Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Not Waiting for the Skinny

Has anyone out there ever caught themselves in this particular line of self-talk: "I will dress so cute when I lose 20 lbs" or "I wish I could pull off that______ *enter cute/trendy/stylish item here".

Until recent years I let myself off of the hook from developing my style by using this kind of thinking. I didn't want to "invest the money in the wardrobe I really want until it is in the size I want to be". A slippery slope this way of thinking is, at least in my own experience. What happened to me is that the more I punished myself (by not allowing myself to buy new jeans until they are in a particular size etc) the worse I felt about myself. Instead of motivating me to change my eating/exercise habits, I felt defeated and what was REALLY weird is that the only thing that could cheer me up was a freakin cookie!

These days I try to take a kinder view-point towards myself. I am NOT perfect- very very far from it. I have things I would like to improve about my physical appearance as well as internal improvements to be made. But I'm not waiting for those things to happen to live the life I want anymore. This change in my thinking was a really exciting a freeing moment in my life. I still hate buying jeans because I'm not that "certain size" but lets be frank... nothing is less stylish than stuffing ones self into a pair of jeans that are a size you WANT TO BE but are not (not being judgemental... I have so done this... but wont again!)

Now all of this being said, there is the point that it may not make sense to spend a bunch of time and money building a wardrobe in a size that you are determined to shrink but here is my philosophy and rules I live by on this topic:

1. When craving a style boost, nothing is more valuable than a great pair of shoes. They will probably fit even if you lose/gain weight. What an investment! Don't be afraid to be sassy too! Check out these I just bought on clearance at Nordy's. No one will be looking at the size of my thighs while I'm wearing these babies!


2. Figure out what is flattering to you. Decide what you like about yourself and highlight the hell out of it. If you can't think of one single thing you like and want to highlight about yourself just remember the things you get complimented on. Or you can also think about the clothes/outfits you wear that you feel the best in. Ask yourself why you like those items. I have always wanted to wear a skirt like the one in this photo ($30 at Last Call off of $175!). The best thing is that it puts emphasis on the smallest part of my waist (one of the things I like about myself). And doesn't Des look fab? You can't see it in this pic but the back of this dress has beautiful cut out detailing... and guess what Des likes about herself... yup... her back.



3. Quality over quantity is an idea I've been toying with for a while now. Lately I am all about the Last Calls, Off 5ths, Loehman's, and Nordy's Racks to find my more "quality" items. I have been majorly guilty of buying something ugly/wrong size/unwearable because it was $3. Three bucks wasted! Silly little me. I finally realized that it is great to get a good deal but that the most important thing is to make sure the quality is good. Now that being said... I wont spend more than about $20 on jeans (can you tell yet that I have issues with jeans??) until I'm a "certain size". ;) I have a rule for myself... if I am buying an "investment piece" it has to be something I can wear forever (like this Derek Lam coat I bought at Loehman's in San Francisco a couple of months ago). Handbags and shoes fall into this category too! They always fit! No matter how many gym sessions you skip.


4. If you can't make yourself exercise, by all means accessorize! Feeling frumpy, fat or fugly? Get your butt to Forever 21, H&M, etc etc and buy yourself a cute pair of earrings, necklace... hell go crazy and buy a lip gloss! A white tee shirt and pair of jeans ($2o pair mind you) are all of the sudden a cute and stylish outfit with a scarf and pair of hoop earrings. And how much time does that take? 30 seconds. No excuses. Here is a necklace I picked up last week at Forever 21 for $5.80!

image from forever21.com


Anybody have thoughts on this topic? Any tips of your own for developing your style when you aren't where you want to be size-wise?

1 comment:

  1. Rachel,
    I loved this post. I needed to hear that. Love you and miss ya. Hope to see you soon!

    ReplyDelete