Angie is making me rethink my 50th birthday gift

Since joining quite recently, I have discovered several things. (1) My recent small weight loss has meant a drop in pant size (yay!) which means nothing in my closet fits my bottom half (boo!). (2) My recent urge-to-purge and belief that less-is-more also means there is not a lot in my closet to begin with (I consign impulsively).
With your and Angie's help, I have recently purchased new straight-leg jeans and black True Straight pants from Gap which I love. I have also ordered a pair of drab green cuffed track pants with black pinstripe just to see how that trend looks on me (unsure).
My intention had been to use my 50th birthday budget to invest in a structured black bag (had my eye on a Longchamp). I only have a couple of bags but do rely heavily on a great black Botkier satchel and it suits me well.
Now that I have the new bottoms, I am feeling the need to invest in a few new tops and take advantage of the great guidance and ideas from Angie. Does this happen to everyone when they join YLF?
I am at a crossroads, and finances require me to make a choice. Should I turn away from the big bag purchase and instead get a few great tops?

12 years ago

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I would hesitate to make another big bag purchase if the bag is the same color as the one you already have and love (assuming the Longchamp would not be a replacement for the Botkier). I'd go for another color that plays well with your wardrobe, if you go that route, especially since you bought black pants. A metallic or colored bag would be great to stand out a bit with the black pants.

But often, once we upgrade part of our wardrobe, it highlights the shortcomings in the pieces we have from earlier times -- the fit or color or style is not in harmony with the style direction of the new pieces. Have you tried on your current tops with the new bottoms? Can you identify what you need?

I think many of us go through a wardrobe overhaul like you describe when we discover YLF. For me, it's been two years of exploration and experimentation, and I'm now starting to settle down into a style that feels truly *me.*

Anonymous

This happened to me. I'm not a bag lady but have added many bags in different styles and try to keep them a bit more upscale and structured now. What you do is really up to what you need most to help you feel wonderful about your outfits. You might do some of both and look at consignment or ebay for bags, but be picky. It's so easy to make mistakes with weight loss because everything looks better than before.

rachylou

I think it probably does happen to everyone. Like Janet says, you do the evaluation and discover... the true path to happiness. Lol. Well, I did. I mean, I love clothes and had a lot that I loved, even whole great outfits, but I was never exactly satisfied with my closet. Now I have *total wardrobe satisfaction.* My biggest change came from analysing my activities and devoting more closet space to the kind of clothes I need to wear the most - and making those fashionable.

Scarlet

As long as you have a couple of appropriate bags already, I would lean toward tops to go with your new bottoms, since you seem to feel a style shift.

jenanded

I hear you but the Longchamp will last much longer as a reminder of this milestone. Tops will come and go..... inho... enjoy whichever choice you make

Mia

If you are like me the keepsake is the way to go and there are alternatives to bags. Scarves, sunnies and jewellery can have longevity and are easy to store. Either way you are going in a fun and positive direction. Enjoy and happy b-day.

That's a tough one! I like to have one big item for a gift. I tend to fritter away the money on more "perishable" items like tops and bottoms that don't always stay with me for years.

I've enjoyed reading your comments on Angie's blog posts each morning. It's nice to have you aboard!

Suz

What Claire said!

unfrumped

I'm not a big milestone person in terms of ever focused on wanting one thing for an anniversary or birthday or needing to have something I can point to for that year.

I'd just ponder where you think you're going and what will get you there.
Here are some back & forth, pros & cons of different approaches:

Money is money--whether you go on a vacation or get a handbag or get a new "wardrobe" is more up to how you feel about marking events and how you think of your budget. If you're not happy with your actual clothing, it may be harder to be happy with a coordinating handbag. OTOH, one person's style approach may be to wear low-cost jeans and T's with a Chanel handbag!

There has been some talk about longevity of wardrobe items, and it does seem that items like fine jewelry, some handbags have more longevity suitable for "milestones", so if part of your strategy is to assemble some of these items by adding as an annual event, that is a great way to build. If you are a real handbag person and you carry your bag every day, then that may mean much more to you than a dozen tops.

I like the idea of doing both! Quality is at many price points, and one option is a lower cost but still excellent handbag--perhaps you might want to even experiement there, too, with a metallic or some new color-- and still have room for clothing; "investing" in tops doesn't work too well as they ARE more ephemeral--unless a few classic wool sweaters and such, or a designer white blouse, and even then, poof! can happen. So if you're mainly trying to evolve a new style but aren't sure of where you're going and perhaps not about final weight, it's pretty easy to find inexpensive tops in some updated styles to mix well with the pants, and especially if trying out some new looks.

Just think about it and see where you feel more sure of your style focus for the next few years. Hopefully a big picture of how you want to have fun will emerge.

Caro in Oz

My opinion fwiw is that it is more important to feel great in my everyday clothes than anything else. So if it was one or the other & I already had a great black bag I'd be thinking of tops

viva

Thanks for all of this great advice -- so thought-provoking.
Here is what you have helped me learn about myself.

Joy: I am not a bag lady either. Maybe I needed to see comment to really get that about myself. I am pretty monogramous, bagwise, and also not someone who spends a ton on bags although I like nice ones. I have four bags in heavy rotation and I love them all: a metallic Coach hobo that is at least 4 years old, the black Botkier (bought on consignment), an olive Olivia Harris crossbody (consignment), and a black and white beaded clutch from Anthro. I'm not a collector. I'm not sure I really need or want a black Longchamp.
Janet: If I do get a bag, it probably should not be black or any other neutral.
Mia/ClearlyClaire/Suz: I already have the keepsake covered. We've been going through my mom's things as part of my parent's downsizing (mom has dementia) and I was able to purchase her triple-strand pearl and pave diamond bracelet (which went up for "auction" among my five sisters and myself). I think this bracelet is my big thing. It has meaning, and it surely has longevity, as it has already proven.
Unfrumped/Caro/Scarlet/Rachylou: I will likely have fun and get real pleasure from finding a couple of great new tops. They may or may not have longevity but they will, I hope, express wherever I am headed now stylewise, and who knows, maybe I will have enough for a bag that is a bright color and not so spendy.

I am so thankful to you all for this great advice! I have two weeks to prepare for the shopping trip. Now I just have to figure out how to find the holes in my closet. LOL.

Adelfa

I always need tops because I hate to shop for them! I find clothing my bottom half much easier. Purely for this reason I vote *get the tops* because it will be special to have money to spend on items that will really complete your look!

No reason you can't get a bag for your fifty first birthday in my book

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