Day Twenty-two: Moving towards a better boring.

I'm quite encouraged by the fact that, by sticking to the limited 30 items I chose for this challenge, even my get-out-the-door-and-go outfits aren't the abject failures they used to be. While this ensemble is a bit boring for the blog it looks and feels like me and was perfectly serviceable for a couple of hours of volunteer work and running some errands. It certainly could have been improved by some exciting accessories but on the day in question I was completely out of time. 

My tights are fishnet. I was hoping they added at least a small dash of sass to the outfit. Otherwise it's incredibly basic but it's so basically me that I have (almost) no complaints at all. An A-line skirt and a somewhat curvy knit top is an easy, practical, and pleasing combination for me. This particular skirt is quickly becoming the most worn item in my wardrobe. I also included a black A-line in my 30-for-30 choices but the much heavier, almost felt-like, fabric of the black skirt makes it less comfortable to wear than this one and somewhat bulky, especially at the waist. (Bulk at the waist has to be something no one wants!)

I like:

• Seeing an improvement even in the outfits that I don't have time to tinker with.
• Feeling like myself in my clothes.
• The neckline of this shirt- it's perfect for showcasing a necklace.
• The perfect skirt. I could probably wear this everyday and not mind much.

I'd change:

• Accessories- some color or sparkle are called for here. I've been singing the praises of the outfit but it is a bit dull. It's a nice blank canvas.

The verdict:

• Even though it's not exciting I'm giving this one an 8/10 rating. I was pleased to find that I could just throw something on and go and not end up hating it and cursing my disorganization all day. 
• It wouldn't hurt to have a couple of combinations like this one that I can grab in a pinch because, although I'm trying to be more organized, I know I will always have those 'Jeesze, where did the time go?' mornings.

Day Twenty-one: I belt a cardigan and I am not convinced it is a good idea.

This black cardigan is the dark sister of the grey one I wore on days two and ten. I also have a blue one which is not included in the 30 garments I selected for this challenge. These cardigans are fairly boxy in shape which makes them, perhaps, not the best choice for someone with my figure. I attempted the 'add a belt for waist emphasis' maneuver here to try to counter some of the boxy-ness. I have never been the biggest fan of belts. I think they tend to make me look like I'm crimped in the middle like two sausages. I've picked the very best of the photos here (ie the least sausage-y ones) but I don't know if I like the sweater with the belt anymore than I like it without.

My decision making is not being helped much by the fact that I look absolutely exhausted in these photos. Do I look like a woman who needs a vacation or what? These were taken right before we left. My eyes look like they are trying to exit out the back of my skull. But back to the belt. I tried several of varying widths and contrasts before settling on this one. I didn't hate wearing it, even though it was not the most comfortable outfit I've had on, but I'm not convinced the belt improved the look.

I also turned up the sleeves on the cardigan a little. I'm convinced I look wider when my sleeve hem  hits at the same height as the hem of my top. Since the sleeves of this sweater aren't ribbed they turned up nicely and I think that little bit of height difference helps the overall look.

I like:

• The idea of this outfit- the sweater and skirt combo is usually a very comfortable on for me both physically and psychologically. 
• That I've attempted something new that I might have otherwise rejected out of hand. Yay me! This is kind of the reason for attempting a challenge with self imposed limitations, right? 
• The mixed metals heart necklace. I don't wear much/ own much yellow gold. This silver and rose gold heart was a gift from Chris. It's from the jewelry store in my home town in New Zealand where my dad shops for his girlfriend. She has impeccable taste, in my opinion, and she has instructed my father that anything offered by this store would be an acceptable and highly appreciated gift. Chris decided that high endorsement would likely apply to me too, and he was right. I don't wear the necklace often enough, mostly because of the length- it's too long to wear in an open neckline without a good bit of cleavage on display (not my style at all!) And it needs a very unfussy neckline if it's going to sit on top of a garment.

I'd change: 

• The belt- I'm not sure how, or with what, but this one just didn't do it for me. I'll keep trying. Maybe I need something softer like and obi wrap belt? Or something thinner but not thin-thin?
• I'm contemplating having a couple links removed from the chain of the necklace to allow it to fall at a more wearable length for me. I often hitch up my necklaces in the back in various ways to shorten them but the design of this one makes that impossible. I think I'd wear it a lot more with one or two links removed from either side of the chain.
• I still need to re-hem the lining of this skirt so that it doesn't peek out but more than this I need to commit to pressing it before I wear it. It would improve the appearance of the skirt significantly and very likely improve my own mental assessment how much (or little) I am well put together. As it is I spend a few moments every time I don this skirt berating myself for, yet again, wearing it without pressing it and, seriously, how difficult can it be to run an iron over a straight skirt? It's not like it has tricky pleats or huge amounts of volume. And I have a sneaking suspicion that once I do press it I'm going to discover that I don't actually need to alter the hem of the lining. 

The verdict:

• I guess it's a 7/10. There is room for improvement but there's also lots that I do like about it.
• I need to make a firm commitment to clothing care: pressing things that need to be pressed before returning them to the closet, making sure sweaters aren't full of pills when I want to wear them, polishing my shoes, stuff of that nature. 
• I will keep experimenting with belts.
• I will look into options for shortening the mixed metal heart necklace.

Day Twenty: In which I explain my absence and vow to keep going.

This outfit seemed to be destined not to be photographed. The first time I put these pieces together it was one of those days when everything conspires against you and it's already too dark for pictures by the time you have a moment to stand around posing. What you see here is the second time out for this particular combination of denim skirt, white shirt and black jacket. Photos taken late in the day, skirt and shirt a bit rumpled, probably a significant amount of cat hair clinging to the jacket (although it doesn't seem to show here,) what little makeup I had managed to apply all but worn off. And for all the trouble it took to get this ensemble on the blog it is rather underwhelming. 

These pictures were taken a few days before we left for vacation. I'd planned a weeks absence from the blog to accommodate the fact that I wasn't going to be wearing these same clothes and I wasn't going to be near a computer. One week of vacation morphed into two weeks without posting- there was much to be done before we left and I did not exactly hit the ground running when we got back. I have been wearing the clothes I selected for my challenge, I just haven't been organized enough to photograph or blog about them. I know that this sort of breaks all the rules of doing a 30-for-30 challenge online. The whole point is to show 30 consecutive days utilizing the same garments. However, I do feel that I am reaping some real benefits from limiting myself to these 30 garments and I have enjoyed posting when I've been able. So I'm going to keep plugging away with these same garments until I get 30 days worth posted. If that means that I end up wearing these same clothes in real life for 60 days so be it. 

I like:

• The silhouette and proportions.
• The layered sleeves. I can't get enough of this short over long sleeved look. The jacket sleeves could be a smidge shorter here.

I'd change:

• The shirt- the collars of the jacket and the shirt don't play well together. The shirt collar isn't big/open enough to be on the outside of the jacket collar but it doesn't look right stuck inside the neck of the jacket.
• Or maybe it's the jacket that needs to change? To something with a slightly shorter sleeve and a collar that accommodates a standard shirt collar. Because I am having trouble imagining what shirt would work well with the neckline of the jacket.
• The skirt- a plain grey or denim pencil would look better with the jacket and stay withing the color parameters I've set for the challenge. I have a hounds-tooth pencil skirt that would probably look great too.

The verdict:

• It's a 6, may be a 6.5 at a stretch.
• Even these outfits that don't thrill me have not been (in my opinion) total failures. This capsule wardrobe is serving me well- well enough that I'm willing to keep wearing it for longer than 30 real life days in order to get 30 entries on the blog. I think that says something pretty significant about its utility.

Day Nineteen: With thanks to Shelia and Adrienne.

When last I wore this dress, I questioned whether I should shake things up by trying to make it look different, or whether I should leave it well enough alone being as I really loved it the way I always styled it. Well, naturally, my blogger-commenters (Shelia and Adrienne) said "Yes. Of course you should shake things up! Do you even have to ask?" So, spurred by their encouragement, I tried some of their suggestions and this is the result. It's pretty good. Thank you ladies for your excellent suggestions.

I like:

• The dress. That was a given.
• Having another option for wearing an easy practical garment I really love.
• The black and white graphic print layered under a basic solid. I have two black and white print blouses and I think my wardrobe could accommodate a few more. They feel very me, especially when layered.
• These caramel color leather accessories. I love this color of leather with black. To my eye it looks very rich and sophisticated. A pair of boots in this color have been on my wish list for at least 3 winters but I have yet to find the prefect pair at a moment when I'm feeling flush enough to splurge on them.

I'd change:

• The shoes. These are rather summery with their open toes but they are the only shoes I have in that caramel color. (I see this leather color called whiskey too but I'm a sucker for sweets!)
• The sleeve roll. I'm not sure there's any way to do this differently, but the rolling I've done here seems really bulky to me. It looks okay in the pictures, though, and I got used to the feel of it during the day so maybe it doesn't really need to change?

 

 

The verdict:

• Even if I love the way an outfit comes together I should not stop experimenting with it altogether. Especially as my goal is to have a wardrobe that excites me and doesn't contain a lot of crap that I don't wear.
• I enjoy the layered print sleeve so much it makes me think I should not dismiss the similar dresses I sometimes find that have short sleeves.
• Damn, I really want those perfect caramel colored boots now but since I'm currently unemployed, and have decided to enroll in yet more school I'm not going to have them this year. They stay on the wish list for more secure financial times.
• I'll be on the look out for other caramel/whiskey leather items. The color looks stellar with my hair (if I do say so myself!)
• I give this combination an 8/10. If I were happier with the shoes it might be a 10.

Day Eighteen: The first switcheroo.

I've stumbled a bit on the daily posting. The post previous to this one is Saturday's outfit. This is what I am wearing today. (It's Tuesday.) Sunday was another lost day- the last day of trying to get our home into a condition that might be considered welcoming to guests- and I did not manage to shower or put on real clothes. Monday I did get dressed, and even got dressed in garments from the 30 for 30 challenge that I had every intention of photographing. Somehow, between the last minute prep for our guest, getting him situated and then taking him out for dinner the pictures never got taken. I was planning to have Chris photograph Monday's outfit for me today, and then change into this and get pics for today too. Let's just say that, although my photographer is very sweet, this was just not the day to ask him to provide two photo shoots. Perhaps tomorrow will be better and I can get caught up.

I built a couple of what you might call 'pressure valves' into my challenge when I started to make it less scary for me. One of those was the option to swap out an item I'd placed in the challenge for something else if it didn't fit well. I had planned to wear another grey dress today but that dress was just too snug for comfort. It was a summer dress I was planning to winterize by layering it over a shirt and tights, but the addition of those layering pieces compromised the fit. So, that dress has been removed from the challenge because either it doesn't fit or, it isn't seasonally appropriate, depending on how you look at it. My excuse for making the change really doesn't matter much- the dress is out of my closet for the time being and this long merino cardigan is in.

The cardigan is a gift from my father. (He's the guest that inspired the cleaning marathon.) It's from Untouched World, which is a seriously awesome New Zealand company. They call it the fling on cardi, meaning, presumably, you can just throw it on over anything. It's going to be  a great basic for me as I am nearly always cold. I love, love, love wool products from NZ. Fine, machine washable, eco-frendly merino wool- I don't think you can beat that.

Day Seventeen: Same sweater and jeans as before.

It was such an overcast day today we despaired of getting any clear photos inside. So, welcome to my neighborhood! Of course, there were people just across the street unloading groceries from their car so I felt like a goofball. I don't know if I could ever be one of those bloggers who goes 'out on location' for her photos. Maybe the self consciousness dissipates with time and experience? I predict I would always feel like a goofball, even with practice.

I belted my jeans here and I think I've made them just a smidge too high. I wanted to highlight the green tights and burgundy shoes but I also gave myself a bit of the ole' turkey drumstick leg as well. Furthermore, I never think this kind of funky casual look really works for me despite my insistence on attempting it over and over. I need to figure out a way to wear mens shoes (which I love) with something other than jeans (which I don't love but keep trying to wear for some reason.) I just don't think I can pull of the shoes with a skirt without looking ungainly. I've got fairly large feet and the shoes are quite clunky. Perhaps I just need to get used to the look of giant feet with a skirt? I think I'm going to have to try it and take photos. My feet don't look as humongous here as I feel they do when I'm looking down on them. Photos provide a much better gestalt view for self critique than a mirror seems to, at least for me.

Day Sixteen: What I wore to lunch when I wasn't cleaning carpets.

Today was almost one of those days when I didn't get dressed. I was deep cleaning the carpets in preparation for hosting a house guest next week. Chris wanted to go to lunch. So I threw on some clothes and jammed a hat over my greasy hair and called it an outfit. No shower. No makeup. (No closeup shot either!)

Obviously, I have yet to get to the carpet in this room. There are bits of Minnie all over the floor.