Everyone goes through their own type of “style evolution”. I believe, along with my internal journey, my outward style has definitely been affected. Of course trends that come and go have an impact, but as I grow and learn more about myself, who I am and want to be - I am also learning to define and express myself better through how I dress.
This past week I signed a lease for an apartment here in Seattle. My first place of my own! Initially the idea of living alone made me slightly nervous. Thoughts like “Am I too young to be living alone?” “Will I get lonely?” “Will I be scared?” streamed through my mind, but as I started to look at places and weigh my options I became more and more excited to create my own environment. I decided to go through everything I owned to trim the fat off of what I had been holding on to that didn’t necessarily reflect my taste anymore. I went through my entire closet and told myself “OK- if this hasn’t been worn in the past 6 months, then purge it.” I thought this would be hard, but once I got into the mindset of letting things go- large donation piles soon formed. I came to notice a theme. I was getting rid of sooo many basics…because I owned too many! I had held on to probably 20 different versions of the same white tank top (with pilling and holes mind you), too many pairs of faded black leggings, and several ill-fitting solid colored tees.
Don’t get me wrong, I believe having basics in your wardrobe is a must, but I realized at one point that is ALL I wore. I kept within a very neutral color palette, as that is what I felt most comfortable in. I always knew I stood out because of my hair color and my quirky tendency to break out in arbitrary weird behavior definitely didn’t help me to blend in. Maybe I “toned down” my wardrobe to level-set these factors? Not too sure, but since moving to Seattle I have definitely put my comfort zone to the test in many ways. I do feel we humans are continually defining ourselves throughout our lifetime, and oh what a beautiful thing that is to do! Through my experiences here in Seattle I have come to accept that I am probably going to be this odd goon of a person for the rest of my life and I’m totally okay with that! (my ever-so serious photos are truly a façade…) Therefore why shouldn’t my wardrobe also reflect who I am? I have found a new love for small pops of color and pieces that may start conversation.
My goal is to now rebuild a foundation of really great basics and to start collecting “pieces” like this reversible embroidered bomber. One of my favorite people here in Seattle is from Okinawa, actually. She let me take over her studio this month while I scoured the city for an affordable place of my own. I hadn’t heard of Okinawa until meeting her, so when I saw this bomber hanging casually on the rack in Zara, of all places, I had to get it. Whenever anyone asks me about it I just say “Hey, I’ve never been- but, I do have an incredibly rad friend who’s from there! Must be a fantastic place.”
I look forward to continuing my style evolution, both in my closet and new space. Making a statement can be as simple as adding a colorful keychain to a handbag, wearing some patent leather or I guess you could keep it simple and go stand in front of a bright fuchsia wall…
Look:
American Apparel Ribbed Tee
Zara Embroidered Bomber
Topshop Cigarette Trousers
Gucci Patent Leather Loafers
Marc Jacobs Camera Bag
Fuzzy Keychain (gift- find similar here)
Location: Capitol Hill, Seattle
photos by @itzel.luccas