In the past week I have come to a realization after a few occurances. 1. When our mom was in town she mentioned that she wanted to start dressing only in solids and less in prints. (I thought she was crazy at the time) Also that she wanted to incorporate more black into her wardrobe – not in a “witchy” way but in an sophisticated “I’m almost 50 years old” way. 2. Molly and I went on an intense “nice” bra buying spree last weekend and donated every.single.one. of our old Victoria’s Secret bras that we’ve had since highschool (embarassing?) – one of those things thats completely necessary but always gets pushed to the backburner 3. The two of us aggressively making moves to completely re-do our apartment’s current decor to something more neutral and grownup.
What do these three things have in common? The longevity of things and the value of a really, really “classic” piece. Whether that piece be clothing, undergarments, or furniture – it seems to always apply that when you invest in something “nice”, timeless, and classic you get much more use out of it and are much less likely to get “sick” of something. After thinking it over and staring into my closet, I am completely 100% with my mom on her wardrobe thoughts. I own about 4 black tops and none of which I love. I always thought black was harsh and therefore chose not to buy much of it in the past, but I have to agree with my mama on this one – it is sophisticated, classic, and looks pretty killer on a blonde (if I do say so myself). My goal going forward with my wardrobe is to invest in more solid (ok minus a few prints – say stripes and animal prints?!), classic, and timeless pieces. Less “cutesy” items if you will and more silhouettes that will stay with me years from now even when I’m a mama myself and chasing after little chickens of my own (I said years, remember). Brands like Vince and Equipment have really hit the nail on the head with this concept. Creating gorgeous, well made clothing in styles that are tried and true.
Both Molly and I have always made smart choices in the clothing department – never investing in anything to trendy that won’t last us, never buying anything that wasn’t well made, and never buying something that we would “get sick of” (our mom’s favorite phrase when shopping) after only a few wears, but I still feel like there is always room for improvement. Mama knows best afterall!
(Image 1 via Style.com // Image 2 via Style Snooper Dan // Image 3 via They All Hate Us // Image 4 via Southern Charm // Image 5 via YOUNG MUSE // Image 6 via Glamour // Image 7 via La Modella Mafia)
This is great. Simply classic is where my head has been lately! Just wishing I could do something about it sooner rather than later =)
Loving this post. I kind of came full circle to this idea when I was shopping this weekend. Of course every one wants to by things that are great deals—but, you need to invest in quality pieces and buy things that will last a while–not something you'll only want to wear a few times! Definitely need to make this my fashion mantra!
xx
Giovanna
http://www.oliveandanarrow.com
LOVE LOVE LOVE this post! I'm noticing as I get older that I'm definitely loving classic, simple pieces in my wardrobe, at home, and longing for a life of simplicity in general. The perfection of simplicity I call it..and still trying to achieve it
Best,
Brittany
My goal in building my wardrobe was to invest in classic pieces with longevity and then supplement each season with lesser expensive trendy pieces and accents that accentuate my classic pieces. It's a great rule to live by!
Literally just pinned nearly every image in this post! Great inspiration.
i love vince- one of my favorite brands exactly for the reasons you mention.
You have one smart mama! I always liked prints because in college I always used my money toward other "activities". Although I liked so many other things in the stores, I would always just buy the simple plain solid pieces because they last me years! (In fact, I think I still have them all!) it was just recently that I had to do the exact opposite of your mother and start buying the random prints and possibly trendy pieces. I've had to make risks, because quite honestly I don't know what I'm doing, but I think I've made progress. After buying a couple failures, I've learned to balance my love of solids with my need of prints! Just bought myself a new mustard cardigan
and a striped tee!
I've been wearing so many solids in my life, I finally bought a couple of pieces that have a pattern on them. One has cute white kitties on it and my husband keeps asking me if I'm getting a job at the animal hospital up the street. He's an ass.
I love the idea of simple, classic, well-made pieces. I would also love to simplify my closet and narrow it down…..I get overwhelmed by all the choices and end up wearing only about 30% of it anyways. I really enjoy your blog but realize I am much closer in age to your mother….who sounds fabulous. Would love to see her on the blog.
Extremely inspiring post. Every look is so well put together, mature, yet still sexy. LOVE IT!
Tryly lovely post! I always love classic, simple pieces in my wardrobe and I like simplicity in life. I can't stop myself to pin every image in this post! Great inspiration.
~ Herman Swan
Architectural Stone