In the Year 2000....

This should really be a freaky Friday post, because it is so awesomely bad, but I have something else cooking for that. So today, you get to make fun of me!

I was going through some things the other day. When my hubby built me the new closet where dreams come true, he also chucked a bunch of old, sentimental stuff that had been holing up in the shelf above the closet at me to clean up. Among this stuff were my old journals.

K, can I first say, how EMBARRASSING are old journals? I don't know WHY we are urged to keep them. For posterity? If my grandchildren ever get ahold of them, all they'll know about me was that I was extremely awkward, hated my brothers, loved every boy that ever walked the earth and couldn't decide whether I liked or disliked my friends. They're going to be like "OMG, Grandma Jae was such a LOSER." And I kind of was, so it would be true. I would so like to go back to the year 2000, when I was in grade ten and thought it was fun to look "quirky" and be all like "Oh, honey no. No one likes your orange cargo pants."

The weirdest thing that I did in my journal in the year 2000 was write down everything that I would wear in a given week. Growing up, I didn't have a lot of money to spend on clothes, so I strategically planned my outfits so that they always looked new and it didn't look like I was wearing the same pair of pants over and over again. Because I really was.

Let's take a look-see at a couple entries.

March, 2000:
-Khaki overalls (shudder) with green turtleneck. Hair in a half up ponytail with bangs parted to the side.
-White cargo pants, green plaid button up (Ugh, this was such a mom shirt, why did I ever wear it?) Hair down.
-Jeans with dragon shirt (This dragon shirt was EPIC. It was black with an embroidered Chinese dragon. Why would I wear something this? Ever. The worst part? One of my friends had the same one and we would coordinate days.)
-Jeans, orange FLANNEL shirt (just kill me) Hair in pigtails omg.
-Yellow vinyl pants (I am not kidding) blue elephant shirt (WTH???)

Anyways, there's a little snippet. I was reading these and laughing my head off over what I thought was cool back in the day. Like those yellow pants were my pride and joy. PRIDE AND JOY.

Anyway, I also dug out some pictures of me from ten years ago! TEN! So embarrassing.


Here's me with a group of friends before a big dance. I'm in the white dress. The dance was in December, so I'd obviously not learned that a white dress in December was a faux pas. Also, that dress started WW3 around my house with my mom. I had to do the old switcheroo and leave wearing something else, then sneak it over to my friend's place to change into it. REBELLLLLL!


WHY am I wearing matching VEST and set of PANTS? The worst part is that I think I wore this for class pictures. I am preserved in a yearbook somewhere in this exact, hideous outfit.


With my best friends. I went through a Blossom-like phase where I wore large hats all of the time. This yellow one was the height of fashion.


This was through my faintly suggestive baby t-shirt phase. Cherries? Really? Also, clearly before I discovered eyebrow waxing, to be sure. How did I have friends???


And thus begins the bandanna phase. I wore bandannas. Everyday. Haven't we talked about doing things in excess before? WHO IS THIS PERSON?


Helllloooo high waisted jeans!!! I love that mom jeans look I had going at age 15.


The infamous yellow vinyl pants. These were my pride and joy. True story, I found them at an outlet store in the city, and they only had a size 11. In high school I was a size 3. I still wore them.

So, clearly, there was a time when my ideas of fashion left much to be desired. Ten years ago I liked strange things that no one else had. Today, I know that looking unique doesn't mean you need to dress like a psychopath.

Alright, now that I've sacrificed myself on the altar of dignity, it's your turn. Leave me some good comments about what trends you liked ten years ago that you wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole now (I HAD AN ORANGE FLANNEL SHIRT) If you're really brave, e-mail me a throwback pic and I'll post 'em on another "In the Year 2000" post.

I'm going to go wash my eyes now.

What I Don't Want You to Wear

K, I know it can be confusing. We see new trends rolling out 24/7 and wonder to ourselves, "Hm, I really like that. I wonder if it would work on me!" Again, I like to say to not worry too much about trends. Once you've worked out a personal style, you can add and subtract trendy pieces each season and still look like your classy self. Problem is, what trends are for you? I can guarantee that our favourite designers are not sitting in their workspaces thinking, "Gee I wonder what I can create for the sophisticated mom-on-the-go, who has exactly 3 minutes to get ready in the morning, who a or may not be accessorizing with baby barf today?" So you need to be choosy about what trends you participate in. You could totally end up looking a) weird b) old or c) both.


Again, I will also say that my personal rule on trends is to remember that fashion is cyclical. If you participated in the trend the first time around, you don't get to the second time. I'M SORRY. That's just the rule. You had your chance, now move along.

K, so with saying that, I can give you some quick alternatives to trends that aren't going to work on you. Let me also say that if there is something you LOVE and looks so super fantastic on you that your confidence soars, then buy, regardless of whatever anyone else is saying.

The Legging:
The legging has long been an enemy of mine. WHile I don't mind it on a teenage girl, I can't stand seeing a grown women with like, three kids in tow and a minivan wearing them. Honestly. They are the worrrrrrst for stumpifying your leg. Not to mention I just think it looks ridiculous, like hey! I'm the cool mom! I wear leggings, even though they aren't particularly flattering!!

But I know there are lots of outfits out there that won't work without a legging. THINK AGAIN! Anything that can be done with a legging can be done with an opaque knit tight OR some skinny jeans.


NO!


YES!

In fact, all those cute long sweaters we're seeing this season? Love it SO MUCH more with a skinny jean and slouchy boot than with a legging. It just looks cozy and totally like "Oh yeah, I totally just threw this on effortlessly to go shopping and such."


The Tapered Jean:
Oh my word I have seen so much of the tapered jean lately I want to throw up. Can we again say there is a massive difference between a tapered jean and a skinny jean? Skinny jeans are straight and cut close through the leg, while tapered jeans narrow as they descend. NARROW! WHY? So gross. I don't like anyone wearing them, ever. Can we just see how much better a standard straight leg or bootcut looks first?





Ugh, its like the tapered jean is on a personal mission to make you look disproportionate. And that's on the model. Now look at the pretty bootcut one below. Look how much better the entire line of leg looks. its long and lean and the butt looks good. LOOK AT IT! Beautiful. Hah! You totally checked out a girls butt today.


The "Pashmina" or Shawl:
K, this one befuddles me because it was made up by old ladies who get cold in church and suddenly everyone has one? Like, what do you sit at home with your cats and drink tea and read Better Homes and Gardens too? It's funny because most trends are made for younger generations, but somehow a septuagenarian snuck in there and got people to think these were a good idea. No. They look old and outdated. I remember back in like, 2001, EVERYONE was buying them. And saying the word pashmina obsessively. PASHMINA. I HAVE A PASHMINA. No, it's still a lame shawl.


Weeeeeird. Plus I don't think a scarf should have this much presence in general. Like, let it go peeps.

However, I love the gauzy summer scarves we see now. They are super versatile and way more fresh feeling than a stuffy old pashmina. And they literally go. with. everything.

Also very good fro detracting from a very pregnant belly. I KNOW! I TRIED IT!

Patterend Hoodies:
This one kind of sucks because I love a cute hoodie, and these ones ave adorable hearts and patterns on them. But be warned. They are made for 17 year olds. Not you. You look silly. Not only are they cut for a teenagers body, but the patterns are just too young to get away wit when you're toting around kids and have a mortgage.





See how short and girly it is? Not good for you. But who doesn't love a hoodie? I think they are awesome and own a ton. Make sure when buying them you are looking at a few things to make them grown up vs high school. The fit. It should be long enough to fit close to your body to your waist or hips. The material. Don't buy giant sweatshirt hoodies that are thick. Yes they are comfy, but they add a ton of bulk that you don't want. This is my current fave by Volcom:




See how it's colours, the fit and the cut are a little more grown up? If you're going to spend all day in a hoodie, let it be this one.


Sweatpants as Normal Clothes OMG IT'S THE APOCALYPSE:

So this is not a trend that I like, nor do I participate in under normal circumstances. But due to my dr's appointments and high likeliness that I will have to get ultrasound goop on my clothes, this has become a reality for me a few days a week. But if you must, must, must, go out and run your errands in sweatpants, so help me god if they have an elastic on the bottom, I will go ballistic.


Oh, I just threw up in my mouth a little bit. Nothing in this world makes me angrier than sweatpants with elastics around the bottom at say, the grocery store. Like really? You couldn't be bothered to put some big-girl pants on before you went out into the world? K, fine, wear sweatpants, but wear RESPECTABLE ones.


I will always be okay with a co-ordinated velour set. It says to me, yes, I want to be comfortable, but I also don't want to look homeless, so I match.

Or, my personal choice of sweatpants is the Lululemon. I honestly hesitate to say that name for fear that everyone will want some, because they are the GREATEST. I wear them around all the time because they actually make your butt look so good, that no one is even noticing you're totally wearing sweatpants. I used to wear them to the gym, but since the gym has become a dream for me, often these are my dr's appointment and general running around pants instead.



Scrumptious! Buy some!! And give your elastic sweatpants to your husband. He misses them.


K, so think carefully when pursuing a trend. Am I wanting this because everyone else has it? Or because it will actually look flattering on my body? If you're buying it to just keep up with everyone else, PUT IT BACK. You are better than that. Work instead on cultivating a personal, signature style that lends itself every now and again to trends without looking like a trend whore. Repeat after me. Trends are not my friend. Be discerning!

Oh....MY...Gosh...From My Closet.

So I know it's easily been three weeks since I posted, but I promise I have an excuse. You can check out my personal blog to check out the hairy details. Turns out that I am pregnant with a rare set of twins that require constant medical supervision and so my life as turned into one long doctor's appointment. So other than updating their status, blogging has had to take a backseat. But I thought I'd nip in to see if anyone was still out there, and introduce you to a very special From My Closet.

Yes, there was a time when I wasn't so very fashionable. Before I figured out alot of stuff, like how to walk the fine line between dumpiness and showing too much skin. A time when I owned, like actually OWNED and WORE these shoes:

OMG, to see them in pictures hurts my eyes a little. LOOK AT THAT HEEL! LOOK AT IT!!!!

Can I say in my defense:

1) I thought these shoes were AWESOME when I had them.

2) Even thought I literally would not be caught dead in them now, I can't bring myself to throw them out OR give them away.

3) I keep them only to serve myself the reminder that anything in excess is not good.

See? We all have fashion missteps. The point is to take it, laugh at it, and move on to bigger and better things. There was a point when I wore these shoes because I thought they made my ankles look tiny and dainty. I just didn't realize that they looked like a crazy Japanese cartoon character's shoes.

And look, proof of me actually wearing them.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry. That's my friend Jarom struggling under the combined weight of me and my thirty pound shoes. When I dug them out of the back of my closet (and tried them on and laughed hysterically while my daughter looked on,) and tossed them onto the floor, the thud shook the room.

So there you have it. Not fashion perfect, just fashion seasoned. Your friendly neighborhood Jae.