30 in 30 Challenge: Full Retrospective

I did the halfway mark, but I really want to see all 30 together. Small photos, at least!

Days 1-30:





















WHEW.

I won't do a whole count here, but I did tally how many times I wore each item. What astonished me was how evenly I really did wear similar items. The four pairs of shoes got about the wearings I assumed: the cheetah flats and black booties tied for the most (once the weather cooled I went from flats to boots), and the clogs and Pikilinos were more specific-outfit driven. The pants rotated pretty well, although if I had any skirts that fit I could have swapped out the micro-tweed pants or Gap black skinnies and not have missed them. But the tops and sweaters really surprised me: everything got 3-5 wearings except the gold ruffled blouse, the long grey H&M open cardigan, and the Old Navy grey zippered moto vest. Those only got 1-2 wearings apiece. I did not realize that at all; it felt like I was wearing those all the time! Maybe I just kept trying them on but they rarely worked in a final outfit.

What I liked about this challenge:

1. I really liked being able to dress quickly each morning. Unless it was a morning where nothing was working that was clean (which was rare), it took me half the usual time to get ready.
2. The timing was perfect because I started MF at the same time, so it stopped me from shopping for things I don't need, and it let me measure my success on the diet with the fit of my clothes. I actually can see some changes through the month of photos.
2a. Especially with my hair! LOL! God, why do I let it get so grown out? I love it shorter and darker. Someone remind me when it starts to come due for a color and cut, please!
3. Packing for Tuscon was a breeze.
4. My credit card bill will be really low for last month. :)

What I disliked:
1. I was bored by Day 3. I like variety, and I don't think having a big closet is a terrible thing. My creativity and love for colors felt stifled.
2. I should have picked more shoes and less sweaters.
3. I wish I had fit into some of my dresses and skirts because the occasional change-up in silhouette would have been very much appreciated.
4. The LOFT polka-dot blouse is frayed beyond repair, the melon BR cardigan is pilled very badly, and the white button-down tuxedo tunic has a huge hole at the seam. I have never worn out clothes before, mainly because I don't wear them as frequently in a short period of time as I did here. Hmm, I should think about that.
5. Next time I will spend much more time picking my items and putting them in trial outfits. I threw things together the Sunday before it started, then ended up swapping in and out unworn items for the first two weeks until I had cycled through all of it.

I will confess that I started back up my shopping over the weekend, while I was still on days 27 and 28. But it was close enough to the end that I really didn't care if it was breaking the rules; I wanted to get some items that were on big sale, and I wasn't going to have any time to do any shopping during the week once the challenge was over.

All that being said, I think I *would* do a 30-in-30 Challenge again, depending on the time of year and where I am with my weight loss and job and stuff. I definitely liked having 30 items instead of other challenges which are much stricter in number; in comparison those are no fun at all. This was a great idea, and the allowance of accessories and coats made this do-able as the weather chilled and froze.

Thanks, Kensie, for the idea and for organizing this!

30 in 30 Challenge: Day 30

You guys, we made it!



This final outfit contains 6 of the 30 pieces, or 20% of the my entire allowance of clothes. LOL!
-The grey Gap modern bootcuts were part of the first outfit I wore, and are getting almost too long now that my dupa is using less of the fabric of the pants.
-the Naturalizer Bates booties have been workhorses during this challenge and will likely continue to be so throughout this winter.
-the black LOFT layering top was essential in finishing off the long sleeves needed for this bitterly cold weather
-the polka-dot LOT blouse had to be worn as part of the final outfit, as a last walk on the runway before its early retirement
--the black short-sleeved AT Factory sweater continues to do great work as a "blank canvas" piece, letting whatever else I am wearing with it shine.

George had to stop by to join the celebration.



The teal scarf has gotten quite a workout this month too; surprisingly it sat in my scarf collection unworn for over a year until I realized I should trim the fringe off. Since then, it's become a staple. I loved the subtle contrast it gave to the blacks and greys of the rest of the outfit.



My poor LOFT blouse. I'm going to keep it a while longer (along with the melon sweater) because it's just too depressing to part with it yet, but I wanted to show you how frayed it has gotten.

The good side:


The bad side:


Yikes! And I have already trimmed it down once. I know a couple of people have recommended a non-fray spray, but I fear it is already too far gone for it to help. Alas!

A full 30-day retrospective and my wrap-up thoughts on the challenge overall are coming soon!

WHEW. I made it. Hello, closet! I have missed you so much!!

30 in 30 Challenge: Day 29

Gotta get another wearing of the tweedy jacket in before the end! Also, I had a work meeting and needed to go a little more formal on Monday.



We ended up having quite a snowfall over the weekend. Here is my back patio where I shot several outfit photos this summer.





And the front:



It's suddenly truly winter in the Midwest, complete with below-freezing temperatures. I can't wrap my brain around the idea it is going to be like this until April; it all came on us so fast! Luckily, I have my week in Vegas to keep me warm. :)

As well as a scarf:



It's funny because I just wore nearly the same outfit but with the polka-dot top. There is just something about adding the black scarf at the top that seems to finish off the jacket outfit nicely. I think it may have something to do with the neckline of the jacket and how it flatters/doesn't flatter me.



One more day to go! I'm not going to lie; this has been an interesting experiment, but I am glad it will soon be over.

30 in 30 Challenge: Day 27 and 28

Day 27, Saturday morning:



My hair is pretty wild in the morning photos since it was the last moments of unruly super-blond madness. No flat-wrapping this morning, I just washed and dried it and shoved it under a cap. Because not only did I have a color and cut appointment that afternoon, but we had our first snowstorm of the winter! Guess I bought that coat just in time. :)



I loved Saturday's outfit; the taupe really brought out the blues of the sweater, ans the pewter lariat always gives it a nice shine in the middle. Went with my chocolate NYDK ponte skinnies, and had to bust out the LL Bean snowboots for my feet. Snowboots are okay in the challenge, right? Like coats? I think they were.

Then I came home with much sleeker and darker hair.



LOVE. LOVE IT SO MUCH. My colorist has been going darker with every round, and this is really the best yet. I am absolutely crazy about the wide brown streaks on either side of my face. I am going to have her add more of them next time, for sure.



My hair looked so cute, people were stopping me in the aisles of Sephora afterward. Hee! So I had Hubby take me out to dinner instead of staying in. It was still icy and messy on the roads so we walked over to Wildfire for a steak and blue cheese salad (and a non-MF glass of wine, heh). This was the pretty tree they had outside the restaurant. Yeah, we got a nice layer of snow!



Day 26, Sunday:



Still loving the darker hair! Got a little inspired with the last of the 30-item combinations, this time re-pairing the burgundy/rust sweater with the brown LOFT layering top, and adding in the autumnal scarf over it. Cozy and fluffy, perfect for a leisurely Sunday morning with my husband.

Now I'm heading out to the stores to get some more shopping done, then it will be home for the day to work on some photography gift projects and to hopefully finish off the shopping online. What are you doing this weekend?

30 in 30 Challenge: Day 26

I was supposed to be in a training class all day, thus the jeans on a weekday -- and the preppy scholastic look. :)

This LOFT sweater is kind of weird; it's pretty long so trying to wear it over the red pinstriped Old Navy button-down tunic created a lot of strange bumps along my middle. I couldn't quite figure out where to let it sit so it looked right, and Hubby (who was working from home and is who George and I are looking at just off-frame) kept nixing all my attempts. He suggested adding a belt, which worked...almost. Eh, it was fine and I had to leave earlier than normal for class.

(Unfortunately, when I got there I realized I had signed up for the wrong class, and I ended up having to go back to the office anyway. In jeans. Whoops! But it turned out well -- I got an extra day in the office where I was able to make some headway on some looming deadlines, and I got to have a nice impromptu bonding chat with my boss. She's so frazzled and stretched even more thin than I am I haven't had any time with her lately, and she is one of the really good people. I love working for her, and with her. It was great to be reminded of that.)

ANYWAY. Back to the clothes!

This is the wool coat I bought on Thursday night. I appreciate all the support, but truly I don't feel guilty about it. It was absolutely needed -- and I got in the nick of time, as I just woke up this morning to the snow coming down fast and two inches already on the ground. And the 30-in-30 rules said coats and outerwear were not part of the challenge, so let's pretend that extended to the no-buy part of the challenge too. Ha!



I added one of Hubby's great scarves, and my black Coach bag. Time to haul out the old classic! I liked the turquoise glasses too; just enough contrast to throw off the matchiness of the red tunic and red sweater.

I mentioned Hubby was home while I was taking pictures, right? He even deigned to be in one of them!



We are seriously a pair of dorks.