It's funny how at this point I almost fee like writing a "fit post" for The Frankie Shop. Every time I'm in NY I like to swing by and try on some of their wares, because despite the "one size" label that so many of their pieces have, they can end up fitting pretty perfectly. This green corduroy shirt fulfills a few different wants I had, in a way that's much more versatile than a blazer (which is the other corduroy piece I was toying around with buying).

I'm still working on creating a wardrobe I'm 100% happy with, but I feel like maybe I'm coming around more and more to The Anna Edit's version of a capsule - not a particular number, but a determination to only have pieces that I love, and moving out-of-season items to a different spot in my closet (and not because I don't have space, but because it's distracting to have them cluttering things up).

I realize that I just did all that ranting about how I didn't feel happy with my closet, but shockingly, I think purging it so aggressively has helped. I feel like it wasn't totally dissimilar from one of Style Bee's 10x10s, because now what I'm looking at are only the items that I like, and when I pair them in new ways, there are less options to get distracted/dissatisfied by. Case in point, I went to NY for my birthday weekend and brought one pair of jeans. One pair that I felt totally happy with the entire time (except for that moment right before the bus ride back when I realized how bloated I felt hahaha).

Maybe there does come a point for people (some people) where all the extra stuff cluttering up your closet is more of a detriment than a help. I even took some of the summer/spring stuff out to store in a suitcase, and that's by someone who isn't limited by closet space - I just didn't want to see it anymore.

I don't know friends, we'll see how things continue, but I am starting to feel a bit better, which since 2018 has been a huge dumpster fire, is a relief.

The cost of this outfit post is at least $68, since that's the estimated cost to repair the LCD screen that broke when the wind knocked my tripod back (+ shipping). I'm pretty salty about this, but I'm going to try and find joy in the fact that this outfit, which took me longer than I'd like to admit to put together, makes me very happy.

I'm having a hard time with my wardrobe lately, I'm continuing to feel like less and less of it fits the person I want to be while also finding nothing else out there in the stores to replace it with, but today, this sweater/jeans/loafer combo feels very much like me.

You know, despite the f*cking cost I'm going to have to bear 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".

This top is actually a combination of two firsts: a wrap that doesn't leave all my goodies hanging out, and a for-real crop top. Which I'm not going to say I'm completely comfortable wearing yet, but I'm trying to push some self-imposed style boundaries while the weather is transitioning, and this piece from Free People is doing a great deal of the heavy lifting in that department. 

It runs to true to size (I ordered the medium too and while it technically went around my waist, the front no longer covered as much) and the linen mix is great for when it's warm but not that warm. Plus the ties at the wrist are unique to the rest of my closet, not to mention the color, so I'm happy to add it to my Fall rotation!

One of the other things I'd like to work on this year is doing a few more posts without sunglasses. I wear specs almost 100% of the time (contacts are a thing, but since it's not worth compensating for my astigmatism they're not a regular occurrence) and here with simple makeup and little to no lip is pretty much me.

Next step: perhaps looking at the camera. No promises though, haha.