawing attention to it! The fact that I was an absolute Scrooge with my money also didn't help. I hated spending what I didn't need to, and no one was going to catch me paying for anything from Aritzia or Lulu Lemon, least of all because I had nothing to show off and no one to impress.
I still don't have much to show off and no one to impress, but I'm a little bit more relaxed on my spending habits and have learned how great it feels to be "put together" on occasion. Of course I still have ugly duckling days - I am under no pretenses about my natural looks. But there are also days where I will do my hair and make-up (neither of which I am very good at) and dress up to go out and run errands, just because I feel like it! I have also discovered that I have a very hard time walking away from things that I like! The solution is often not to try anything on if I'm already balking at the price tag; it's just safer that way. And while I still very much play it safe in my clothing choices (I am still my normal, introverted, meek self, after all) I did make two clothing purchases this year that - while not exactly off-the-rails - are pretty groundbreaking for me!
(I did not count anything from "My Year With Frock Box" because even if I purchased and loved a piece, I did not outright choose it for myself, so I feel like it counts less. Most of my Frock Box purchases were pretty safe anyway, aside from what I have dubbed the "Jubilee Jacket" - a bright yellow Moto jacket. Which I love, by the way.)
I generally don't do patterns, and I really don't do one-pieces. Yet here we are! When I first saw this piece, I'd thought it was a cute dress. When I realized it was a jumpsuit, I figured "eh, I'll try it anyway". And then I promptly fell in love! Sure, it's a little awkward when it comes to using the bathroom, but this outfit makes me feel fun, mature, and sophisticated - all things that are not words I would use to describe myself. It almost imbues me with confidence because I feel great while wearing this jumpsuit, and it's been a bit of an ego boost to have people compliment me on it in person and on good ol' Facebook. I have constantly looked for excuses to wear it, which is very unlike me because I try to avoid being inconvenienced as much as possible.
Sweater dresses are not adventurous, I will admit. But the colours on this particular sweater dress, yowza! I don't typically do a lot of bright colours in my everyday closet; my palette is definitely a bit muted, more grays and whites and dark blues. But I saw this on a sale rack in Anthropologie (a very dangerous store for my wallet, I have learned) and was head-over-heels. I was swimming in the medium size, so promptly searched out an XS online after dreaming (literally!) about this dress for three nights. Despite the "baggy sweater" basically being my high school uniform, I have started to wear more form-fitting things in my 20's and onwards because my very forgiving metabolism means I have a decent figure for someone who does no exercise and eats what she wants. I'm trying to enjoy it while I can! So this bright-coloured, loose-fitting silhouette is a bit of a departure for me. And honestly, I'm not even really sure I look good in this sweater dress, but it's so cheery and cute and has yet to fail at putting a smile on my face. I just feel happy - and more than a little cosy - when I'm in this outfit, which is really all you can ask of a piece of clothing.
Slowly becoming more adventurous and learning to enjoy "dressing up" has been a lot of fun for me! I do sometimes wish I had already reached this stage in my 20's, but I've always been a late bloomer. Now if only I could feel the same way about footwear....
I still don't have much to show off and no one to impress, but I'm a little bit more relaxed on my spending habits and have learned how great it feels to be "put together" on occasion. Of course I still have ugly duckling days - I am under no pretenses about my natural looks. But there are also days where I will do my hair and make-up (neither of which I am very good at) and dress up to go out and run errands, just because I feel like it! I have also discovered that I have a very hard time walking away from things that I like! The solution is often not to try anything on if I'm already balking at the price tag; it's just safer that way. And while I still very much play it safe in my clothing choices (I am still my normal, introverted, meek self, after all) I did make two clothing purchases this year that - while not exactly off-the-rails - are pretty groundbreaking for me!
(I did not count anything from "My Year With Frock Box" because even if I purchased and loved a piece, I did not outright choose it for myself, so I feel like it counts less. Most of my Frock Box purchases were pretty safe anyway, aside from what I have dubbed the "Jubilee Jacket" - a bright yellow Moto jacket. Which I love, by the way.)
I generally don't do patterns, and I really don't do one-pieces. Yet here we are! When I first saw this piece, I'd thought it was a cute dress. When I realized it was a jumpsuit, I figured "eh, I'll try it anyway". And then I promptly fell in love! Sure, it's a little awkward when it comes to using the bathroom, but this outfit makes me feel fun, mature, and sophisticated - all things that are not words I would use to describe myself. It almost imbues me with confidence because I feel great while wearing this jumpsuit, and it's been a bit of an ego boost to have people compliment me on it in person and on good ol' Facebook. I have constantly looked for excuses to wear it, which is very unlike me because I try to avoid being inconvenienced as much as possible.
Sweater dresses are not adventurous, I will admit. But the colours on this particular sweater dress, yowza! I don't typically do a lot of bright colours in my everyday closet; my palette is definitely a bit muted, more grays and whites and dark blues. But I saw this on a sale rack in Anthropologie (a very dangerous store for my wallet, I have learned) and was head-over-heels. I was swimming in the medium size, so promptly searched out an XS online after dreaming (literally!) about this dress for three nights. Despite the "baggy sweater" basically being my high school uniform, I have started to wear more form-fitting things in my 20's and onwards because my very forgiving metabolism means I have a decent figure for someone who does no exercise and eats what she wants. I'm trying to enjoy it while I can! So this bright-coloured, loose-fitting silhouette is a bit of a departure for me. And honestly, I'm not even really sure I look good in this sweater dress, but it's so cheery and cute and has yet to fail at putting a smile on my face. I just feel happy - and more than a little cosy - when I'm in this outfit, which is really all you can ask of a piece of clothing.
Slowly becoming more adventurous and learning to enjoy "dressing up" has been a lot of fun for me! I do sometimes wish I had already reached this stage in my 20's, but I've always been a late bloomer. Now if only I could feel the same way about footwear....