With every new season comes the new challenge of deciding whether or not your old clothes still fit your current style. For me, it can be super difficult to follow trends of the season as I find most of them are catered towards the beauty standard. Whether it be skinny jeans or animal print, trendy styles are typically built for one body type and are only meant to last a season or two. However, in order to avoid the trends of the season and build a wardrobe to last, we must ask ourselves to discover our individual style.
When it comes to personal style I think the most difficult part is choosing the clothes and patterns that will make me feel comfortable. Using apps such as Pinterest can make this process even harder due to the lack of body representation. Too often clothing brands and style inspiration are shown on models who only portray one body type. Thankfully certain platforms, most notably TikTok, have exposed me to a wider range of influencers who have all different bodies. I have found that filling my social media feeds with bodies that look more like my own have given me more confidence and more style ideas. Some of my favorite stylists to follow are Remi Bader, Kelsey Kotzur, and Ellie May.
In addition to discovering style inspiration that resembles me, I have also found it helpful to start with the basics. Once you have basic tees, jeans, shorts, etc, then you can build in different patterns and styles that will incorporate some individuality into your closet. Some things I like to focus on when I am picking out new clothes are what colors and styles are going to accentuate my other features. This ensures that I am choosing clothes that I like, but also colors that will bring out my eyes or a silhouette that I feel confident in. I try to stray away from getting the same piece of clothing in multiple colors because I find it limits the different styles I can try out. Instead, I try and pick out styles that will add a unique feature to my closet and might even be a bit out of my comfort zone.
Ultimately, I think the most important thing to consider when discovering personal style is that the options are unlimited! Whether you want to follow the trends or try out something completely different, as long as you feel comfortable and confident then it is the right style for you. I also try to remember that it is okay for style to change. It’s natural for our interests to fluctuate with the latest trends and our self-growth over the years. I still struggle with defining my personal style, but I realized that it’s not about fitting into a designated fashion style, but rather discovering what feels good on my body.
