Okay, only the most important things... As there are so many. I learned that being plump, short waisted and over 40 doesn't mean that I can't incorporate (almost) any trend into my wardrobe (not all skinny jeans are created the same). I learned that there are many women all over the world, no matter that their age, weight or body shape, who can all look stylish and wonderful. I learned that it's ok to follow rules, but it's also ok to sacrifice them for different reasons- like sacrificing your waist if you're a hourglass, which I am.

WOW. Thanks for sharing, ladies. How wonderful to read what you have learned.

So many things. But the big one: the value of the photograph, in a dressing room or while getting dressed. It magically takes all the emotion out, and the blinders come off, and there you are. It lets me make better decisions.

Not to mention, some things photograph one way, but look very pretty IRL. For instance, evening wear with shine looks very pretty on, but, to my eye, in a picture, sometimes focuses attention on bits I'd rather not focus attention on. For an event where photos are important to me, I'm going to avoid shine and go with a matte fabric.

What a great read everyone...it's so enlightening to hear about each discovery. We obviously all appreciate and value what you do here for us at YLF. Thanks, Angie , Greg and Inge for the best platform to explore and have fun with fashion:)

Ooh, so many things that it's hard to pinpoint just one or two. Most of all, I really value the friendships here -- it's been such a joy to get to know such a fab group of people, both online and in many cases IRL too.

But a few things that stand out for me:

1) Never say never. Just try something if it appeals to you, even if you think it will look ridiculous. Sometimes it works better than you think, and it ends up opening new directions for you.

2) Taking photographs of an outfit or of an item in the fitting room can really help pinpoint things you don't see in the mirror.

3) The concepts of PPP and a healthy balance between wardrobe basics and statement pieces. I still tend to be an impulsive shopper, but I'm more mindful now of how a piece may integrate into my wardrobe, and I think more critically about things before I buy them or cut the tags.

4) Thinking in terms of structure and unstructured when it comes to choosing pieces and putting outfits together. I always knew instinctively that too little structure in an outfit made me feel frumpy and unfab, I just never thought of it in those terms. Being able to articulate these kinds of concepts has led to me being able to put outfits together with less guesswork, and to choose things while shopping that work with my wardrobe and feel like "me."

5) And along the same lines, being able to articulate "my style" even though I've never fully embraced a single moniker or rubric to the exclusion of all others (Sophisticated Rock'n'Roll?). It allows me to stop wasting my time with looks that are too romantic, too RATE, too classic, etc.

I have so much more to learn, but so far I've learned

I can wear white, particularly white with black
Less can be more (still struggling with this but getting there)
JFE and relaxing my self imposed rules

....and I've loved seeing the fabulous style of women of different ages from all over the world. It's been very inspiring.

So many great responses!
I think the thing that's really amped up my style this winter are my structured jackets plus scarf plus pearl earrings combo. I find I can just wear a pony tail and jeans and still feel really put together if I'm wearing those additional things.
I think also really good quality knitwear amps things up.

Found: friends! (echoing Suz)
Learned: capsule how-tos (I'm soooo much better at travel packing now, because of it)

So much more of course, but limiting myself to one in each category, that's what I'll say. I've been nodding along with so many of the responses here. What fun!

To purge and not feel guilty, because if it isn't flattering, comfortable, or whatever the reason just let it go. But more importantly, I have learned to purchase more wisely.

I think Angie's advice that if you shop too much with your heart and not enough with your head you can end up with a wardrobe full of clothes that you love, love, love but that don't work together. That is my big problem. I am much more considered in my purchasing now. I try to identify wardrobe holes and missing links and fill them rather than just buy what I like (and end up with duplicates or orphans). Work in progress of course!
Also, I must mention that I lurked for a LONG time on the blog and forum before posting anything, on account of being very shy. And I still remember getting my first responses from Angie and others on the forum who I had watched for a long time. It was so thrilling - like being spoken to by rock stars! It is a great community here.

Loving reading all these replies. Like Brooklyn, I lurked for a long time, too. Angie's articles really articulate why certain looks work or not.
My first lesson learned was to shop for the life I lead, not a fantasy life. And I found a community of wise, kind, and funny women who always brighten my day. Thanks for having me here.

*very happy sigh*

A little late to the party...but I just wanted to add my own. I think the biggest revelation for me was the concept of JFE. I don't think I had ever considered wearing something that might not flatter my shape, but in the last year or so of reading YLF I've found that I feel so much more current and maybe even a bit edgy!

I've also learned that sometimes less if more (gasp!).

And although I don't post photos, I've learned the value of snapping a pic of my outfit once in a while if I'm struggling with it. It's really helped me figure out why an outfit might work or not.

Anyway, I'm still learning so much here and am having fun working on my style. I really find a lot of inspiration here!

I think the most important thing I have learned here is to insist on proper fit! That might mean that I have to wait a very long time to find just the right thing, but that's OK. I've been so much happier with my closet ever since I quit buying ill-fitting clothes.

Another late addition! I love this thread.

I think my biggest realization is that photos help so much when I'm trying to decide if something fits right. My mental image and my mirror never quite match reality (and not in a consistent way, either!). I had a very bad track record with fit.

I've also become much better at identifying things that I'll wear again and again. Far fewer missteps. (Except with shoes. Still haven't learned which will be comfortable and which will be duds.)

And, finally, I learned that my phone has a timer for the camera and I can take totally reasonable photos of myself without pestering my guy!

What a great conversation! The first thing I learned on YLF is to shop for my current lifestyle. Seems so obvious and simple now but that was a game changer for me.

SO. MANY. THINGS.
Just off the top of my head:

PPP
Tracking - shows what I actually wear not what I thought I wore.
Taking outfit shots - another game changer

The best thing though is that there are so many kind & generous women, all over the world, & they all love taking about style/fashion & their wardrobes

What Brooklyn said. Of course things need to look good, but they can look good and still not help me "get out the door" in the morning. In fact sometimes it's a more ordinary item that works better than something that looks great but doesn't perform IRL.

Trying new brands and sources has been good. Trying things on, even if it's disappointing--nothing ventured , nothing gained.

Trying things on with lots of other things at home. This is why adding too much new stuff in too short a time, I learned, gets me into trouble. It takes time to do the try-ons, to integrate something and to get feedback on whether that's the right direction.

Sort of the result of following the lessons is, just take it back. When something I thought would work, doesn't. I am trying to also, just leave it on the rack, which is even better, but I am very hard-headed and sometimes I need to use my own mirrors and outfit partners and prove, yep, it's too (big, short, not quality, not worth the money, not worth the space, imaginary lifestyle, not me, whatever)-- this is a mistake but still remediable before cutting tags.

So many things I could list, but one that helps a lot is to leave no retail store unturned. You just never know where you will find something. I haven't shopped at Express in years, yet just picked up my holiday top for the season from them after my current go to stores fell flat.