Today's outfit is a bit of a funny one. When I first pulled all the pieces together I felt a little too "dressed up" for a Sunday, but after a few minutes of thinking about it I realized that if these are just pieces I have in my wardrobe, lying around to be worn, then I'm not dressing up. I'm just dressing as me.

Now this very coordinated approach might be some of the best I can do dressing as me, hahaha, but it's not special just because of that fact.  It's hard sometimes to push back against DC's kind of rigid sense of style, and my own recently developed love of athleisure, but this was a look I felt cool in, and was comfortable to wear, so I'm proud to share it.

Spring boarding off last week's post, I wanted to circle back to this Reformation blazer that I bought in May. I realized recently that it may seem like I didn't like it, or that it hadn't ended up being as useful as I'd reviewed it to be, because it hadn't showed up on the blog again after the original post. In reality what had happened is that I brought it with me to work one day and just never took it back home, lol. Day after day it became my go-to summer topper in a too cool office, no matter what the actual outfit was. And I'm sure there were some relative hit and misses from this experimentation, but it helped me visualize a ton more combinations than I would have initially reached for, so it was a happy accident.

I've found myself in a bit of a style shift, and as such I'm reluctant to invest too much in any one particularly piece. And at $228 I do consider this blazer/jacket an investment - thankfully one I'm not bored with, lol, but it's a risk any one of us takes when we decide to put extra funds into a purchase. I think each person should craft their own investment piece rules, and keep them flexible as their circumstances change. I love the opportunity to try out a new style or piece to see if it feels like "me", but I'm not going to do that at a high price point (not until I'm absolutely sure it IS me) and that's ok. The current fashion/closet/wardrobe conversation is focusing a lot on the dangers of fast fashion and the value of ethical clothing, but those options aren't attainable for everyone, the styles aren't desired by everyone, and the sizes don't actually exist for everyone, so deciding a new road forward was the best option for me. So that's ultimately what I'd recommend - critique your style and closet for the life you're living now and how you'd like to live it in the future, without getting bogged down in the parameters outlined by the "experts".

A big part of my trip to NY this past weekend was going to see in person a lot of the brands I'd only been able to interact with online: Sezane, Christy Dawn, The Frankie Shop, etc. You know, those big, usually more ethically minded darlings, that spoke to me aesthetically but who's size charts I was dubious of (to say the least). And in the end, while I'm glad I got to try things on, damn if it wasn't a bit of a blow to the ego.


I already knew that ethical brands didn't really welcome the inbetweenie/plus size customer. Outside of Universal Standard, I'm not even sure I could name another one focused on that demographic (Elizabeth Suzann kind of does, but their "Plus One Size" doesn't feel nearly descriptive enough to justify the price tag). Ultimately what I found myself faced with were pieces that either didn't fit, or fit so badly as to be comical, because the brand themselves didn't create clothing with curves - let alone big boobs - in mind. This usually isn't enough to get me down, but after the same experience in store after store, I'm not going to lie to you and say that it didn't.

When living in the interesting mindf*ck of a time where body positivity is being used to usher in a new wave of personal insecurities, being faced yet again with brands that didn't want or care about my body was annoying. And hurtful. The mental work I go through on the regular to try and reprogram the things my brain sees as "good" and "desirable" is exhausting enough, and when these brands that purport to disrupt the maintstream still act to enforce the extremely narrow definitions of beauty that are already all over the media, it's just another kick when I'm down.

Being a lover of fashion and a consumer/creator of content in the community means my personal style is a journey of discovery just as much as the rest of my life. I fall in love with people and places and feelings and hope that I can replicate them, but rarely do I feel like the inspiration stays true to the vision. For good or ill, once it's on me - curvy, average height me - it's not going to be what it looks like on anyone else.

I think the new hard mental work will be me getting to the place that NOT looking like it does on everyone else is ok. Great event. I'm not sure I'll be getting to the "love my body" place any time soon (if ever, if I'm being honest - I still can't see my FUPA as anything but a problem (which I'm also embarrassed to admit)) but I'm trying.


So please excuse my word vomit, in and among pictures of myself I was viscerally uncomfortable in, both because I felt like it highlighted features of my self I don't show often (tummy and legs) and also because I don't like male attention and I felt like this rode the line of making me a target (which I recognize is their problem and I shouln't make it mine, but here we are).

Welcome back for Part II of my Reformation haul/review! I admit that to call my review of two pieces a "haul" is a bit generous, but I am not made of money ok?! This blazer was a bit of an accident anyway, because even though I'd been looking for a summer boyfriend blazer, I just didn't expect the Reformation one to fit me well.

But oh how it does.

I've worn this constantly since accepting I was going to keep it, hahaha, and it's been a wonderful topper for summer outfits once I've gone inside to the land of A.C. It's lined in a nude fabric so no matter which piece I put it over there's no peaking through of patterns/colors. But there's just something about the way it hangs that makes it spectacular. It's the perfect relaxed but tailored fit, so not only do I not regret keeping it, I'll probably be saving up for an appropriate Fall/Winter version.

And just in case you were wondering, a couple fit notes:

-the sleeves are a bit wide for me, so folding and scrunching them up is pretty essential in my opinion, but I'll play with it and report back
-the size large fits everywhere BUT the hips - I'm not the person who's interested in buttoning a boyfriend blazer anyway, but if it matters to you and you're close to my size, it's not an option with this piece



And surprise, but I have a couple sh*tty bonus shots to share! This outfit is just one of the many I've tried throwing the blazer over, and while it was too hot to shoot them all on Sunday, here are some of the phone snaps I've sent to friends:


Part of the reason I feel like this blazer is such a good buy is because of how versatile it is, and I hope I can show you more up close - and better quality - examples soon!