Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Taking Back the Closet

Have I ever told you I'm a bit obsessive? Well, I am. As a kid I had to match completely, down to my socks... except for this one day I decided that "rainbow" was a coordinating color scheme. When I get into a project, I can get so focused that I ignore people around me when they are talking to me (not purposely, of course). When I meet a new friend that I like, I basically talk about them non-stop. "So and so said they skipped third grade... can you believe that?!?" A couple of years ago, I decided I was going to wear nothing but cowboy boots for a week... then it was dresses... now it's scarves and cocktail rings.

Recently, my project has been organizing the apartment. Since we have such a small place and we brought home so much stuff from Christmas, I'm going through every cabinet, drawer and chest and getting rid of what we don't need. It feels refreshing. I've been pretty productive, but not quite obsessive... until yesterday.

I was completely avoiding the closet at any cost. If I went in there with my current state of mind, I'm not sure how I would react. Would I find myself throwing away half of my wardrobe? Would I sink into a deep depression about the state of my fashion sense? I felt like I was in a deep fashion rut and no amount of can-do new year's spirit could fix it. Then, as I was reading my blogs, I came across this post by a blogger I hadn't read before. She is a mom, pregnant and busy as heck... and fashionable! I found myself thinking, "I hope I dress that fashionably when I'm pregnant." Then I slapped myself and said, "You could be dressing that fashionably now!!!! Get your butt in gear, girl!" Thats when the obsessing began.

Suddenly, I'm looking for inspiration and researching how to get my wardrobe in gear. I even found a program online that lets you catalog your clothes and save potential outfits... kind of like in Clueless, but not quite as cool, cause it doesn't have a "Dress Me" option. I immediately texted my friend Megan, cause she's about as fashionable as they come. I asked her to help me assess my closet and see where I'm at. She came over today and took a look. Turns out, the situation is workable. With a little creativity and a little dedication, I can climb out of my clothing funk for the new year. We're saving up for our Italy trip at the moment, so it's going to require a little bit of thrift too. I do love a challenge.

So after a review of what I already own, Megan and I decided on a few basics that would make the stuff I already own go even further. Here are some things I'll be looking for next time I'm out:

A Black Blazer
Blazers go with almost everything. In fact, everyone I've mentioned this to is pretty much mortified at the fact that I don't already have one. There are long and short versions, I'm going to try both and see which is more flattering.


A Waist Belt
A lot of my sweaters, dresses and long tops could be revived with one of these babies.


New Jeans
Don't a new pair of jeans or two always breathe life into a warn out wardrobe? I think so. I'm going to look into getting a pair of skinnies like the ones above to go with flowy tops and boots and a more relaxed fit like the ones below for a different look.

I'm on the hunt and I'll keep you updated with how I do. I just want to end this post by saying, I have NEVER claimed to be a fashion expert... I'm just a girl trying to reclaim her wardrobe... one pair of clearance jeans at a time.

Images #1-4: Nordstrom
Image #5: Lucky Brand Jeans

No comments:

Post a Comment