Setting Personal Style ‘New Year’s Resolutions’

I have a very good friend from ‘Bloggy-land’, Caroline of Church Sexy, who did something really stunning in the way of New Year’s resolutions. She posted a list of goals for her ‘personal style’. OMGoodness..personal style?? IS there one for home school moms??It was only a few short years ago that I folded up my last denim jumper and laid it to rest, with honors, in my memento box. Not that there is anything wrong with a jumper—I’ve been valiantly defending my right to where one for years. :o)  I could never figure out why everyone at church kept fussing about my jumpers. They’re comfortable..I love denim..What in the world is the problem? Sigh.. 

  I have NO sense of personal style. Zilch..Nadda..Zippo… 

But the Lord looked down from heaven, and in his mercy, allowed my only daughter to take over where my mother left off. “Donna Carol, you just CAN’t wear that to school! No one wears velvet skirts to school..nor do they climb trees in them!”  Daughter, “Mom, you aren’t REALLY going to wear that denim jumper again..are you? And those white tennis shoes---and straight blue jeans—Yeck! I just can’t go out in public with you dressed like THAT.”  I guess I was out-voted. So the jumper is lovingly preserved for posterity—along with my Laura Ashley dresses..sigh..and my big glasses!!  Only this year did I take the plunge and buy stylish glasses.  I felt WEIRD…so weird…but now, I guess I’m getting used to them. :o) I never thought I’d quit wearing John Denver style glasses—not in a million years!

Just a month ago, I was shopping for a new coat… and of course, like my good friend, Maria, talked about here , I had my fashion consultant with me, my daughter—Rebekah. Not for anything would she let me buy the soccer-mother styled coat that was calling to me from the rack. It was perfect!!!--big..bulky...and OH Soooo comfortable…with plenty of  room to hide any unsightly bulges that might develop over the next year or two.

 

Why are teenage daughters so mean? (Pout..)   She confidently pulled me away from the obvious right choice for an almost 50 (No Way!!) mother..and steered me to a fashion savvy coat--form fitting, stylish, short, black and white speckled. No room for that extra five pounds in this coat!  (Rats…no more lattes for me!)  Why did she have to take after my husband?? She’s so self-disciplined that it’s depressing and has taken upon herself the  job of  being my ‘conscience’ along with her fashion consulting job. (Jimmy Cricket had a similar job.)

I admire anyone…I mean ANYONE who has a scrap of fashion consciousness. My MOTHER is more fashion savvy than me!! How come I’m not? Why don’t I care?? I don’t know. I’m so doggone practical that clothes have just never mattered. I could never figure out how people knew what was IN and what was NOT—even when I was a teenager. I guess I just never paid good enough attention to the subject. My nose was happily buried in my books.  If it weren’t for my mother, kind friends, and now my daughter, I’d be hopelessly stuck in the 1980’s. 

When I go shopping with my daughter, now that she has trained me in picking out my wardrobe, I do my best to make a good guess at what I should wear, before getting dressed.  I try to choose the perfect  blouse, jeans, shoes, and jewelry for the occasion. (All of this..to go to the grocery store!) Then I try to give my hair just the right amount of casual twist..new for me—only this year…. then, and ONLY then do I go to my daughter for the ‘inspection’.  Ohh…the JOY of it..if I pass muster! I feel like a kid getting an A in composition. I just BEAM!  At first, I didn’t do so good, but after five years of feedback..rather straightforward feedback, I must say..(Have I mentioned that she’s just like her father—pure stoic!), I’m FINALLY getting it right!

Recently I went to an open house at a church friend’s home. I hadn’t seen some of the friends who were invited for almost five years. One of them saw me, and exclaimed, “Wow! What happened to you?” She almost didn’t recognize me without my home-school mother styled outfits. (Please don’t take offense. :o) Wait till YOUR sweet little girls turn 20…Then, if they still let you wear your jumpers—go ahead and let me know what you think. :o) I feel SAFE in my home schooled styles and comfortable..but I’m getting used to dressing a little more stylishly. :o)

Well, all this is to say, that when my bloggy friends start to talk about fashion..I’m like a calf at a new gate. Whatever are you talking about? Please..give me some helpful hints!!  It was like finding a pot of gold to stumble over my friend, Caroline’s New Year’s post. She posts an outfit every day using old classics, refashions, and new stuff that she’s sewn to make the perfect outfit. Her goal is to be stylish..and modest at the same time…so as to WOW her Dear Hubby. I LIKE that!!  Wouldn’t YOUR hubby like it if you were trying to do that? Every day? Yeah—I thought so. :o) It’s never to late to make new resolutions and these were, I thought, just about perfect.

Here is…

 Caroline of Church Sexy’s list of New Year’s Personal Style resolutions…..

Caroline:  Have you seen JoAnn's sartorial resolutions? Her blog is so thoughtful, yet fun. I don't like to make resolutions, because you know what happens with resolutions. And I hate how they can feel like a prison so you just resent them and I would just.not.do.it in a passive-aggressive sort of way. I also don't think quite that deeply about my personal style. But some goals, or maybe even softer - some thoughts - might be in order.

1. My hair. This year, I learned how to put my hair in a messy bun. So now we have : blow dried down, pinned back in a barrette, the messy bun, the pony tail, and the twist-flip-pop in a claw clip-and fluff. I'd really like to learn some other ways to put up my hair. And be more consistent about my hair looking nice.

2. Accessorizing. I don't wear much jewelry. And I never will have loads of bags. But I'd like to add more visual interest to my outfits by appropriate accessorizing. This is a skill I don't really have in spades. :)

3. Photo locations. I know you guys really don't want to see photos of my backyard fence or my bedroom wall any more probably. I don't have the luxury of dropping goose off at school or day-care and driving someplace cool and spending time taking photos, but perhaps I can incorporate some occasionally more interesting backgrounds in the course of normal life. And goose loves taking my picture, and unlike Kevin never has any problem taking LOTS of them (so I can discard those where I have no head, or look silly, or am trying to talk to him ... )

4. Experiment (some) with trends, even if they don't work for me. I found leggings to be different now than they were 20 years ago, and even though I won't wear them tons, they are super-compatible with the mommy lifestyle. Skinny jeans? Knee high boots? Shoe booties? Ruffled blouses? embellished blazers? as budget and practicality allows I would like to experiment with some of these things.

5. Incorporate underused wardrobe items. I enjoyed my wardrobe challenges this year and would like to do the same with some other items that are underused or difficult to style. If they truly don't suit, maybe I can refashion them or pass them on. Or maybe I'll find there are several ways to incorporate them in my wardrobe.

6. Mmmm, about the "sexy" in Church Sexy? I've achieved that maybe once or twice this year. I know I've managed "cute" and even "pretty", but the whole "sexy" (in an appropriate way!) still eludes me. I have a serious blog post stewing right now about this, and will probably post on it next week ... but I'd like to figure out how to really define "church sexy". 

For Part II, Caroline listed her sewing goals for the year. These were things she wanted to add to her wardrobe. Even if you don’t sew, I think the things she wanted to add to her wardrobe were great ideas!  

Next Monday, I will introduce you to an amazing seamstress, whom I’ve gotten to know…but for today..let’s go through those closets and see if we can’t come up with some ‘Church Sexy’ outfits for our hubbies…and update our looks a bit.  I may not always feel comfortable…but if I WOW my hubby—regardless of my weight..well, it’s worth it—don’t you think?

What about you girls? How do you think you could best improve your ‘look’ in the coming year?