I thought it would be awkward to start commenting on other people's threads before introducing myself, so here's yet another newbie hello post.
Like quite a few others, while I'm a newbie to participating I've been reading the blog & forum for awhile and 'playing along at home' on my style journey. I didn't join before because a) I have rheumatoid arthritis which is especially strong in my hands so try to limit my typing and b) I didn't want to post photos that could be pinned on Pinterest. The new privacy policy fixes the 2nd issue & as for the first I'll just have to curb my natural long-windedness!
My main style challenges are probably a small budget (around $25-$30/month for clothes, not including shoes) which sees me thrifting (and occasionally ebaying) almost everything except undies, shoes, and socks/tights and the climate of south Texas, which is super hot when my natural tastes run to wool everything and boots and coats and fall & winter (I'm planning a move up north next year that will fix this). I don't work outside the house, so I don't have any dress codes to follow, and I'm 27 so don't have to worry too much about age related conventions yet (although I like my skirt/dress hemlines around my knees and my necklines fairly high anyway).
My main fit challenges are my long torso & long rise, comparatively broad shoulders, and comparatively small waist. Finding jeans & trousers is difficult: any rise less than 10" doesn't really provide enough coverage and my hip region requires a size or two larger than my waist so pant waistbands almost always gape. The waistbands on a lot of dresses and jackets hit a few inches above my natural waist. And woven shirts and blazers, if they fit my shoulders, are almost always too big in the waist, unless they're vintage.
Shoes are also a challenge, as my arthritis affects my feet, requiring high quality, supportive shoes, which I budget for separately since I consider it a health issue rather than just a style one. I'm often caught in between 6.5 and 7 (a Euro 37 seems to be a better bet) and need shoes that are generous in the toe area but narrow at the heel, as well as deep enough to give my arches room to be comfortable. I almost always wear 'flats' (1.5" heel or less) and most of my shoes look sturdy/clunky, but I think they match my general style and look intentional so I don't worry too much about it. I don't wear shoes in my house, but I love to walk when I go out so I expect almost all of my shoes to stand up to at least 1-3 miles/8 hour days. I also don't wear black shoes (I don't wear black clothes and have dark blonde hair, so no bookending options), which makes things trickier. And since I'm buying retail, and my money thus supports the company (vs secondhand), I do my best to ensure the company has high environmental/labour practices. When it comes to footwear, I definitely take the 'quality over quantity' approach, although sometimes I get lucky on ebay and can buy quality brands for less money (and without the ethical dilemmas of retail purchases).
All of that being said, I have a closet full of clothes I love (and I love my body: I imagine every shape presents difficulties) and get dressed happily every morning, so I've figured out ways around my challenges! My favourite silhouettes are knee length full skirts that hit my natural waist + tucked in top (either blouse or tee) and slim trousers/jeans (or shorts in summer) + woven blouse + cardigan. I'm inspired by elements of vintage and gamine styles as well as traditional British countryside looks. I love muted colours and think I look better in cooler colours than warmer (sadly, mustard yellow makes me look jaundiced). Much of my closet is some shade of grey, navy, or taupe; the rest is mainly shades of blue, pink, blue-green, and off-white. More recently I have started allowing cool, bitter chocolate browns in, and am thrilled with how well they play with the rest of my palette.
I'm not an aspiring style minimalist: my closet is probably around 150-200 pieces, and I'm happy with it to stay that way. But I am trying to focus mainly on filling wardrobe holes with purchases right now. I finally found a skirt fancy enough to wear to the ballet this last weekend, which was a fairly urgent need (going to a performance in three weeks), so now I'm taking a break from clothes shopping until February, what with the holidays coming up and wanting to focus on enjoying what I already own.
And now I've written a novel (with typing breaks for my hands) even though I promised myself I wouldn't! I suppose I'm just too excited to finally be joining in, so I want to show you all that I've learned from everyone in the past couple of years. I'll post photos when I'm able and can't wait to see everyone's outfits again!
-E
