I came across an article in the Vogue May 2010 issue about age, fashion and experimenting and it stroked a familiar note. The writer wonders about her clothing choices now that she is about to change decade. She writes : “the closer I get to turning 30, the more I feel I need less – less decoration, less variety of color and print, less stuff to distract me from what I can (finally) call my style.” I could recall turning 30 and how I re-evaluated my wardrobe options. I was suddenly more attracted to knee-length skirts and more tailored clothes. The shirts and pants once reserved for work began to mix with my weekend clothes as I found the elegance and the cut more interesting. I needed less because I knew more who I was.
The Vogue writer also wonders: “Isn’t it time I leave all that experimentation behind and join the ranks of women whose wardrobes are so consistently to-the-point that getting dressed happens as easily as breathing” Did I stop experimenting? The answer is no. Do I want a wardrobe full of “consistent” clothes? The answer is again no. For people like us Chictopians who express who we are and how we feel through our clothes, experimenting is what keeps us alive. We will always be looking for the next best thing. It’s not a question of age, it’s a question of personality.
So what did I learn from the last 10 years? I learned to let go of the clothes I wished so badly would fit me but didn’t. It could be because of the style, the cut, my height or my weight. Believe me, I was mourning but once I got over the fact that the skinny jeans were not for me, I realized that there were pants as stylish. It is still hard sometimes to put back on the rack a beautiful skirt because it is way too short even if I saw a girl in it that rocked it. It’s about accepting who I am even if sometimes I would love to be someone else even if it’s just by wearing their clothes.
My advice : keep experimenting, have fun with it and limit the faux-pas by sticking to the clothes that has the best cut for you. We are all looking for our style as a metaphor of who we are, we would all love to know right now to avoid all the mistakes but the style is an ongoing process so is our life journey.
(Reference: Jane Herman’s article Minimal Returns, Vogue May 2010)
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