Style Evolution

Did you all catch Sal’s absolutely fabulous post about style evolution on Already Pretty this morning?  Sal asked women of different ages about their style, style evolution and body image evolution over the years.  Her post has had me thinking about my own style evolution today.  So thank you, Sal and guest posters, for a great topic to explore :)

Whatever sense of style I may have now came after years of me not really caring how I looked or dressed.  Thanks to 15 years of Catholic schools (yes, 15 – my parents had me start pre-school before I even turned 3!) and their hideous polyester plaid skirts, style wasn’t even an option for me until after high school.  While in school, the only control I had over my personal fashion was the one shiny new pair of school shoes I got each year.  And like a little nerd, I picked penny loafers for more years than I’d like to admit (to my credit, it was the 80’s – that was in someplace, right?)  I mean sure, we had 3 different colors of Peter Pan collar blouses and endless sweater options, between vests, v-necks and cardigans.  But you can only do so much mixing of pastel blue, yellow and white.  Most jewelry wasn’t permitted, so I came into accessorizing pretty late in the game too.

After high school I was just so happy to not have to wear a skirt everyday that I completely stopped wearing them.  Although I’ll admit, it was so weird for me to think about what to wear each day after years of not having to think about it that I wore nothing but jeans and t-shirts for most of college.  I bought multiples and didn’t care if things were flattering or not (I've struggled with body image for as long as I can remember, so nothing would’ve seemed flattering anyway), didn't wear any shoes but my Converse All-Stars or my Birkenstocks, I wasn't a fan of things like accessories, make-up or the blow-dryer, and my idea of something “nice” was probably a top from Old Navy.  My best friend at the time was a guy, and most of the girl friends I had were on the tomboyish side at that time (and also reveling in their freedom from polyester plaid) so wearing anything feminine or stylish never crossed my mind.

Sunburn: Nature's perfect accessory (age 21)

This all came to a screeching halt when I moved to Chicago and joined the workforce.  I mean I still didn't have a sense of personal style, but I was making my way toward style and the basics I wore got a little nicer at least. For a couple of years, I bought all of my clothes at stores like Express and New York & Company.  Express, for all of my business wear, New York & Company for slightly more casual wear.  Since I didn’t have a ton of extra money to spend on clothes, my wardrobe consisted mainly of things to wear to work, since I came here with nothing like that.  I’d stretch my clothes by buying tops that would be work appropriate but still look okay with jeans for the weekend (I still find myself doing this, which has kind of infringed on any kind of casual wardrobe).  At this time I also started getting back into skirts.  Being single-and-looking and having just lost a huge amount of weight (which has slowly crept back over the years, but I’m kicking off a new weight loss effort as we speak!) I finally liked the idea of looking like a girl.  I didn’t catch on to the idea of looking like a woman until much more recently, but this was a start.

Age 22: A rare, somewhat stylish moment in my pre-Chicago life

Age 23: At least Lake Michigan and I were coordinated

Although I was starting to care a little bit about what I looked like and how I presented myself, I didn’t really know what worked for my body.  I saw what my much skinnier roommate and girlfriends were wearing and assumed it would translate well onto my larger frame.  I saw women on What Not to Wear and thought about how horrifying it must be to dress completely wrong without realizing that I was doing exactly that.

Age 24 and 25: Yay for finally figuring out hair, make-up and accessories!

As annoying as social networking sites can be, the fact that there are pictures of me all over the internet has helped give me a pretty good awareness of this.  I didn’t even own a camera until a few years ago and I trusted my mirror 100%, but now I know better.  Seeing pictures of myself has helped me see the way everyone else really sees me, which has set me on the path to finding what works for me.  I’ve finally started shopping with fit being my first priority, instead of looking for the things that I see other women wearing.  I’ve found that I’d rather pay a little more to have something that fits and will last me a long time than buy a bunch of cheaper pieces that don’t work for me.  And as I round out my 20’s and near my 30’s, my style continues to evolve.

Age 27 & 28: Hooray for dresses!

This new awareness has also led to more acceptance of my own body.  I mean sure, I’m really mad at myself for gaining some of my weight back, but I’m confident that I can lose it again (although much more slowly now than when I was 22!).  And although I feared getting older while in my early 20's, now I think I'm only getting better with age, and I hope that will continue.  And thanks to the daily inspiration of all of you fashionable ladies out there who feel good about yourselves and look good no matter your shape and size, I’m finally starting to love the body I have just as much as the body I want.