Personal Style: How To Find It (In The Secondhand Space)
How would you describe the way you dress? What’s the definition of your personal style? It’s a question I asked every person who came to the personal sustainable styling sessions, I held at Good, the preloved fashion store in Kensington Church Street recently. For many the question, proved to be tricky to answer. It’s the reason I believe, many struggle to secondhand shop with ease because they just don’t know what suits them, which isn’t connected to the fast fashion practices of micro trend and online influence. It’s this knowledge which is the key to thrifting success, and the answer is as unique as you are. Below are some pointers to consider if you are embarking on this journey; from not listening to your inner critic, to playing dress up inside your wardrobe – the time is now to get into your style groove.
Get Out Of Your Head & Into Your Clothes
If you’re inside a consignment store, charity shop, or staring at your wardrobe – you need to try on every garment which sparks your interest. Just give it a go and see how you feel. Let go of the hang ups buzzing through your mind offering you reasons why the item in front of you won’t work on your body. It’s what every person at my sustainable styling sessions did when I gave them an item to look at – listing reason after reason why what I was showing them wouldn’t work but it was in the changing room where the magic happened. By trying on clothing they would never have chosen for themselves and seeing the positive results in the mirror, they unlocked a new way of seeing themselves and their style. That’s what the focus should always be: finding things to wear that make you feel like you. Look at the shape, texture, colour and print of a piece, rather than listening to the words running through your mind telling you not to.
Just Because Your Mum Doesn’t Like It, Doesn’t Mean You Can’t Try It
Every person in the styling sessions mentioned hearing their mum’s voice, when they considered trying something new. The voice would place a seed of doubt that was hard to ignore. I get it, I have a similar ‘mum voice’ inside my own head, parroting statements I remember her saying to me as a kid, ‘pink and green should never be seen!’ And, her new favourite thing to say to me now is, ‘You look different…’ It’s not easy to apply a filter to these words and phrases coming from a person who you love but I say this with great respect for my mum and everyone else’, you really need to. What you wear is an expression of who you are and no one should hinder that. It’s okay to be different. It’s okay for not everyone to get it. If you feel great in what you’re wearing that is more than enough.
Style Rules Are Made To Be Disregarded
As a former fashion and beauty journalist and a person who’s adult body has gone up and down several dress sizes, I’m very familiar with all of the rules we are meant to follow when getting dressed. Do you have an apple body? What are your colours? Everyone over [enter age] shouldn’t wear mini skirts! The list goes on. Just say no. Whatever your age and body shape, you are allowed to build a wardrobe of clothing that reflects who you are. Style is a very hard to thing to define, hence the millions of rules and regulations written in its name. In the world of secondhand, these beliefs do not need to be applied. Get comfortable with listening to your instinct and let go of rules that confuse and bind you to ways of dressing that don’t serve you anymore.
Do You Like It? Seriously, Do YOU Like It?
When presented with a rail of preloved clothes, just doing this one thing will help you find pieces that connect to your true style. Ask yourself, ‘I like this. What is it that I like about it?’ Follow your curiosity about a thrifted piece. Try it on. See how you feel in it. Get used to trusting yourself on making solid sartorial decisions, not based on trends or outside influences.
Deep Breathes, Don’t Obsess. It’s Never Going To Be Perfect
When you make a commitment to shopping in a slow, secondhand way, you take on a level of responsibility for your choices and how you dress that is traditionally reserved for the fashion company or online retailer you shop with. The only thing you consider is if you can afford it and if it comes in your size, so switching to a wardrobe filled with considered, preloved purchases will feel strange and overwhelming. What’s the benchmark to determine if you’re getting it right? News flash: there is no right. It’s all about relearning to trust your instincts in how you dress and shop. Don’t chase perfection or look for outside affirmations that what you are doing or wearing is correct. How you dress will be different to how I do it. That’s what personal style is!
Wait For Your ‘Positive Click’ Moment
In my former journalistic career, I attended a lot of fancy make up launches. At a very swanky setting (normally Claridges) I would listen to the PR talk through all of the finer points about this new, life altering, piece of kit. Eight times out of ten it would be a lipstick and a phrase often used to describe its exterior would be a ‘positive click’. It’s the satisfying sound the lipstick bullet makes when the lid connects with the lower compartment. The ‘click’ lets the consumer know that the lid has been securely fastened and all is well. It’s a phrase I’d like to re-use in a sustainable context, namely: listen out for the ‘positive click’ when you are getting in dressed. For me, a positive click moment is when I add a belt over a dress and cardigan. The cinched in effect created by this accessory makes the outfit ‘click’. Likewise knotting a Liberty paisley print silk scarf over a simple t-shirt, cropped jeans and ribbed jumper combo, just makes everything better. The more you get comfortable with following your curiosity, trying on all the clothes, picking colours, textures and shapes that suit you and not listening to your inner critic, the easier it will be to hear your very own click. It takes practice but it’s so worth it.