Livinconsciousfashionista

DISCOVER YOUR PERSONAL STYLE

A few years ago while living in a small Brooklyn apartment, I found myself standing in front of my very small, overflowing closet feeling completely overwhelmed. I was trying to pack for an upcoming trip and after hours of wasted time and failed outfit attempts, I felt helpless. In an effort to make sense of the madness, I scoured the internet for what to pack for a week in Paris. Each article and blog post I read left me feeling more overwhelmed than the one before it, and I was about to give up and overpack, again, when I stumbled upon a neatly organized Parisian packing list that fit into a small carry-on.

Each of the 10 or so items pictured were perfectly cohesive, classic and the effortless and chic outfits they created were almost too good to be true. I quickly clicked through and was presented with a new to me concept called the “5 Piece French Wardrobe.”

From there I discovered capsule wardrobes, The 10 Item Wardrobe, Project 333 and countless other minimal closet concepts.

Despite the different names, each of these approaches suggested that sartorial satisfaction stemmed from a less is more approach to dressing, and that a few key pieces were all I needed to look & feel fantastic every day.

Was it really possible to look and feel my best without having an overflowing closet? Could I really be stylish and have enough to wear with only a few pieces? Everything in my experience (and our collective consumer culture) told me no, but each article and video that I consumed on the subject suggested otherwise.

So, I decided to give it a try, and here I am, years later and finally happy with my closet and more in tune with my personal style than I ever thought was possible.

I know what I love to wear and what I don’t and I’ve slowly built the wardrobe I always dreamed of having. Here, and on my YouTube channel, I hope to share what I’ve learned with you so that you too can discover your personal style and finally free yourself from clutter. If you’re new here, I’ve linked some good places to start below including my own personal closet & style ethos, the 10 items I always have in my closet, my wish list and how it keeps me from making impulse buys and a few of my favorite wish list outfit planning collages that I use to decide if an item will work with my existing wardrobe. You can also see ongoing updates, inspiration and outfit posts on my blog here.

MY CLOSET AT A GLANCE

Here, I’ve outlined the main colors, silhouettes and descriptive characteristics that I strive for in my wardrobe. In the last few years as I’ve really honed in on my personal style, I’ve found that keeping this focus at the heart of my purchases helps ensure that I make smart buys that I’ll actually wear. By following these points and constantly reevaluating and adjusting them as I get older, I move etc, I’ve been able to slowly but surely build a closet that I truly love.

My hope is that seeing these points from my perspective, and then seeing them in action here and on my YouTube channel will help you do the same. At the end of the day, fashion should be fun and we should use it as a way to express ourselves. It should never be taken too seriously, but a little planning never hurt either, and I’ve found that a little work at the beginning makes the entire process a lot more enjoyable.

COLOR PALETTE

First up let’s discuss color palette. As a lover of neutrals with pops of color here and there, I am the happiest when wearing simple shades all year. This streamlined color palette has worked so well for me as a base for brighter accessories, and I wear these shades all year.

Not only are they incredibly easy to mix and match (nearly every color can be worn together with very little thought), but they work for me and all four seasons.

They also serve as the perfect base for my accent colors and the colors I tend to wear only during certain seasons – things like green, red/burgundy, green and pink.

That said, I’m also usually the most comfortable when these colors appear in accessories rather than entire outfits – with a few exceptions of course. If you’re having trouble narrowing in on a color palette that works for you, I go into a lot more detail in my eBook below.

CLASSIC, MODERN, ELEGANCE & RELAXED

So, I decided to give it a try, and here I am, years later and finally happy with my closet and more in tune with my personal style than I ever thought was possible.

One of the things that really helped me lock in my personal style was picking a few descriptive words that described my aesthetic. The first time I sat down to do this I had too many words and as a result, I had a difficult time coming up with a cohesive style message. As I’ve worked on refining my style over the years, and have really allowed myself to grow into who I’m most comfortable being, I’ve narrowed it down to 4 words – classic, modern, elegant and relaxed.

Though similar, each of these words touches on a different part of my personal style and ultimately my wardrobe, and are all critical to making me feel like me. To better understand these, let’s break them down a bit further.

CLASSIC: First up is classic. On the surface this word means exactly what it says – something that is simple and elegant and not greatly subject to changes in fashion. For me, this couldn’t be more true. From fashion to makeup to home decor, I have always gravitated toward things that stand the test of time. I love the traditional and legacy of time tested pieces and have found that they are some of my favorite items to wear. I love feeling polished but understated and classics help me do that with very little effort.

MODERN: Next is a piece of the puzzle that’s critical to ensuring that I feel updated and never stuffy. As much as I love classics, I’ve learned over the years that wearing too many of them together can make me feel like I’m wearing a costume. Without a few carefully selected modern touches my clothes wear me instead of the other way around so to combat this, I’ve learned that no outfit of mine is complete without a modern twist and I love pairing timeless classics with trendier items for a balance that feels 100% like me.

ELEGANT: By definition, elegance is “pleasingly graceful and stylish in appearance or manner” and it’s a piece of my fashion pie that I’ve grown to value over the years. After years of classic opera vocal lessons and ballet classes, I’ve learned that anything too trendy, too casual or too “cool” just doesn’t work for me. We all know that our experiences shape who we are and for me, years of classical training (beginning when I was 10) have given me good posture, careful diction and thoughtful movements that feel out of place when paired with anything too grungy. Even though I love the look on others, it always feels out of place on me and instead, I’m much more comfortable in tailored, understated pieces that compliment my life’s experiences rather than combat them.

RELAXED: Last but not least is arguably the most important for me. Relaxed, which I use interchangeably with comfortable, is an absolute must for me. In fact, nothing ruins a day or an outfit for me quicker than being uncomfortable. I despise having to readjust, fidget or suffer when it comes to fashion and feeling relaxed is key to making me feel great in my clothes. I’ve learned the hard way one too many times that anything too stuffy, formal or complicated just doesn’t get worn so now I avoid these pieces and I’m much happier.