It's interesting that you call your basics boring - I don't see them that way - they have interest and detail, even in subtle way - which suits you. Not everybody wants or desires to wear the diva pieces, one person's basic is someone else's hero!

Krishni, this is so beautifully said:

Like what style and fashion is a language and a story.

Suz, you know I think outfits #1 and #3 are KILLER. Strong and Simple - a look close to my heart (as you know).

Sorry that I forgot to zone in on your outfits in my first comment here. I got carried away yakking about how much I love my own good quality basics. I was rude

Love what Rita, said - basics make a complex item shine. It's the truth.

QueenMum, I laughed out loud at those links you posted! I DO see the difference, and you are absolutely right. Maybe that's what many people think of when they hear the word "basic" and admittedly, that would be pretty hard to work with!

Krishnidoux, what a beautiful and apt analogy; you are so right. The basics are the structure; the statement pieces (or the blend of basics and others) are the "voice" of the story. What makes it unique.

Imogen, thank you! I am flattered. And Angie, thank YOU, too. Actually, it is both your blogs that have been so helpful to me; yours were the ones I started reading first after I lost weight and began to realize I would have to begin to do SOMETHING about my wardrobe, and yours are the ones that I continue to read months later! So I am enormously grateful to you both and to all the members of the forum.

Suz I know that it's been said many times but I have to tell you that you do not look basic at all. You look like you have a very real personal style. You look great. You look interesting.

Suz, you have amassed some GREAT basics. What you tried to make do with before could hardly qualify as building blocks of a wardrobe. Thank you for linking to Steph's blog....I've been waiting for her Rx for you with bated breath!

These past few months, I've realized the vast difference between a great basic and something you or I might have purchased in a thrift store just to tick it off our list. I've had a sort of mental list of things I thought a well dressed woman was supposed to have, like a white button front shirt or a little black dress. I would pick these items up cheaply and they would be ill-fitting and poorly fabricated. I would wonder why I never reached for them. Then I saw Angie wearing a crisp white shirt and thought, "OH! That's what it's supposed to look like!"

You are doing a great job of providing these lightbulb moments for me, too. Like the great funky shoes I see you wearing. I know they're comfortable, so you're showing us all how fab and modern we can look while still being comfortable in our shoes (and in our own skin). Rock on, sister!

Hmmm, I thought I'd commented but don't see it. Anyway, your outfits are light years from boring. They are creative and classy and fun.
I had wanted to comment on the thread about basics that the right ones can make my heart beat faster. Take layering tank tops...I often buy cotton ones at Target that serve me well but if I find an Eileen Fisher tank in my size on the sale rack, especially if it's a fab silk fabric, I've got a prize that makes me feel like the queen wearing it. It's still a basic tank, but oh what a difference!
The black basic shirt from the Gap and the black basic shirt from Brooks Brothers? No comparison.

Anything but boring! These are all great outfits, Suz! I just love your style and your creativity.

I thought I had responded to this thread, but I must have been dreaming that, because I sure don't see anything from me up there, lol.

Suz, you have a fabulous style and your basics are so amazing they would look like statement pieces if they visited my closet. When I think of "basics" I do think of something similar to what Queen Mum posted: plainly cut, neutral colors, solids not prints, etc. You're teaching me that I can find much more interesting pieces that would still fill that important supporting role.

You're an inspiration!