my current style is an amalgamation of all that i’ve loved throughout the years of my style evolution and remains ever changing. in highschool, i loved casual and comfy streetwear looks. in college i dressed primarily in pastels and cutesy looks with the occasional dark, romantic element thrown in. i wore uniforms or had strict dress codes for work so i went all out at school since i felt comfy wearing things like classic or gothic lolita looks in the fine arts building. i also discovered mori kei (forest style, she became very important to me later) at this time.
fast forward to now and i’m majorly into the naturalistic and comfy approach. mori kei still has my heart, as i'm nothing but a creature of this earth. i love to juxtapose the masculine and feminine, such as a men’s flannel and a lacy dress. i still love a romantic or gothic element from time to time. as i’ve gotten older, ive began to value slower consumption habits, higher quality/durability and natural fibers. i shop nearly exclusively secondhand now so my style isn’t exactly based in trend.
again, it’s hard for me to give all this a name. i’ve been told artsy, eccentric and hippy-like but regardless i’m comfy and cute! oh, i can’t forget lots and lots of band tees! also no reds or yellows as i have severe yellow undertones and i’m not sure if jaundice-core is a thing yet.
May 5, 2024
Related Recs
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comfort has been my main focus since i was a toddler & i’m trying to honor that intuition in adulthood. i want to feel comfortable in my own skin & wardrobe, which is a challenge as a bigger woman raised in purity culture & fashion as vanity. i’m still most comfortable in modest looks & don't see that changing. the quality & texture of fabric is important to me as well. i don’t like anything that tugs or clings in an irritating way.
i’m also pragmatic so i want functional clothing that will last & i'm trying to build my mending & maintenance skills. i love leather shoes & bags, they’re so warm & classic & durable. i love buying thrifted things that have some life in them already. i love having one-of-a-kind pieces that i can make my own.
i often feel stuck between wanting to express myself through style & wanting to be as nondescript as possible. i like the validation of a good fit but also hate making an entrance. sometimes i’ll put together a look i love & then i’ll swap out one of the elements to ruin it cuz i feel too intimidated. i don’t know if this is because of social anxiety or body image issues or my feelings of not belonging throughout childhood. maybe this is my way of avoiding distraction so i can be present with the people around me.
aesthetics-wise, i love dressing like a fun auntie sometimes (typically in spring/summer) & other times i want to lean more masc with edgy streetwear looks (fall/winter). unique prints are a must, rich earth & jewel tones, classic & sturdy footwear, handcrafted jewelry with a story behind it. idk how to weave together these competing energies of warmth & playfulness, stifled rebellion & hesitant individuality. still trying to identify what i like & give myself space to explore & express that!
May 9, 2024
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I used to live in an extremely hot sunny dry climate and loved to show a lot of skin. I went through phases of different styles just trying things out. Junior year of high school people called me the sexy librarian; senior year my favorite style in high school was kinderwhore which gave off strange mixed messages and intimidated people I think but it was also appropriate for my off-putting hostile personality. I wore a lot of very short skimpy dresses or lingerie with sheer black tights and big sweaters on top and I loved to play with textures and layering. A family friend who was a semi famous musician in the 1990s-2000s was obsessed with my style and wanted to hire me as his assistant because he thought I was cool which i appreciated because none of my peers told me that to my face lol.
When I was a teenage dirtbag my everyday summer uniform was high-waisted denim short shorts, some variation of a Breton top, tank top + open chambray top layered on top, or see-through white drapey t-shirt/tank top with trashy lacey black bralette peeking through. Sometimes I would mix it up and wear a tutu. I wore low-top black converse or the Doc Martens Darcie boot. My friends and I thought we were the characters in Kids (1995) so that was quite the lifestyle.
Started to dress more feminine/glamorous and got really into wearing lush fabrics and vintage furs. Then I went back to a more androgynous look and would usually wear just high-waisted skinny pants of some kind with a black blazer. Then for a while I had a bohemian free spirit kind of vibe.
Wore a lot of miniskirts dressy tank tops and cropped blazers with sheer tights and heeled boots. then I started to examine the contradiction between my attention seeking clothing and my distaste for being openly ogled in public by strangers and decided to try dressing more modestly.
Overcorrected to a minimalist somewhat conservative style of dress and looked frumpy and shitty all the time but did command respect from people. Read about the Kibbe system (if you search you’ll probably find my post about it) and saw that I’m a theatrical romantic and that David Kibbe recommends that I wear delicate flowy clothing that accentuates my shape rather than trying to balance it out or cover it.
I gave away like 80% of my wardrobe and now I’m in the process of figuring out what that looks like in a way that I’m comfortable with, finding the balance between drawing attention and trying to completely hide myself. For casual wear I’m mostly wearing high-waisted skinny jeans, camisoles with lace trim, and usually some kind of cropped jacket on top. Still love to wear maximalist glam clothes and lots of furry textures in the winter.
I have mostly followed a strict no athleisure no tennis shoes policy for most of my adult life. I like to wear leather slip-on shoes with a moderate stacked heel. Feeling drawn back to bomber jackets. Experimenting with drawstring waist and paper bag waist pants that are tapered at the ankle. Considering buying harem pants. I’m thinking I will probably go back to a more bohemian style to project my inner warmth and affability instead of scaring people away by appearing cold and standoffish. so it’s a work in progress of getting my swag back…
May 5, 2024
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god i could really write a whole essay on this
for context, i’m studying pattern cutting and have been really into/very specific about my clothes forever but have known fashion since maybe 15-16
because of how i fit into the clothes-scape my tastes cannot be separated from trends whether i like it or not. how i dress is rather on trend lately tbh
over the years my pants have gotten bigger as i grow more accustomed to the comfort of having less fabric on your body + the dynamism of a wide leg in the somewhat constrained silhouettes of menswear. also inextricable from wider pants just becoming more a part of the collective consciousness and thus my consciousness
my tops have gotten smaller & tighter as i've grown more confident and comfortable with my body. still love a baggy vintage tee when it’s warm though
maybe best way is to talk my fav clothes and why they’re my fav clothes:
- plasticana clogs. super california shoe but also like a half clog half loafer. i love heeled shoes i think they’re more elegant and just more smooth so i’ve worn loafers mostly for the last 6 years. these are like if those felt like sneakers to me. so easy so comfy
- fadepants cords. super baggy, so fucking comfortable. really dynamic shape with a lot of personality. they just feel right
- slim gildan tees. they remind me of the artist guy in Blow-Up and the way that guy looks reminds me of the energy we all used to have in the wood/metalshops at parsons, functional dress
- hanes beaters. so new york summer. also i love how they fit me they flatter my build
- oakley sunglasses. indestructible. ridiculous shape in a way i can own. michael jordan wore them in the 90’s and i love basketball & his game
- bandanas. remind me of home. remind me of my gay ass new york friends. a lot of them were from home too but i met them all in new york. funny how life works. they suit my hair well when i don’t feel like wearing a hat or i haven’t got time for a shower, and it’s very windy in stratford a hat might blow off
- 90’s vintage snapbacks. they fit over my hair that’s really the only reason
- our legacy borrowed bd shirt. it reminds me of the shirts my friend katie wears and those shirts are aggressively northern california. so is this one. and it’s just cute
- supreme leather collar work jacket. has all of the pockets, and the roundness/diesel type fit that a new yorker’s jacket would have. and that makes me happy. form + function
i think right now my style is in a pretty solid place of amalgamating the things that make me me, between upbringing, interests, places i’ve lived + the things i’ve taken from them, queerness, and my growing understanding of how all the things i wear are made. feeling really good about it all. want to figure out how to wear 90’s retro basketball sneakers though because they’re something i’ve loved forever and im a huge basketball fan but they’ve just never felt right when i tried them, except foamposites. personal style is a neverending pursuit if you’re doing it right
May 14, 2024
Top Recs from @deardoveswings
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liking ur rec = saying hi when we go to get our morning papers from the end of our driveways (picture me doing so tony soprano style)
Aug 12, 2024
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started writing this a few hours ago when i first saw this ask, then decided against posting but i've since changed my mind. there really is no justification for it outside of entitlement. even from a selfish lens, there's no long term benefit to its usage. it harms the world and culture in more ways than one.
a.) the water and energy usage that isn't a secret at this point. "no ethical consumption under capitalism" yadda yadda and yeah corporations are extremely culpable in the state of the environment but there really is no need for chatgpt and the planet is already too delicate at the moment.
b.) the exploitation of workers in the global south. this program is not just a computer figuring it all out, there are in fact humans behind it. it reminds me of the acceptance of fast fashion and how people have the tendency to divorce the idea of the garment worker from the garment they wear when all clothing is handmade in some way, shape or form. you need hands to man a sewing machine, you need human eyes to moderate content. also, content moderation can be a thankless job with psychological repercussions.
c.) the erosion of social skills, humanity and media literacy...this one is very personal. like, you have a cushy email job but can't write an email? you need a computer and a worker in kenya to get paid a dollar an hour to figure out a daily routine for you? i've seen the program churn out blatantly incorrect information. fine tuning a prompt or chat or whatever to give you the exact (possibly incorrect) answer you need isn't really that much less work than sharpening your research skills by cracking open a dictionary or using boolean search keys in google. again, the main issue with this kind of stuff is the entitlement to convenience, with no thought towards the repercussions within and outside of us. we are losing major recipes (critical thinking and media literacy) here, people!
i probably did an iffy job are coherently articulating my thoughts here but i am in fact, human. and that’s the beauty of it all.
Oct 1, 2024
i don’t work w oils often, mainly tempera, collage, and digital but this is the one i'm still most proud of as of late bc it’s way bigger (18x24) than i'm used to working <3
Oct 14, 2024