Helloooo friends! Hope you've had a lovely day, and that you're enjoying seeing the spring sunshine show herself again. Spring presents such new energy and I am soaking in every. last. bit. of it!!! So much love!
Along with the emergence of spring, also expect to see me around a little bit less (with exams), and then a LOT MORE (with summer! and no school! and waay more free time)! I have so, so many plans in the works for future content creation and projects and collaborations that I'm going to be oh so elated to share with you all.
As well, spring means moving, and so get excited to see what is hopefully lots of sustainable decor content (my absolute favourite creative thing in the world after clothing)!
Anyway, aside from that little ~~ life update ~~ I wanted to introduce to you today's post, in which I'm going to talk about STYLE IDENTITY. Finding your style identity is important for so many reasons, but when it comes to sustainability/ethicality, it's super integral because it ensures you not only buy less items, but also buy better ones. It also allows you to move toward a more minimalist lifestyle. Even if you don't have a "capsule wardrobe", you'll end up with a lot fewer items that you love a lot more. So in the post, I'll talk about how to identify yours, and then how to transfer this into outfits that you love!
Let's make some new outfits!
This post is also part of ethigirl's Sustainable Wardrobe Makeover Series, which I've designed to be a several-part introduction into finding your style identity and finallyyyyy feeling like what you put on your body reflects who you are, but WITHOUT going out and buying a brand new closet of clothing.
So without further ado, let's get into the post!
section I: forming your style identity
Key to creating your style identity is not only envisioning your dream closet, but figuring out what your favourite pieces that you already have are. There are a number of ways I suggest you do this.
First, go through your Instagram. See what pieces come up the most in your pictures. If you use Facebook or something else more, check there instead. Take these pieces out of your closet. Then, simply go through your closet and pick out all your other top, most-worn pieces are. In total, this can be anywhere from five to ten pieces. Whatever feels right to you.
Once you have all of this in front of you, go on your Pinterest. I'm hoping you have a style board - you must! If you don't you can also look at what you have bookmarked on Instagram, or you can do it the old-fashioned way and just make a list of all your favourite types of clothing and styles.
Then, figure out the common colours, silhouettes, fabrics, and more. Try to synthesize this all into a page-long list/collage of key words and ideas about what your dream closet looks and feels like. Feel free to make it pretty!
What you should be left with is something of an inspiration dream/mood board, which is super exciting! Make sure this page really feels like you. This task could take longer than you think. For me, the ultimate tip to doing so is using my Pinterest style board and curating it as much as possible until I'm really left with the things that I look at and think of my style.
One note about this so-called "style identity" thing: it implies that your style is completely static, which is so not the case! It can change all the time, and that is totally okay. You'll want to try out new trends, or you'll stop feeling the old ones. However, I do believe we all have a core group of items with things in common that we will consistently gravitate toward because of how good they make us feel. This little activity helps you consciously understand what those are, and to be able to feel good even more of the time.
Alright, so with your closet dream board in front of you, we're now going to talk about putting new outfits together that encompass it!
transferring this into new outfits and looks
When it comes to creating new looks, the main sustainable tip is trying not to buy too many things. In an upcoming post, I'm going to talk about what pieces you should splurge on and what ones you shouldn't, but for now, the main point is to only buy things you really, REALLY love.
The way that I ensure I do this is by keeping a "thrifting wish list" of the items I'm on the hunt for. Doing this ensures that when I'm at a secondhand shop, I don't buy things I don't necessarily want or needs on a whim. Of course, there are always going to be those dream pieces you never knew you needed until you saw them, and you should totally go for those, but in general, try to stick to what you know you want and are looking for.
Despite whether you do or don't shop, you're still going to be able to put together some amazing new looks. Start by taking one or more of those key pieces you determined in the first step - it could be a shirt, a favourite pair of jeans, or a sweater - and then simply explore your closet like you're looking at it with fresh eyes. Look for secondary pieces you have that you never would have thought to pair with these items. Think about layering turtlenecks or sweaters under tank tops, think about adding cute socks under heels, think about new colour or pattern combos that you never thought about before! In this stage, nothing is off the table. I swear, you're going to be able to find something new in this way.
One example - a thrifted silk tank over a secondhand turtleneck!
As a final resource, Ashley of BestDressed on YouTube (one of the only youtubers I actually watch on a consistent basis) has an amazing video here with 50 unique new ways to put together an outfit. There are so many tips in here that you'd NEVER think of. I really can't recommend watching her enough!
conclusion
So there you have it! A go-to guide about claiming your personal style and creating new outfits and looks without spending a whole lot of money, and without harming the environment or its people.
I want to hear from you! Did this post inspire any new amazing looks? I'll be posting some on my Instagram in the coming days to get you inspired, but I want you to DM me with yours so I can share them with the community! Hit me up and let's chat soon ;)
As always, with love and sustainability,
ethigirl!