The Creation of My Style and Finding Yours!

I was blessed with a cute mom. My kid closet was chock full of striped sweater dresses, Joe's skinny jeans, and darling prints. And yet, all I wanted to wear were my sister's ruby red, spandex hot pants for gymnastics. Boy, what a look. I've always been in love with fashion, sewn clothes for my dolls, filled notebooks upon notebooks with sketches. When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, the answer was never far from "fashion designer." That interest was always there, but the palette was definitely acquired. Just before seventh grade started, Abbie J. and I stopped in all the shops at the mall: Zumiez, Pacsun, Rue 21, Charlotte Russe, Aeropostale, American Eagle, and more, and more. I bought something from nearly each one. What does that say? That I definitely didn't have a consistent style. My skater shirt and polka-dot, pencil skirt were on opposite ends of the spectrum. Was I edgy or romantic? I had no idea. It was just prior to sophomore year in high school that I began figuring it out.

Mom and I make a trip to the Park City Outlets at the end of each summer. That year, I fell in love with J. Crew and Lucky, who have been kind to my heart ever since. When I shopped at each of these stores, however, many pieces that I took home still ended up only being worn once or twice. Though I'd found two shops that I absolutely adored, my pieces were inconsistent with each other. My band tees didn't quite look right hanging up next to my ruffled blouses. Each store carries so much, how can you be sure that what you pick will go together? You simply don't walk into the market and grab a jar of relish and box of twinkies for dinner. You've got to develop a taste for what you love and build a kitchen around it.

I've always imagined myself to be a dream girl, someone who leads a life fit for movie screens. And my movie is a whimsy fairytale; full of sweet summers, cherry stained lips, and powder blush.

In my movie, my room looks like this:

Angelic, dreamy, tasting like honey.

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Imagine your life as a movie. Who are you? How do you speak? When people describe you, what do they say? What's your lifestyle? And what do you wear?

In my movie, I'm a girl next door; sweet, polite, feminine, classic and home-y. I'm an angel; something of a hazy dream, light and living in the clouds. And I'm candy; bright, pink, all sugar and fun. I speak softly, warmly, in an often old-fashioned way, and about romantic things. All of these together make someone whimsical and wild, golden and glowing, while also fruity and quirky. People describe me to be "something else", "magical", "dreamy", "sweet", "bubbly". I live in a heaven, surrounded by potted vines and flowers, in a sweet and cozy, little home, with cupboards full of cinnamon and sugar, a freezer full of wild huckleberry ice cream. I dance and sing nonsensical strings of words here, paint my toes, paint portraits, and read--about love, about whatever hobby I've just found myself in, about what's going on around me, about how to be kind. And I wear everything that someone who lives this life would wear: flowy gowns, cream and peach palettes, floral patterns, soft, loose, lace textures.

Some classic, American, girl next door styles:

Some angelic, dreamy, light styles:

Some sweet, playful, candy styles:

A wardrobe is all about fluidity from piece to piece, so how can I have both elegant angel wear and youthful, candy inspired clothes? My billowing, cream blouses and warm, chocolate brown sweaters are soft and gentle. My red dress, bright as a maraschino cherry is so different in color. The connection is femininity. And it's found in the ornate details. Every piece can be broken up into so many details: texture, color, material, shape, pattern, and more, and more. That cream blouse has the same feeling as my red dress. It's thin and flowy, loose, and really they have the same style of sleeves. There are similarities in far more than color or silhouette. Keep those things in mind when you look to create a complimentary closet.

When I shop, I'm wildly particular about these details. A dress can have the loveliest print, color, and material, but simply look too harsh for me. Maybe the neckline is too sharp, maybe it's more angular than curved. Shape is one of my favorite aspects of a piece. I love to be hugged around my curves and I look for soft movements in my clothes, like this:

Though the neckline is sharp and plunging, it's made to look softer with scalloped material. The poofy sleeves and ruffled layers on this dress make it so much more feminine. I love it.

Here's another beautiful dress that's too sharp for me. See how the seams protrude and the lines of this dress are apparent and straight, rather than dainty and gentle?

Another important factor to style is the way that clothes treat you. One reason some J. Crew tops never traveled with me is that they were too loose for my shape. I'm naturally bustier and loose tops tend to make me look like a balloon, so I go for tighter fitting silhouettes to accentuate my waist. I wear gold jewelry because I love warm tones and I am warm toned.

We're told to enjoy the journey, sometimes I struggle with mine, but this one was never hard to love. It's all about intuition, being able to know what you love to wear and why. Ask yourself those questions we went over earlier. If you're serious, write them down and answer them.

Who are you?

How do you speak?

When people describe you, what do they say?

What's your lifestyle?

And what do you wear?

Imagine yourself in your movie, dress the way your best self would, sing like her, behave like her, be her.

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That was going to be the end of the post. I turned to mom and asked what I should name it, and she said "Something about knowing yourself from the outside, in." I asked what she meant and she said that sometimes people lose their identity. People in abusive relationships often feel stripped of their identities. Sometimes they can't picture themselves in their minds, can't imagine their hair, their eyes, their face, their body. The mind loses that. And it takes healing and connection to be able to see yourself in your mind, to know what things will look good with the color scheme of your skin, lips, and hair, with your tones, shapes, and style. I loved that, wise momma has done it again.