Image Envy: Challenge Finale!

If you haven't noticed, I quit posting my outfits for the challenge. I took a one-day hiatus for the Paper Doll Project and I realized how nice it was to wear other clothing in my closet. Even though I know I had at least six more outfits I could have worn, I lost my motiviation. I'll admit it. In fact, I was kind of feeling bad about the fact I didn't go for my goal of 34 days, and then I read Kyle's post from Barley & Birch. So I dropped the ball and I only feel semi-bad about it. I lasted 22 days with 15 items of clothing.

What I Learned:

I need accessories. I hate spending $30-40 on a single necklace, a single pair of earrings, or just a belt. But I also don't like cheap accessories, so I don't really buy $3 earrings either (unless they are on the clearance rack). So I'm in a bit of a pickle, right? I'm realizing I need some more necklaces in a variety of lengths. I had two long necklaces and I wore them constantly throughout the 22 days. It would have been nice to mix it up a little.

I also learned that I can love any piece of clothing I own. Before this, I wore the button-down polka dot shirt twice; it was while I was trying to hide my pregnancy from my co-workers. Now, I look at that piece like a staple in my wardrobe. The 15 pieces I chose are now my comfort pieces - I tried to wear them any way possible and its now easier to pick from that cluster of clothes than have to venture into the rest of my closet, because I have some great outfits already picked out.

What I Would Do Differently:

I would not include jackets. I think I needed every piece to last more than 2 weeks, and even thought I went over 3 weeks, it would have been nice to have at least one more option for a top. I loved that I added color - at least I didn't feel like I was wearing black and white all the time. But I did feel like I was wearing the same accessories over and over.

Instead of the jacket, I would have added another layering piece that would have done well under and over things - particularly, a vest. I've had my eye on a great suiting vest since Emma Stone in Easy A (before she goes all Scarlet Letter). So when I was in Chicago, I picked up a great fabric and am in the process of making it.

How This Effects My Shopping:

I picked clothing for this challenge that I knew I could mix and match, while still staying true to my personal style. I think this challenge mostly effected my shopping by showing me I really do have a lot of clothes and I really can wear them in so many ways. So I can lay off the clothes shopping for now, and probably the shoe shopping (although that just makes me sad), and look for great accessory pieces to spend my money on instead.

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Below are pictures of the main pieces and how I tried to style them differently. I think it worked pretty well for everything but the coral sweater.