My ideal self always looks put together. But, put together as what?
When I think of style, the first thing that springs to mind is Leighton Meester’s iconic portrayal of Gossip Girl‘s Blair Waldorf. Her outfits are perfectly assembled: polished, preppy, and timeless. The stylists of her character were clearly inspired by Audrey Hepburn (particularly Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s!). As well, I think of Andy and Emily in The Devil Wears Prada. I know this isn’t my first time mentioning it, but this montage was a MOMENT for me.
However… I am not preppy, like Blair Waldorf. And I am not a representation of the fashion industry, like Andy and Emily. I leave my house to do the bare minimum five days a week, and the rest of the time, I’m chained to a screen. What is life like outside the internet? What does grass smell like?
All of this to say, I don’t need to wear a headband, a pencil, or tights on an everyday basis. That’s not my style. And when I think of my ideal self, she doesn’t dress to the nines either!
A VISION: THE STYLE OF MY IDEAL SELF
If my life were a movie, my ideal self gets her introduction at the pickup line in the carpool. Her hair is down, and looks glossy, but tousled, and perfect. My ideal self has perfect skin and wears a pair of jeans and a vintage tee shirt. You can’t see her shoes, but they’re Converse high tops. She has a pair of sunglasses that look expensive (they are), and… I can’t see the nail color, but her nails look good.
My ideal self also drives a Mercedes SUV. What? I’m allowed SOME standards.
SYNTHESIZE THE VISION
That’s how I’d like to dress now: casual, comfortable, with money spent on clothes that fit well, and a handful of long term, high-end accessories. Wait… this sounds familiar!
I think my biggest roadblock is that I don’t currently feel good in clothes like these. Yes, even the casual stuff! I feel like all my tee shirts give me a muffin top. Okay, let’s not blame the shirt: my oversized belly gives me a muffin top! That’s on me. To boot, I can’t wear my jeans for more than a few hours without needing to unbutton and release my gut. Not so cute. I have two pairs of Converse, and I’m obsessed with them. I have a few great pairs of sunglasses, as well. However, last year, my mom bought me new glasses/sunglasses to go with my new prescription. I had my eyes on a pair of Tom Ford shades, but they were too pricey… but that’s inconsequential. If my ideal self gets introduced at the pickup line in carpool, that requires me to have kids. I’ll have kids when I can afford them, so I have eight years to play with (give or take).
But I don’t want to start this journey to my ideal self, in style terms, when I have the body to pull it off. Does that mean I should buy new clothes that match this aesthetic? I don’t know if I want to spend that kind of money, especially when I have a goal to need smaller clothes by the end of the year. But if I wait until I like my body to dress it… I’m going to be waiting a long time.
I’m going to go talk to my bed about this.