The Mid-year Wardrobe Assessment

 Photo credit: Jannelle Althoff

The past few weeks have been pretty intense for me - work has been insane, there has been bouts of illnesses in the house and we've been traveling across state lines and international borders. I've only recently gotten around to separating my spring cleaning clothing piles into those I need to donate and those I need to take to consignment. That being said, I think it's only apt that I go through the things I've learned so far, my progress in fulfilling my New Year's resolution and what I will try to achieve for the rest of this year.

In the beginning of the year I wrote about buying less and living a little simpler. I think for the most part, I've stuck to the resolution, except that I gaffed on several very expensive items and I'm hitting myself on the head about it. For some reason, it had never been a big deal in the past because I was never quite as experimental about my dress sense. If anything, running this blog has made me more prone to obsessing about things I want because I see them sitting so prettily on other people, if you know what I mean (and I think you do). This year, I have started shopping at La Garconne a bit more, I've bought more handmade items and I haven't tried anything on in person as much before buying. All those have turned out to be relatively disastrous undertakings.

Five things I've learned so far:

1. Invest in a good tailor as per this post.
2. Whimsy and girlish does not work on me. Nothing flowery, summery, frou-frou, loud or drapey - I look simultaneously idiotic, matronly, and with child.
3. Floppy does not work on me and by that I mean things that are obviously over three sizes too big and not just 'relaxed'.
4. My uniform works. I keep forgetting that I have, had, a uniform for a reason - they've never failed me and it's easy. 
5. Never buy anything you can't return, even if it costs much less. 

The running consensus on a lot of blogs that promote a less conspicuous approach to buying is that online shopping is a vice and the only way to stop the insanity is to turn off the computer (or shut the laptop) and stop obsessing. My method of dealing with the obsession to browse and buy is to clean the house, harass the dog, then read a book. I am still intent on making sure I finish twenty Cary Grant movies by the end of the year (I haven't seen one, not even one, blasphemy!). I'm also intent on reading at least ten books from the Modern Library's 100 Best Novels of the Twentieth Century list, and by list I mean the Critics' list. The Readers' list is a right joke because seriously, who the heck votes for 'Atlas Shrugged' as the Best Novel last century (blasphemy!)?

Anyway, sorry for going off on a tangent, but my point is that I've made mistakes even though I am trying to be more conscientious when purchasing clothes. In fact, I am beginning to suspect that I end up spending so much more because I fret and overthink until it eats away at me and I feel like I just have to have a particular item. Most of the time, unfortunately, the very things I fret about turn out to be enormous disappointments.

I think for the most part, I'm pretty done with shopping for a bit - I'm still very keen on getting the J.W. Hulme Linwood bag because I've been pining over one for a while (my PS1 is a disaster and the Clare Vivier messenger bag just doesn't compare), I will probably buy a couple of cashmere sweaters (gray and black) before year's end and maybe some new lingerie. But at the moment, I am trying my best to stay away from sites that peddle sartorial pleasures and instead focus my energy into finishing this dratted PhD and saving for the honeymoon next year.