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I have never really been considered fashionable. My childhood was spent in whatever my mother dressed me in- it wasn't until middle school that I realized that my high-waisted straight-leg jeans and tucked-in polo shirts were dorky. I have always been self-conscious, so I spent the next few years trying vainly to dress like my peers.
In the middle of my freshman year of high school we moved to northern Kentucky, right on the border of Ohio, and I entered a new school for the first time since kindergarten. And this new school required uniforms. The next two and a half years were fun for me- collecting neutral-colored but exciting shoes, wearing mismatching socks and crazy earrings, and dolling up my incredibly long hair.
However, we moved to Tennessee two weeks before my senior year of high school started. Now I had to follow a strict dress code...I would have preferred to have a uniform. I wore dress pants and collared shirts day in and day out for that entire year.
When college hit, I was attacked by the freshman...well, thirty-five or so, and launched into an up-and-down weight battle that is still going on. I wore ill-fitting jeans (even short lengths are too long on me) and lots of knit tops from the junior's department.
Yes, I wanted pretty clothes, but I didn't know what I was looking for. In fact, I still don't.
All I know for sure is that I want a wardrobe that I can mix-and-match, and I want it to be primarily dresses. I discovered in my last year of school that I was much more comfortable and felt more like myself when I wore dresses instead of pants, and I've only worn jeans three times so far this year.
Unfortunately, my wardrobe isn't very well planned. I need to design outfits that can go together from the beginning, and then start mixing and matching from there. The thing is, I don't know what I want.
A lot of people can define their style: preppy, punk, rocker chic, trendy, vintage. What's mine? Eclectic, I guess, which is a nice way of saying that nothing I own goes together.
I have to embark on a planned journey towards a real style. And believe me, I've read the books about "what fashion staples every woman needs." But what do I need with khaki slacks and oxfords?
I've found a starting point...but I hope it's not too creepy. I've just been a huge fan of The Clothes Horse for about a year now, and I've realized that her style is the closest to what I'd like to wear. I've been rereading her blog archives and studying the pieces that she has, trying to figure out what pieces I need to look for.
Like I said...it's kind of stalkerish. But I'm really fashionably desperate. And I love her style.
Baby steps towards dressing better, that's all it is. It's going to be a long process...I hope everything works out in the end!
