A Metaphor about Life and Fashion
Hey! Home girl here REALLY loves a great Maxi Dress. I might be only 5 foot tall, but a maxi dress makes me feel long, tall, and in charge, while also helping me feel fun and free. This pretty much sums up my personality.
I am not really 100% sure where my love of fashion began. I've always been a little creative and my dad always loved taking me shopping. I think style and fashion is an outward expression of your personality. And while I love a good black ensemble and the occasional neutral on neutral look, I'm not the typical Fashion Blogger with a signature matching instagram feed.
I am no doubt going to be wearing colors. I'll be doing a mix of colors, big jewelry and odd combinations of things.
I heard an amazing quote a little while ago... "Your Soul is Dyed with the Color of Your Thoughts"!
Okay, so I'm not suggesting that if you wear predominately black or only neutrals that it is somehow a reflection of the color of your soul. But it got me really thinking about a few things in my life. And while I want to have a blog that's fun and informative in some kind of way that incorporates all the things in life I love, I really want what I say to mean something. So I was having a struggle on how do I showcase fashion and clothes in a way that's meaningful. I really didn't want it to be along the lines of, "Here I am wearing this dress" and "Here am I wearing a kimono" etc, etc.
So let's take a minute to talk Life and Fashion. At some point when my girls were very young and my husband was traveling and working a lot and we had such limited means, I somehow got on a mailing list for a store called Anthropologie. I LOVED every single thing in this promotional look book that showed up in my mailbox. I remember that every single thing, even a t-shirt, was so expensive and there was no way to order anything. I mean, at that time, it was a treat and complete splurge just to buy something from Target! But I sat there that day on my couch and thought, one of these days, when our finances are better, I'm going to order something from this store. It seemed so far past the point of ever being a reality.
I have endured quite a few things that would seem dark and hard to manage. While I have the most spunky and fun-loving personality, I've also had to endure a chronic illness, fibromyalgia. I wrestle with anxiety and bouts of depression from time to time. I have the exhausting situation of some OCD tendencies. I'm juggling three businesses and trying to always make improvements and keep it all going. Some days I'm not sure how I'm doing it and I make plenty of mistakes and blunders along the way! Fashion has been a way to perk me up, help me feel better about myself, and give me a little joy when I'm going through rough stuff
Keep a positive and vibrant outlook on life as much as possible. Keeping looking ahead to brighter days
So here are some of my Laurie's Life Lessons:
1.) When things are tough, whether it's a bad day, or a "bad" season in life, JUST KEEP GOING! Things tend to work themselves out. This is in no way trying to diminish your feelings about the bad stuff. You do have to kind of soul search and get through the negative feelings. But try very hard not to dwell on the bad. I always love the meme that says, Drink Some Coffee, Put on some Gangster Rap and Handle it!
2.) Surround your self with what you love. FLOWERS, MUSIC, ART, CLOTHES... whatever it takes. Just be good to yourself.
3.) Remember, "It's just a bad day, not a bad life". I mean I'm preaching to the choir here on this one. It's so hard to move past disappointments, but we have to do it!
Now here are some my Laurie's Fashion Tips:
1.) Go Bold. Try something new. If color is not easy for you, try adding a little splash of color with a bold colored necklace to your LBD. Or a colorful scarf, kimono or jacket. Mix patterns. I always love a stripe with a floral.
2.) Don't follow the normal rules. I mean I'm a compliant person to things like social graces, etiquette and just everyday goodness to people. But I really like doing things outside of the box and this shows up in my style choices a bunch. I'm sure there is a fashion rule about if you wear a big statement necklace, then earrings must be minimal or small. But I say to go big and bold for both. There are some proportions to consider, but if it looks good to you, go for it!
3.) Don't be afraid to wear things in an unusual manner. I have literally worn a wrap dress (which are normally a terrible choice for my frame) tied in the middle as a duster style jacket over a shirt with leggings instead of it's normal purpose of a dress. I've bought something that was intended as a bathing suit cover-up, thrown a simple cotton slip under it and worn it as a dress! These are just a few examples, but you get the point!
An Eyelet Cove-Up with cotton slip worn as a dress! I go this gem while on the Island of Iles Des Saintes
And to sum up, would you believe that probably about 10 years after receiving that Anthropologie Promotional Look Book in my mail box, I was actually able to visit a store in Arizona and buy a shirt AND dress. The very next year after that, they put an Anthropologie store in the Oxmoor Mall in Louisville, Kentucky, just a mere 20 minute drive for me. A girl can dream and dreams can come true! If you can't seem to find me around town on any given day, I'd say you might find me over in Louisville at Anthropologie. So go and live life bold, bright and to the maximum! If your style choices mimic that, even better in my book.
