It’s been a year since I retired. I’m looking back at my styling and purchases and noticing some patterns. I’m still learning, of course but maybe my experience would be of interest to others.
Before retirement, I worked a few days a week in the office and also WFH. My workplace didn’t have rules about attire, more sort of understanding. It was a financial service with majority of the workforce in their 30s in a trendy area of the city. I stopped buying strictly office clothes after COVID. But there were obviously some considerations. So, I was curious to see how my “new found freedom “ will affect my wardrobe. I had some assumptions about how I want to dress.
What worked and what didn’t?
- lesson #1. my go to tops for summers were button down shirts, both long sleeves and short sleeves. I refreshed my collection in the beginning of the summer. I wore long sleeves shirts with jeans but some of my new short sleeve shirts still have tags on them. Instead, I prefer to wear a nice, simple t-shirt. Those shirts are something I brought over from my office days and it doesn’t work that well with my more casual summer pants. Even though these shirts are not strictly office clothes, they are more formal than I would prefer.
- lesson #1. my go to tops for summers were button down shirts, both long sleeves and short sleeves. I refreshed my collection in the beginning of the summer. I wore long sleeves shirts with jeans but some of my new short sleeve shirts still have tags on them. Instead, I prefer to wear a nice, simple t-shirt. Those shirts are something I brought over from my office days and it doesn’t work that well with my more casual summer pants. Even though these shirts are not strictly office clothes, they are more formal than I would prefer.
- lesson #2. Duplications. For the longest time, when something worked, I wanted to duplicate it in a different color. I used to fight this urge, feeling that I should be rather doing “one and done”. It would make my wardrobe more interesting. But I realized now that I’m a uniform dresser and happily wear the same item in a different color instead of trying other styles that have 50-50 chances of fitting. This a simple, uncomplicated way for everyday dressing.
- lesson #3. I have more than enough clothes to dress daily for different occasions. Buying simple clothing is easy but I don’t need it. What I should be buying once in a while, is some special and fun. I’ve known it for some time. This is a tall order, not often I see something like that. But it should be my focus. I’ve been successful with some shoes and bags this year and want to borrow from the experience.
These are not earth shattering conclusions, maybe more sort of adjustments, I feel I need to do.
I like learning about different experiences that other newly retired women went through. What surprised you in the first year of retirement?
