I bounce back from a crushing blow.

I had another work-basket rescue post planned for yesterday. I'd dutifully stitched replacement buttons onto another cardigan- a basic black cardigan with new, simple, matte black buttons. But when I got dressed for pictures I discovered I couldn't button the sweater. Major bummer. I probably could have gotten away with just wearing it, without buttoning it, but I don't want to make this kind of compromise with my clothes anymore. And I don't need to wear a constant reminder of my body's failure to meet my expectations. There's also the problem that whenever I try to pull off the I-can-wear-it-I-just-can't-button-it trick I always end up in a situation where I'm cold and would really like to button my sweater or jacket and not being able to makes me feel stupid. And feeling stupid and fat is a lethal combination.

I wasn't able to bounce back from the small sweater fiasco yesterday, but today I'm ready to get back on the horse, so to speak. It will take more than one too small cardigan to finish me. The offending sweater has been tucked away, out of sight, in my storage closet.

I'm much happier today in a sweater which does button (even if I choose not to do so.)

I think I've worn this outfit exactly the same way on the blog before. The shoes might have been different, or I might have had another necklace on, but the green striped dress and blue cashmere sweater combo is the same. I don't ever see myself becoming one of those bloggers who never wears the same items the same way twice. I'm not much of a *re-mixer.* I like the idea of having outfits that I know I love and being able to put them on and go. That's what I've been hoping this blog will help me to achieve. But once it starts really working, what does that mean for the blog? Is it going to be all, "Here I am again in my favorite dress, and don't I look every bit as lovely as I did when I wore it last week?" Obviously, I'm not even close to that point yet. So I guess this is more about me apologizing for not taking the time to experiment with novel clothing combinations than it is about the likelihood of me outgrowing the blog any time soon. I'll try to come up with something more inspired for tomorrow.

Let's return for a moment to my reasons for blogging:
I'm hoping that it's going to help me to identify what works and eliminate what doesn't. In the case of this dress, for instance, I don't think that the high waist is great for me. If I were less busty the effect of the high waist would work to emphasize my narrow ribcage. Instead, I end up looking as if my boobs are at my waist- and friends, let me assure you, while that day may be coming, it is not here yet!

Compare today's dress to this similar one with a waist seam that hits at my natural waist. Much better, right? When I bought this dress I didn't think I could zip up the bodice; I was planning on turning it into a skirt. In light of the 'high waist revelation' I'm leaning in this direction once again. What do you guys think? I'd still have the problem of not having any tops that fit- but it's not as if this dress is really solving that problem anyway.