CLEANING OUT MY CLOSET

If you've been reading up on my blog since I began (almost one year ago!), you know that 2013 was my year to give my wardrobe and style a major face lift. I had so much closet envy for girls who had a large selection of colours and patterns. Most of all, I just wanted to be a girl again. I started to live in tights and a band t shirt. Which is okay, I mean, who doesn't like a good band tee? But I just felt like I really lost touch with my feminine side. I also looked and felt so frumpy. Not anymore. I always feel comfortable in my outfits now and feel confident when I step outside. 

There are a lot of locals that come up and ask me what the heck I'm so dressed up for, if I wear something like this:

Yeah, I live in a somewhat close minded town, so wearing a dress with tights means I must be either going to someone's wedding or some other type of event (This summer I was told I looked like a hooker for wearing this outfit). Nope, just wearing a dress! Maybe people are just used to my tomboyish looks. 

Anyway, my closet was a flipping mess. I had so many clothes that don't fit me, and for some reason it appears I became a box hoarder (probably from many years of moving every few months). I looked through all my clothes and gave most of what was still cute and in good condition to my friend Carrie. She loved it all! It's always nice to give away clothes instead of throw them out or sell them. The boxes were all broken down and put away in our storage room. I can never throw out a good box. It took me most of my afternoon to clean and organize it but I am quite proud of the outcome.

I can finally see just how much I've put into my new wardrobe! All you see here is pretty much new from last year and none of it is band tees (those are in my drawers, because who throws out band tees? Not this girl)! I have (count 'em) 20 dresses now and a pretty nice cardigan collection. 

Next on my project list is to try and make my own dresses and skirts. It's been a long time since I've done a new sewing project so I'm pretty anxious for my fabric to come in so I can start. 

What projects have you started so far in 2014?

WHAT I WORE | STEPPING OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE

For those of you who don't know me, which I'm hoping is most of you (please don't be my Mom refreshing the page 200 times a day!), I should let you know - a post like this is not easy for me. For one thing, It's not easy holding a Canon T3 in your hand at arms length trying to shoot a photo of your accessories. But mostly, it's because I've struggled with my appearance and weight for almost my entire life. I've never felt comfortable in anything I've worn, often wearing pants and an oversize band tee, because I thought for some reason that was hiding the fact that I was over weight. 

I have never been "thin". Even when I thought I was a good size and weight, people at school would tell me otherwise. I can't even count how many times I was told I was fat, chubby, ugly or that I looked gross. It was higher on the list of reasons why I dropped out three years in. After that it was downhill from there and was only starting to begin to feel comfortable with myself until I had Josie. Now my body has changed again and I've struggled even more with my weight and how I look. 

Earlier in my blog I started a list of 25 things I want to do before I'm 25, which you can see here. One of the tasks on the list was to bring more colour into my wardrobe. I want to focus on wearing what feels comfortable for me but also broadening my wardrobe and wearing things that make me feel pretty and unique. With the love and support of my boyfriend, I have started to revamp my wardrobe. I normally would never take a photo of my entire body, and I sure as hell wouldn't post it on the internet. But I want this blog to push me to be more confident and I'm hoping that doing outfit posts will help me begin to love myself. So without further adieu, here is my first Outfit Post. 

Dress | ASOS

Cardigan | Walmart

Flats | Walmart

Satchel | eBay

Squirrel Brooch | Vintage

Belt | From a different dress from ASOS

Sunglasses | I can't remember

I apologize for the bad lighting in some of the photos, I'm still learning about my camera. Also, wow check out that flip flop tan! 

I hope everyone is having a nice Thursday. I'm busy as a bee today working on new things for my Etsy shop. I should be posting some up later on today and I'm really excited to share them with you!