my outfits - day 1-14 (i'll share days 15-47 soon!)
My name is Jessie, and I have a lot of clothes. Until recently I was in denial about this fact - I knew I had a lot of clothes but didn't really know what that meant in the grand scheme of things. Like everyone, I had my key faves and go to outfits. And like most people I used to stand in front of my wardrobe and feel like I nothing to wear BUT those 5 or 6 outfits.
How did I come to this realisation I hear you ask? To cut a long story short - one night after one too many damsel without a dress moments of distress, when I again would declared 'I have nothing to wear!' my wise sister told me I was dreaming. That in fact I had a whole bunch of clothes and maybe I should try and wear them for once. And that sounded like a challenge to both of us.
So, since that fateful day I have been doing exactly that - wearing a new outfit everyday. Sounds pretty easy? The clincher here is that my dear sister also added in the fun extra challenge of not repeating any outfit until I have worn everything else. I literally have to wear everything I own before I am allowed to repeat an outfit.
Now a couple of background facts about me so you understand how I managed to gather so many clothes before going into this -
1. I don't wear pants. Weird I know. And no I'm not Lady Gaga. I just wear dresses and skirts. A couple of years ago I after trying again unsuccessfully to find a pair of pants that didn't look horrible or even fit I swore off pants. Just stopped trying to fit into them and wear something that I didn't feel good in. And I have been a happier lass ever since. Yay for me.
2. I also wear a lot of vintage - 90% of my wardrobe is vintage. I just like the cuts better and finding a preloved dress for $30 makes my heart sing, whereas a $300 dress that is poorly made from one of the many stores in town makes me sad.
So put these facts together - my love for dresses and bargains - and you can see how I have come to own a whole bunch of pretty dresses. Because lets be honest here - it's easy to justify spending $30 on a dress you find hiding amongst of rack of vintage. And I am a girl who loves colour and dressing up.
As you can imagine this challenge has the potential to go on for a while. In fact today is day 47. Yes, I know - I don't have a wardrobe - I have the makings of a shop.
So what else is there to this? Well as Day 50 approaches I thought I would share a few of the best parts of this challenge:
1. I haven't been shopping.
Now this is for a couple of reasons - but mainly because I have been shopping out of my wardrobe. I have surprised myself with what I can make work.
2. Fashion is fun.
Yeah, yeah I hear you - Jessie, tell me something Vogue hasn't - duh. What I mean is that I sometimes used to just get fixated on not wearing certain things because other people don't wear bright red and blue vintage to go to Coles. This challenge has forced me to accept that dressing with a little personality is a-ok and that I should be able to wear what I like and feel good about it. Full stop.
3. I like looking nice and others do too.
Without wanting to sound vain, I love putting together my outfit everyday. Yes I'm sure my time could be better spent but in this world where we never really stop, the time I take to get ready in the morning has become my wind down time. I don't think about the bazillion things i have to do that day - I don't think of anything apart from what lipstick I'm going to wear and which shoes go with my dress. Not in a vain way but in an attempt to just chill out for a minute.
And the other benefit I hadn't considered before I did this challenge - I walk out of the house feeling great, which makes other people think you are great too. It's all sounds a bit Oprah but really somehow this all has made me feel better about who I am.
So if you are interested in following along with the challenge, I post my outfits daily on my instagram - my name is truthbejess
And no, I will never say I have nothing to wear again.
