I am writing this a few days after the governments announcement of dates that will see us slowly but surely start regaining our pre-covid lives again. But what of our wardrobe and our style that have been somewhat neglected over the past few weeks, months or for some even a whole year. Lockdown has pushed everyone into a sense of comfort over style, joggers over jeans and walking boots over knee high white crocodile leather boots (yes they are a thing!).
So how you do fall back in love with the things you have gathering dust in your wardrobe?
Alot of friends and clients that have been in touch or I have caught up with for walks over the weeks have said to me that they haven’t brought a lot during lockdown as they haven’t seen the point of it. Now that we have some dates to go out again and start to get our social lives back, suddenly getting into your tracksuit every day doesn’t seem so appealing. But some of those pieces that we have been neglecting might have emotional pre-covid ties to them that we perhaps need to re-establish to get us to start thinking about wearing it again. So it’s time to step back into your wardrobe and start feeling your self again, follow my tips on how to fall back in love with your clothes and if this doesn’t work then call me for my help.
Step out of your comfort zone
For weeks we have been gravitating towards the same combinations of leggings / joggers / tracksuits / sweaters / hoodies but now is the time to step away from this comfort zone and push yourself back into the groove of your pre-covid style. Try challenging yourself to wear a certain item like a skirt, a pair of jeans or even a shirt that you haven’t worn for ages and see how it makes you feel. Think about the styling, add a belt, tuck it in, layer up a sweater or blazer over the top. Slowly but surely you and your confidence will start to come back to life.
Re-acquaint yourself with your wardrobe again
Hello jeans, hello blazers, hello nice jumpers I have been ignoring for months. Open your wardrobe and start to remind yourself of what you have inside. Now is a great time to reassess and detox your wardrobe. Perhaps you have fallen out of love with some pieces, some items might not feel good anymore, or have holes in due to over-wearing so need to be chucked out. But you might find a favourite top that you completely forgot about and get excited about wearing again. Clearing through the clutter that might of built up or been ignored whilst we have been in lockdown will give you a chance to see cleared and put outfits together better.
Try your clothes on
Now that you’ve had time away from your wardrobe it is best to have a big try on, what fits, what doesn’t, what do you like, what don’t you like anymore? And make some piles and try to figure out why you clothes are going into the piles you have created. This will give you a clear picture of what you have, what you like and what you are missing to make your wardrobe work better for you post-lockdown.
Mix pieces together you haven’t worn before
You will probably remember wearing jeans and a nice top, or jeans and a jumper or a skirt and t-shirt with trainers, before we went into lockdown. Now with what you have left mix it up a bit, try some new styling ideas by mixing some items together that you have never worn before. The key to this tip is to make sure to focus on the unexpected part as much as possible. Pair special occasion skirts with trainers, boyfriend jeans with a sequin top, or opulent shirts underneath dungarees. Some of this will work for your taste and some might not, but the important thing is that when you're doing this exercise, you'll be opening your mind to out-of-box ideas you might not have felt comfortable considering before.
Try the 30 day challenge
Lastly before you start spending every evening on the Zara app buying anything you think is nice, consider taking 30 days to live back in your wardrobe before you buy anything new. This transitional period between kids starting to go back to school, 12th April when the shops open and finally 21st June is a gift of time to allow you to really re-asses what you have, what you want you style to be and make the best shopping choices for your money for 2021.
Everyone has days when they seem to hate every item of clothing they own — days when nothing seems to work quite right. But sometimes making your wardrobe work is as simple as forcing yourself out of your comfort zone and spending time looking at what you currently already own. Even if it's not the easiest task it will change your perspective on your clothes and style in the coming weeks. I know already that some clients need my help with this as it can seem overwhelming and that is why I am here to help if you cannot do it on your own. Please get in touch and book a wardrobe and styling session so we can utilise what you have in your wardrobe before you start buying anything new for Spring.
