I picked up a book called "I Don't Have a Thing to Wear" by Judie Taggart and Jackie Walker about a month ago and I am completely smitten with it! I feel like it's a 7-step program for clothesaholics such as myself. The book is absolutely brilliant in its simplicity. The information in the book is all common sense but it really made me think about my closet and my shopping habits. I have a very full closet. VERY full. I run out of hangers on a regular basis. However, I spend more mornings than I care to admit searching for something to wear only to throw my hands up and exclaim in tears "I hate all my clothes!" Why?! Why has this happened? Nick thinks I'm insane and, honestly, so did I until I read this book.
The first step in the book involves some math. Figure out how much of your day is spent doing certain tasks. For instance, if you work 5 days a week and on the weekend you go motorbiking, approx. 70% (5/7) of your closet should be work appropriate clothes and the remaining 30% (2/7) should be motorbiking attire. Makes complete sense, right? Well, after you do that go to your closet and separate your clothes into the categories you made up and see how close they come. My closet was completely out of line with my life.
The next step is to determine what is your personal sense of style. The book warns you about allowing yourself to get sucked in to your friend's style. I'll be the first to admit I am guilty of this. One of my best friends has a very cute sense of style. She is very trendy and tends to buy all of her clothes in the junior's section. I have a classic sense of style with a hint of romantic, and I prefer clothes that are more mature (verging on old lady). Why, then, do I have half a closet full of denim mini skirts, tank tops, and bright floral prints (all purchased from the junior's section...and all of which I hate to wear)? Because my BFF looks so great in those styles. When I go shopping I buy things that remind me of the things that she looked great in. Only, I don't feel great when I wear them because they are so not ME. So, I spend every morning scouring my closet for something to wear only to find that I hate basically everything I own.
If you find yourself frustrated with your lack of a cohesive wardrobe, I highly recommend you get this book. The authors give practical advice on everything from figuring out which proportions work best on your body, shopping in outfits instead of individual pieces, and how to stop making the same mistakes over and over again.
I am proud to say that after reading this book, I have finally changed my shopping habits. And while I, unfortunately, don't have the money to invest in a whole new wardrobe (Stacy and Clinton, where are you when I need you?!), I am making smarter choices every time I go shopping and now I have multiple pieces that create a variety of looks all of which are uniquely me. You can do it, too. Just remind yourself of what your style is before you go shopping and while you can admire things that don't fit your style, don't buy it unless you think you can integrate it with your style. Otherwise, it will forever live in the back of your closet.
No comments:
Post a Comment