I Hate My Closet, Part 1

You guys. Have you ever gotten to the point where you despise every piece of clothing in your closet?

I thought so. I am there right now.

This has been a long journey to get here; long-time readers of LFD remember the days when I was quite the shopper, finding deals and great new pieces on a regular basis. Then my weight went up, and up, and up, and up, and my interest in staying current in fashion went down, and down, and down, and down.

It wasn't just the weight gain that killed my interest in shopping and fashion. Another part of it was that I started to realize I had a full closet -- too much closet, really -- and I didn't NEED to buy anymore. If fact, I need to pare it down to the essentials so I could see what I really had. I donated boxes and boxes of clothes, and pretty much stopped buying new clothes. Gwynnie Bee has done an excellent job of keeping my closet fresh and my need for new items fulfilled.

But the last part, the biggest part, was the limited options available for plus-size mature adults with careers in conservative/traditional offices. I've complained before about "fat-girl" necklines, right? It drives me CRAZY -- it is SO HARD to find v-neck or boatneck or collared tops in plus-sizes. All the interesting shaped or print blouses always have this extra-wide round neckline that both goes too deep/wide and shows off too much skin at the chest, and weirdly sits too far back on the neck and shows off a lot of shoulder/back. Fat-girl neck leaves a huge circle of skin showing, and it does not look professional at all. Additionally, usually it is also a loose blouse so it shifts around if you have to, say, wear a name badge clipped to your neckline, or carry a purse on your shoulder. I am forever triple-checking to make sure my bra strap isn't showing (and it often is, dammit).

Examples of fat-girl necklines:

See what I mean? That's not a vee or a scoop or even a boatneck neckline. It's just...there.

My joke whenever I see a fat-girl neckline: "Hey, my HEAD is a normal size. I don't need extra room to get the shirt over it."

The other problem is that finding a fitted top is nearly impossible. I look at the other plus-size women where I work, and we all have the same uniform: billowy blouse that ends past our hips, thus hiding any type of curve or shape we might have, and making us look bigger than we are. Or worse, the dreaded cascading cardigan which pretty much does the same thing. Everything is draped around us, like tenting on a wedding table. Like so:

You wouldn't know cascading/boyfriend cardigans went out of vogue a few seasons ago from looking at any plus-size department. It's all about hiding our shape -- which is actually MORE unflattering than wearing something too tight, in my opinion.

On the internet, if you want plus-size fitted, the only option I see are dresses. Gwynnie Bee has a weekly Members Post of their clients in mostly dresses, and it is all the same va-va-va-voom look; the girls all look lovely and shapely, but they are ALL in their 20s/30s, and none of it would be appropriate for a conservative office. On a personal note, dresses are no longer an option for me since my feet require orthopedic shoes now. I'm still struggling to find a pair I can wear with dresses -- heck, I still need a dressy pair to go with slacks. (That's another post for another day.)

So. I've been trapped in fashion-less hell -- black slacks, black sneakers (kill me now), billowy top or a long cardigan to hide under. On the most depressing days, it is the ubiquitous black cascading cardigan along with the black pants and shoes. I can't tell you how many plus-sized co-workers I have who wear the same thing -- and in some cases it's the same black cascading cardigan every single day. At my peak, I owned three myself.

And I get why; it's not about low self-esteem or not feeling like you are worth spending money on. I have spent a damn lot of money, and a damned lot of time shopping online and in person. But finding flattering, work-appropriate clothes in a size higher than XXL is a Herculean task, and after a while, you just get too discouraged to keep trying. So you stick with your limited choices, and you focus on other things.

Things I did while not giving a crap about my outfits:
-Enjoyed the freedom in the morning from having to try on multiple outfits, and spent it cuddling with my puppy instead.
-Replenished my makeup supply, and finally learned how to use primer and tinted moisturizer to even out my skin tone.
-Spent 6 months in physical therapy healing my fallen arches, and learned to love my sneakers.
-Played a lot of internet games. A LOT.
-Had occasional flashes of Fun Clothes when a good piece from Gwynnie Bee arrived. But most of their stuff has been filler for under the cardigan, which was okay by me.


Eventually, though, all that black was just too much, and it was time to do something about it. But that's for Part 2. ;-D

Color Project: Red

The Color Project: Red has officially begun!

I started two weeks ago with this Lane Bryant top under a Gwynnie Bee sweater. The red top is tons of fun, and an easy staple in the closet. No question it is staying.



Last week I wore a number of tops from the project.

First was a purple Old Navy collarless blouse. I've struggled to find outfits for this before; it's one that I have to work into the rotation consciously, not one I grab because I want to wear it, like the red LB above. Not sure this one is going to last the month.
(Worn with a B&W striped cotton cardigan from Lane Bryant, faded Old Navy Dreamers, pewter Privos, white camisole, and my Brighton silver pendant. Variations of this are definitely my weekend wear.)





This mauve LOFT tee is the twin of the white one I dithered over during the White Project. Funny how a different color makes all the difference; I love the softness and tone of this one. It will be staying in the closet, for sure.
(Worn with a black Target cocoon cardigan, same faded Dreamers, and multi-stone long necklace from LOFT Outlet. Barefoot because it was my work from home day. :))







I forgot to add this purple-and-grey abstract banded top from Old Navy to the original Red pile, but it is mostly purple so I am adding it in. Trying with a tone-on-tone look with a purple Babeau draped cardigan from Norstrom from a few seasons ago, black NYDJ stretch straight legs, and Clarks Artisan fauz-moto booties.





Close-up of the Brighton silver pendant, a Christmas gift from my mom. It's supposed to be a badge holder but it's much too pretty for that.



This last outfit was my favorite of the week. I got this red polka-dot drape neck blouse from Nordstrom this fall, and I've struggled with the right outfit for it. I think my search is over.





What makes it work is that both pieces have a black heathered quality to them, so there is an underlying commonality to the patterns that makes them work together. It made me happy to wear all day long.



5 down, 5 to go. I might get through this chapter of the project faster than the White round.

The Color Project: White

One of the OCD things about my closet is that I have each item category (sweaters, tops, jackets, pants) sorted by color. When I am looking for a black top, for instance, they are all together so I can see my options. Now that my closet is so lean, I even hung all the t-shirts so they can be included in that grouping.

One day as I was grabbing a favorite white top, I started to wonder if I really wore ALL of the tops that were in each of the color categories. Or was it just a favorite 1-2 that got cycled through and the rest were there as filler?

So I embarked on what I am calling the Color Project. I pulled all the white tops to the front of my closet and purposefully worked as many as I could into my outfit rotation. I did not put a time limit on it -- i.e., wear them all in a week -- because this wasn't some fashion challenge I was forcing on myself; the idea was to see if I really did NEED to have all the ones I had, or if a few could be edited.

Turns out, I wore them all. I didn't love them all, but I did wear them. Since none were obvious edits, I've had to look a little deeper to see which are worth keeping.

1. V-neck ruched Sejour long-sleeve, Nordstrom. Worn with a navy polka-dot scarf from Old Navy, navy Gap modern bootcuts, grey long-sleeved Target Merona cardigan, and grey Franco Sarto Deers. My co-worker told me I looked like the definition of Connecticut preppy, which I consider a compliment. :)
I took these particular Deers to the cobbler and had him replace the heel tips, which just extended the life of these shoes by another 2-3 years for sure.  You know how I love all my versions of these shoes, so I am thrilled.



Verdict: The shirt itself is okay; the v-neck sits a little crooked on me, and I keep thinking that is more versatile than it is. There's a bit of a flare to it at the waist that I don't love. I'm not ready to let it go quite yet, but it was tougher to rotate in than some of my others. 

2. Old Navy collared knit button-down shirt, first under a new cream Old Navy waffle-knit pullover. It was a snowy day, so bundling up was key. The Gap straight-legs were the only option as pants because I had to tuck them into my Dansko snow boots. I thought the blue bubble necklace added the right amount of dressiness to tip the outfit into the business casual/office appropriate look. Not what I would wear if I had been at one of the hospitals, but for just my office it worked.



I wore it again this weekend under my new striped cotton pullover from Gap, Dreamer Old Navy jeans, pewter Privos and the clear acrylic ice cube pendant from Banana Republic. Even Hubby thought this was a cute look.



Verdict: This one is a total keeper. I was avoiding wearing it because it was too wrinkled and I was too lazy to iron it, but I found that it can either go under my new pullover sweaters or a few hard shakes will eliminate the worst of the wrinkles.

3. Lauren Conrad embellished tee, Kohls. I have had this for at least 3 years, but it still works with so many looks. I posted the first outfit below back in January; my plan was to wear all the white shirts over the month and see if anyone noticed, then do a round-up post. Those plans got waylaid when I stopped posting. ;-D



I wore it again this weekend with the mushroom knit cardigan, faded Dreamer jeans, and a color-blocked infinity scarf I got last spring from Old Navy; it is navy, olive green and mint/paleblue, which I am seeing around as a pretty trendy color these days. So I dug my only version of it out. :)






Verdict: this veteran still has plenty of life in her. She's going nowhere.

4. Basic long-sleeved LOFT tee, worn under a Forth & Towne faux-wrap cardigan. I posted about this outfit before too.



Verdict: I completely forgot I wore or even owned this until I found the picture on Flickr. That does not speak well for its longevity or necessity in my closet. I think I only need one long-sleeved white top, so I will probably keep either this or the v-neck.

5. This slub tee from Lane Bryant I actually pulled out of my loungewear drawer and rotated back into regular wear. It has two tiny stain dots on the front that had relegated it to loungewear, but I managed to cover those up and finally understood the power of a great plain white t-shirt.
I wish I had gotten a good front-on shot of this outfit, which was all my co-worker's idea. This was a gorgeous tux-like jacket from Gwynnie Bee with sequined sleeves, and I went for a rocker look with an assortment of long silver necklaces. Really fun look that I will probably repeat with some other dressy jackets I have.



A-ha! I did wear the slub tee again, this time with a fabulous snakeskin print cardigan from Gwynnie Bee. I loved that sweater so much I wore it four times before I sadly returned it. This time I added my Bestey Johnson camera pendant necklace, faded Gap Dreamer jeans, and patent tan-black colorblocked flats from Me Too.





Verdict: the perfect white t-shirt. Will try to find a replacement at Lane Bryant, or will figure out how to get those two stain dots out. (Thanks for the tips in the last post, gals; I will try those with this!)

6. LOFT ruched neck sleeveless tee. Probably my least-favorite of all my white tops, especially now that I have found the perfect one above. This is with my new-ish mushroom Ann Taylor Outlet knit cardigan, new black Gap long-and-lean jeans, and my trusty pewter lasso necklace from Banana Republic (which I bought with Shopping Friend a million years ago). 

I forgot how awful mirror shots were; so glad I got my office corner back for my tripod!



Verdict: it's okay, but the Lane Bryant one is better. Might be hitting the road soon.

7. This LOFT tee has angled distressed stripes, which offer interesting texture to a basic ivory tee. Paired with the Betsey Johnson camera pendant again, my fuschia Gap piped shrunken blazer, grey pinstriped Gap modern bootcuts, and black Clark Artisan boots.



I wore this top again the following weekend, this time pairing with a couple of familiar items, the mushroom knit cardigan from above, and the same faded Dreamer jeans. The jewelry this time was an assortment of long gold necklaces (boy I liked that look with the sparkly jacket), and a pair of faux-suede tan boots from Target.





Verdict: like the cream embellished one in #3, this is going nowhere for a long time.

8. The last top of the White Color Project was a regular button-down, a no-iron three-quarter sleeve Foxcroft version from Nordstrom. I've had this in my closet for at least a year, and I think I wore it one time. It is the reason I actually embarked on this experiment at all -- I didn't think I would like it when I tried to incorporate it into outfits, and then I could finally edit it out without guilt. 



But here's the funny thing: turns out I LOVED IT. The fit is perfect, there is no gapping at the chest, it tucks in without too much extra fabric bulking up under my pants, and the no-iron claim really means no ironing needed. Best of all, I had forgotten how much I like a good collared neckline; one of the most annoying parts about being fat is the enormous scoop neckline that are on nearly every top. Easily 75% of all plus-sized tops are like this, especially the nicer ones from Nordstrom. (Skim this page to see what I mean.) I learned from this round of the Color Project that I really miss a variety of necklines, and having that variety among my current white tops made this rather enjoyable.

Verdict: not only keeping it, but probably buying another in a different color.

++++++

Final thoughts of this Color Project round:
1. A variety of necklines is important to me, which I will keep in mind as I shop in the future. (Note to self: add turtleneck to your list for next winter.)
2. I love the look of a plain tee, funky jacket and a bunch of necklaces for dressy going-out occasions.
3. I had forgotten how much I love a good button-down.
4. Keeping: cream embellished #3, ivory distressed stripes #7, knit collared button-down #2 and no-iron button-down #8, and the perfect plain white t-shirt #5.
5. On the fence: one of the two long-sleeved tees (#1 and #4), the ruched sleeveless tee #6. 
6. While I don't mind repeating outfits, it did get boring for a stretch, I think because I was just tired of white.  But since I usually rotate colors more often than I did here, this was likely a product of the Project itself than an issue with any of the tops.

Next round is red (pinks and purples are included in that section of my closet too). I've already started!




What do you guys think? Any tops I should reconsider keeping?

Rock-a-Kristen

The other day I commented on Angie's You Look Fab blog that I felt my signature style was classic, colorful and coordinated.

"Classic" to me means classic shapes: straight-leg and bootcut pants over skinnies, sheaths and empires over hi-lo dresses, tidy jackets and cardigans over angled-hem tunics.
"Colorful" means bright jeweled tones: turquoise, teal, purple, hot pinks, cobalt blue fill my closet. I have also invested in building up a fair assortment of neutrals, that now can either stand alone or blend well with my colors.
"Coordinated" means, as my co-worker complimented me this week, that I make sure that every piece of my outfit "goes" with the rest. The choices of jewelry, shoes, bag, and coat are made to go with the rest, not necessarily in matching colors but in coordinated styles and/or colors.

Most of the time that translates to a preppy, polished look. 



But lately that's been changing,and I didn't even realize it. With the help of Gwynnie Bee, I have been pushing beyond that look, adding a little more edge and glam to my style, like Thursday's outfit.




The top is Edista, with a sheer neckline and ruched seams and arms. It's SO flattering and pretty and glam; I got a ridiculous amount of compliments on it all day, even from Hubby!





The cropped denim jacket is Old Navy; I love the collarless neckline because it makes the jacket seem more dressed up than a basic denim jacket would. The plastic ice necklace is Banana Republic that I bought a few months ago, and the bracelets are a bunch of cheap ones I got from Charming Charlies ages ago.



Black Gap straight-leg pants and olive suede Artisan from Clark booties, and the outfit is complete.

It's all my regular, classic, basic pieces, but when you add in the edgier top it veers far away from the preppy look!



When I look through my photos of the last few months (many that I never posted here), I can see that this has been happening more with my Gwynnie Bee items.


Alfani key-print peplum top



INC black knit drape neck top


Talbots cowl neck tee


Soft Surroundings cool cowl shirt

And many others. For me, Gwynnie Bee has definitely been a good resource for clothes. Not everything has worked, but a lot has. Here are my stats.

Gwynnie Bee stats:
Joined Sept 12, 2012
On average, items are out 2 weeks (includes shipping), several were kept 3 weeks.
Paid $351.83 (2/out for 3 months, 3/out for 2) since September

That seems like a lot, so I broke it out into cost/item and cost/wear. 

29 garments in 4 months = $12.13/item

12 were returned unworn (mostly too big, a couple because of fabric issues), leaving 17 that did get worn = $20.69/item

Most get 1 wear, 7 pieces got 2 wears, one got 3 wears = $13.03/wear

I could probably cut down the $/wear if I was better about wearing it and sending it back sooner, but sometimes I like to let it percolate in my closet while I dream up the right outfit for the right day. I do want to get better at rotating too so I have at least one item in transit while one or two are in my closet; for a while there around Christmas I was shipping both out at once, then had both in my closet at once.

Since I buy retail and not thrift, if I had bought the same 17 items in the store the cost would have been $510 (assuming $30/avg top), and knowing me, they probably would have gotten the same number of wears in the same amount of time. Plus I would now have these 17 tops, some of which I loved and some I only liked (and some I didn't like at all) clogging up my closet. Instead I sent them back and already have another 30-plus new ones sitting in my virtual closet waiting their turn to be sent and worn. 

Gwynnie Bee saves me money and guilt. Works for me!

As always, if you are interested in signing up for the service, send me your email and I will send you an invite. I think they are still doing a 30-day trial period.

+++++++

Now I am off to try on a new tunic that just got sent to me. Hope it works with my cords or jeans!