When you are a kid, you have someone who picks out your complete outfit down to the socks you wear. It was simple, but if you were anything like me, you hated it. My mother always put me in pink t-shirts and bright teal leggings. To her defense, I looked great in it and all the ladies at church thought I was the cutest, much to my dismay. In my mind, I always wanted to dress like my cool, very mall goth, older sister Anna. She had red-orange hair, the only color our Texas high school would let her have, with swoopy bangs adorned with skull shaped pins. Her wore exclusively black skinny jeans with off the shoulder baggy t-shirts. Whether you were the envious little sister or the experimental big sister; we have all wanted to dress ourselves in a way that makes us confident and happy. So why is it so damn hard?
There are three steps to getting the wardrobe of your dream. Step one is identifying what you love in fashion, specifically on yourself. Step two is finding pieces from boutiques, general stores, or thrift stores. Step three is making the outfits fit your vision.
Step One: Identifying what you love in fashion.
Have you ever bought clothing in the store, then hated it the next day? You were probably influenced into buying it because you have an idea of who would wear that: a successful, pretty, and stylish person. It’s likely that you don’t feel like these things yet, or that is not the style that will make you feel those things. A great way to prevent this is to not buy something when you see it first. Wait a month, or maybe three, to buy something. If you are still thinking about it, then you are more much more likely to actually like the product and wear it consistently. This is also a great way to save money.
If you are not content with the style of clothing that you are wearing right now, then take a look around you. Especially in a college campus, you will see people with so many different styles of clothing. When someone catches your eye ask yourself “What do I like about them?” It could be their shoes, the silhouette of their outfit, the colors, the use of patterns, or it could just be their face.
Ask yourself questions like …
- “Do I like the fit of their clothing?”
- “Do I like the way they are wearing it?”
- “Are the colors and fabric interesting to me?”
- “Is it the pattern that is alluring to you?”
From this point you can start compiling a list, on paper or in your head, of what you like in fashion. Look online to see if this style has a name or just for more inspiration. You can do the same thing on Pinterest that you did in person, but now you have so much more content to look through. Getting yourself to start thinking about fashion in a critical way will help you better be able to buy clothing you know you will like.
The next part of this process is to look through your closet and see what sparks joy, and what aligns with the style of others that you know you like. Where these two things overlap is where you want to start with your fashion style. Make a note, that the style you see in others may be the same kinds of clothing that you have, just styled differently to give a different effect.
Now you are on to the next step of getting more types of those clothes.
Step Two: Actually finding the clothing.
My first piece of advice to you when shopping for clothing: Never, never, get clothing that will not fit you.
All this does is make your feel self-conscious about how much the waist band of your pants digs into your stomach or how the underwire of your corset top will not stay under your chest. Your clothing should be made to fit you, not the other way around. The problems with your clothing are not a problem with your own body
Now if you can sew, this is a whole other story. Look at clothing and see its potential, not just what is in front of you. Even if you can’t sew, get some safety pins and you are golden. When you are shopping for clothes at the thrift store or flea market, look at the fabrics and color first. You can edit the fit slightly. One thing I will tell you is that with pants, get a pair that fits the waist and hips correctly. This is very difficult to alter. If the length doesn’t fit well or they are just plain boring, you can always edit this.
If you are willing to spend more money, look at designer shops that have a more unique style. You can look at places like Minga London for grunge and alternative fashion, SKIMS for basics, or at individual artists collections. An individual artist or a more unified collection is going to make clothing with much more intention and uniqueness than a large company. Thing about the intricately embroidered jeans or the detailed prints that look like, and usually are, a painting. This will give more character to your outfits.
The best part: shoes. You can use shoes to change the entire look of an outfit. Shoes can dress up or down a look. Think about a mini skirt and a t shirt. A pair of sneakers would make this outfit a casual daily look, but a pair of knee-high Gogo boots would completely change the vibe. This is also a great way to make an outfit slightly more androgenous. Match the opposite gendered shoe to your outfit, for example high heels with a suit. Having a good variety of shoes you like will give you many more possibilities with the same clothing.
Step Three: Making your clothing yours
Now that you have the basic fabrics and fit that you like, its time to style it. There are many ways to do this without altering your clothing, like jewelry, scarves, layering, gloves, or belts. There are also ways to do this by altering the clothing like sewing, bleaching, painting, embroidering, beading, or cutting. Aspects like hair, makeup, and nails can also influence the way you look.
Starting with accessories you can …
- Add a belt or multiple belts
- Tie a scarf around your neck, waist, or wrap it around your head
- Layer jewelry of different thicknesses
- Layer clothing, such as a lace cami under an off the shoulder top
- Add a jacket
Now with ways you can alter your clothing if you so desire, you can …
- Bleaching designs into the fabric (this works best with cotton)
- Alter the fit by sewing
- Mix acrylic paint and conditioner to be able to paint on fabric (set it with a hair dryer)
- Sew beads or buttons on your clothing
- Embroider designs into your clothing
There are so many more ways to make your clothing yours. You can google tutorials for other ways than the ones I listed, or you can just wing it and see what you like.
Unlike your Pinterest feed may lead you to believe, the perfect wardrobe doesn’t stumble across your phone late one sleepless night. These are going to be items that you collect slowly over time. Each one will have a funny (or sad) story attached to it. That’s what will make your style yours.