I've never taken the time to sit down and think about my style. I tend to make (or buy) clothes one piece at a time, without considering the whole look and wardrobe. That means I end up with a lot of great pieces, but often nothing goes together, and I don't always find that what I make suits me. Today I'm analyzing what I'm drawn to style-wise.
For everyday clothes, I have a few serious requirements and deal-breakers.
Practicality - Warm winter garments, cool summer garments, and everything easy to wear and move around in. I need to be able to walk, run, sit on the ground, ride a bike, cook, work, and lift heavy things. Fitted cuffs so I can use my hands, and not too many things dangling off of me.
Fit - I like having a waist. With a full bust and pear-shaped hips, I would easily drown in my clothes if the waist wasn't defined. Good bust and shoulder fit is nice, but less crucial.
Colors - I don't have a single capsule palette, but there are colors I like and ones I despise.
Pants - It's not pants.
I need to be honest and admit my style sense shifts and changes constantly. The above parameters pretty much stay the same, but the mood is always changing. Sometimes I prefer bright colors and big, bold prints! Other times I spend a year wearing all black.
Right now I feel like I am reverting to the style sense I had in my teens and early 20s. I am moving away from simple brights and clean lines and back to layers, a longer silhouette, and more texture.
My current idealized style is captured by most of the stuff on my pinterest board. (My real, everyday style is based a lot more in practicality and what I can find!) I can sum up that idealized style in a few genres:
Cute Librarian
Folk Style
Mori Girl, especially the darker Mori looks
Vintage and historic-inspired: prairie style and 1910s through 1950s
What do these all have in common?
Skirts - all the time, mostly full and longer
Layers - cardigans, petticoats, several dresses together, aprons, scarves
Modesty - I don't have a modesty agenda, it's just the most cute and practical to me
Small prints and patterns - florals, plaid, stripes; mostly calm, occasionally LOUD!
Feminine - ruffles, ribbons, and delicate touches
Potential Problems
Hair - I always wear my hair pinned up, but I find that some looks just feel wrong without a mane of hair rippling all over the place. Hair done up combined with more modest elements (like a high neckline or long sleeves) can read as frumpy.
Accessories - I don't wear a ton of jewelry, mostly just earrings, because they don't get in my way. If an outfit really needs a necklace and bracelets to complete the look, it's probably not for me.
Fit - With all those layers, the waist can often be lost.
Warm Weather - I feel so much more at home in my winter clothes. The length and layers really suit me. It's a challenge to make my style ideas work for spring/summer.
Colors
My YES! colors include dark turquoise, moss and olive greens, and slate blue. Warm touches include fuchsia, plummy purples, pumpkin orange, saffron or dark golden yellow, and cinnamon red or brick red.
Looking at them all together seems like a lot of brights, but I tend to mix them up and spread them out with the calmer colors and neutrals. Plus a darker or less saturated tone of any of these colors is also a yes for me.
For neutrals, I almost always prefer cool tones. Greys, charcoal, and the occasional unbleached linen. Sometimes off-white. Also note the huge black chunk at the bottom!
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| My Colors! |
My NO WAY colors are pretty much any pastel, peachy colors, and light teal. Neons are a no for me. Most "royal" or jewel tones and most reds are hard for me also.
Warm neutrals are not generally for me. I can do some browns, but I am not fond of rich chocolate brown or most beige-y tones, or any warm neutral that can't be friends with a black shoe.
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| Ew, no thanks. |
I am not sure if what I am drawn to in the abstract is what I really like on me. What I pin on Pinterest isn't necessarily what I sew, and what I sew isn't always what I end up wearing! I get dazzled by lovely fabric prints, but often find I don't wear the things I make from them. I pin a lot of plainer things, but don't usually sew them.
Bringing those elements into alignment - what I drool over, what I sew, and what I wear - would make my sewing more productive.
That's why my Me Made May goals include:
- Daily outfit photos
- Styling separates differently
- Trying new style elements
I'm excited to get started!
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