What the Heck Do I Wear?

So I'm back! I was off on vacation to my homeland of Toronto, Canada. It was awesome. I decided not to be on computers while I was there. Guess what? Computers are such a timesuck!

But here I am again, aren't you glad?

Anyways, I thought I'd write a little bit about How to Shop. Now that you hopefully have your denim wardrobe on hand, it's time to add to your wardrobe. I fully believe in having a very well rounded closet, so that you're never faced with a "What the heck do I wear?" situation. You should always be able to pull from your own closet because you've already built up enough that you are prepared for the situation.

The NUMBER ONE biggest mistake I see women making when they are clothes shopping is shopping without a plan. No, I don't mean you always have to know what you're buying and where you're getting it from, I mean shopping without direction. Think about it; stores have LOTS of cute clothes. That's what they're there for. But that doesn't mean you just go grab whatever cute thing you like and buy it. Why? Because you'll go home, realize you have nothing to wear it with, and hang it in your closet with the TAGS STILL ON for your husband to discover and use it as a case for you to never go shopping again. And you want to shop right? RIGHT?

When you head into a store and see something you love, STOP. First think; what would I wear this with? Think about the things you already own. Picture the outfit down to the accessories and shoes. If you can do that with things you already have in the closet, go ahead and try on and buy it if you like it.

If you CAN'T plan an outfit around the new item with things you already own, you now have to decide. Am I willing to commit to this item enough that I am now going to BUY the things that I need to wear it with? Or is it not worth it. This thought process has helped me put many an item back on the shelf and invest my money on something that will get alot of use instead. Because clothes are for WEARING! Except for my pair of Michael Kors shoes, which I spent too much money on and live in daily fear of ruining. So those are for looking at.

A good base to start around is your denim wardrobe. Got it? Good. Now add to that using the outfits we went over in the past few weeks... stuff for dressing up, stuff for running errands, stuff for hanging around. PURPOSE your clothes. Pick up and item and THINK, k, now where would I wear this?

Another note is about fit. ESPECIALLY with jeans or denim, the fit will be different for each pair. Even if you are tried and true size four, no TWO size fours will be the same when it comes to denim- Denim is not an exact science, and the composition will result in a different fit. So heed this advice and when trying on jeans, grab TWO pairs of the size you want and ONE pair of the next size up. This will eliminate you a) having to ask the dressing room attendant for the next size up or b) just not getting the jeans because you are too embarrassed. However, it DOES allow you to smugly as for the next size SMALLER, if you should need it. Because that's fun.

Think of your clothes or wardrobe as a collection. You need to add different pieces to that collection to make it complete. A collection made up entirely of Mickey Mouse Pez Dispensers is lame. So is a clothes collection made entirely of t-shirts. Make it diverse. So that next time you have a Girl's Night, or have to go to a parent teacher interview, or need to make an appearance at a wedding, the outfit you need is already in your closet (more on these to come!)