Pushing my style out of the comfort zone

annabelle

My husband received the Nordstrom catalog yesterday, and I did a new thing: I looked at all pages of the catalog, and decided what I could/would wear, if my lifestyle suited it. For instance, I can't think of anywhere I'd wear a dark pink gingham midi dress, but for last night's purposes, I considered whether I'd feel fantastic wearing it, say, at lunch with friends, regardless of cost or frequency of wear... just for the exercise. Traditionally unless a stylist picks something for me, I've stuck to shapes, fabrications and colors (and prices) that are within my comfort zone. This catalog exercise has helped me think outside the box. I am challenging myself to buy an outfit (or something similar) from the catalog this spring/summer. (It helps that the catalog is a finite number of pages.)

I'd love to hear your successes. How do you stretch your style preferences and think outside the box?

9 years ago

Inspiration

12 replies

Latest reply was from

shedev

Veteran

I'll try on something I don't really expect to like.

9 years ago

rabbit

Veteran

That's a great exercise, I think you have to give your imagination permission to envision and dream things without being fettered by practicality, otherwise you won't know the full extent what you could do or be.

I like runway looks and street style looks to get an idea of some of the specific elements or feelings/vibes I think would be fun to wear during a particular season, then I look at sites like Zara and Mango (and Urban Outfitters for shoes) to see what kinds of contemporary but real world silhouettes might best fit with these colors and textures and patterns in my mind.

Then comes the hunting part as usually my budget isn't quite at that level, so I need to comb many retail and thrift options and set a price that will match the likely wear/happiness factor and then try not to budge much on my specific wish list for an item.

9 years ago

Joy

Veteran

To answer your question, I give Angie's ideas serious consideration even though I'm over 65 and look it. Who says an old woman can't rock sporty lux? Actually it is perfect, but I'd never ever have tried on tuxedo track pants or mixed media sweatshirts if it were not for Angie.

9 years ago

anne

Veteran

Interesting thought process. I am a slow adopter and an underbuyer, and generally I need to expose myself to the image of something new quite a bit before I'll consider it. The good thing about Angie's blog is that it is northern hemisphere based, so I can find out about things six months ahead of the Australian season.

9 years ago

Summer

Veteran

I think this is an excellent exercise, Annabelle. Anything that nudges the mind to work in a slightly different way can often lead to fresh insights.

Actually, I have done exactly the same as you when looking through a catalogue; switching from what would work for me to things that just appeal to me for some reason. A recent revelation was finding that I was drawn to lace, despite the fact that my look is usually streamlined and simple. I am now happy to incorporate this more feminine element in my wardrobe; not a full-on girly style, but just a hint of lace here and there - a totally unexpected development.

9 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

What a great question, and what a terrific exercise! I hope you won't mind if I try out your idea! I, too, tend to buy tried and true, if left to my own devices.

Currently, I tend to do what Joy does (I pick up on Angie's suggestions/ ensembles) which sometimes leads me to try things I wouldn't have considered or combinations I would not have imagined.

I really like the idea of shopping in "outfits" as a way to update/ create currency in a closet. It's very hard to do that buying piece by piece because sometimes the proportions are off. This way would really give you a clearer sense whether you would enjoy wearing it.

9 years ago

Anonymous

So glad you asked this question Annabelle. I am so going to track this post and try out the suggestions. I love your idea of fantasy shopping the catalogue. I'm like you, unless a stylist picks for me I stick to my same defaults. Taking pix for WIWs has made me realise that my default choices don't actually look good on me.

9 years ago

Marina

Active Member

My grandmother was a professional seamstress and she lived with my parents (and me) most of my life. I never learned how to sew, but I used to help her doing easier stuff, so I do have a basic notion on how clothes are "constructed" - I had a lot of homemade clothes that I'd chosen everything from scratch to finishing structure - model, shape, fabrics/structure, colors, length, details. Nowadays doing this is merely a mental exercise, but I still like to imagine/draw outfits. I look people on streets, stores, showcases or search internet for images of clothes, accessories and makes/hair styles and play with them in my mind/paper imagining possible modifications, different ways to use them, mixing them with other complements and for different situations. I'm not very skilled at drawing, but drawing or writing down what's on my mind helps me to visualize it. Sometimes I do this with stuff I personally like/want, but sometimes I do it with entirely different styles or even picturing other people, just for fun. For me this works as a good way to explore new style options.

9 years ago

Sal

Veteran

I have mentioned earlier that I have a friend who is a designer. I sometimes go to her workshop and have mass try on session of most things in my size. It is good to try different silhouettes in particular. I am relatively adventurous with colour, but can be safe on shape.

I prefer to shop alone but every now and then shopping with a friend can push me in a new direction.

9 years ago

Gigi

Veteran

Great idea. We become so accustomed to browsing online that we forget that printed catalogs even exist...and can be very useful.

The way I go outside of my comfort zone is to do a mood board every now and then. I do it electronically, but I post anything that appeals to me, regardless of whether I think it would flatter me or whether I think I have occasion to wear it--kind of like what you did with the Nordstrom catalog. Sometimes it's disconcerting to see what is attractive to me, as it might be something that I scoffed at in the past. But I collect it for my mood board anyway. Then I see what the prevailing themes are and try to buy items that will take my closet in a new direction.

I am in the process of making a mood board now (I felt a style shift coming on, so I knew it was time!), and I am finding that I am drawn to some colors that in the past I wouldn't have touched with a ten-foot pole.

9 years ago

Jeweled

Veteran

I love to browse other people's "My Style" Pinterest boards. If you like some of the things a person pins on her My Style board, you may find lots of appealing new ideas among her other pins on that board.

9 years ago

Anonymous

What a great idea to really focus just on what you like and work from there to decide to make a purchase. For me, I find it helps to look at all sorts of sources, including some small retailers that sometimes carry more unusual items and styles, which helps me see something different that I might consider.
One of the other things that has helped is deciding to really push myself to wear those items that I like but am less likely to choose to wear rather than fall back default outfits, like jeans and a top. Outside of where specific appropriate wear is needed, eg business, special occasion, sports, etc, I can really wear anything. At the same time, this is where I usually put the least thought and effort into what I wear, and that's something I've been working to change.

9 years ago

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