A review of the clothes I bought in 2019

The first half of this year was taken up by clinical rotations largely spent in a small capsule wardrobe of all the wards-appropriate clothes I own. June to November were spent in scrubs: one month of anesthesiology elective and four of orthopedic surgery rotations. Other than that, I've been schlepping around my apartment in loungewear and wearing the same three outfits to friends gatherings and dates just for fun. So, not much new added to the wardrobe this calendar year, but some key items like my black leather boots.

January to June

1. Frye black leather ankle boots - $112 - after years and years of thinking about buying black leather ankle boots, I finally did, and it was worth it. Is there more to say?
2. Red crop top - gift from roommate - birthday present from my roommate, who also wears crop tops in our mid-20s. It's pretty loud and bright for my skin tone, but I've found occasions to wear it out.
3. Black and white striped dress - secondhand, from roommate - cute little dress that I wore to many a summertime date. It was too short for my tall roommate, so she passed it along to me, and it fits me just right.

July to December

1. Leather saddle bag - vintage - $25 - I bought this purely on impulse when I was wandering around downtown Charlottesville. There is an abundance of cute vintage stores and could imagine myself living a cute life in that cute town. I even tried on a few dresses from the 1940s just for fun, chatted with the people working there, and definitely felt like I needed to buy something. So I did, and it barely fits my phone, wallet, keys, and small miscellany. But I got a lot of use out of this little bag and I'm glad I did buy it, even on impulse.
2. Asics running shoes - $60 - my old ones were wearing out badly, and I found a colorway I liked on discount on Amazon.
3. Muji green merino wool turtleneck sweater - $55 - actually, this was an impulse purchase, on sale. I've wanted a green turtleneck knit for a long time, and tried on all the ones offered by Uniqlo and Muji one day (they are very close to each other in Boston) and bought my favorite. I actually do feel guilty about this one because it was not well-planned.
4. ExOfficio underwear, 3 pairs - $28 - Black Friday deal. Am phasing out my shabby underwear and wanted to get some that were high quality, lightweight, and designed for handwashing and drying quickly.

Total 9 items

Total $280

My post-mortem of my 2019 purchases is that despite the relatively small number of items, some were poor decisions. The green sweater was an impulse purchase that stemmed directly from me wanting to dress my fantasy self, a more put-together, poised person than I actually am. The color drew me in! I tried on four different sweaters in that color at MUJI, but really, I don't think I needed it. The green blouse doesn't suit me at all, and now that I'll be mostly in scrubs, I don't need to have more blouses at all. I feel like I'm aging out of some of my clothes, and that I do need to reassess my wardrobe, but the unhealthy thought patterns and impulses are still there. I'll need to work on that.

I'm actually staying at my home program for residency, and staying in my apartment. I was kind of expecting to have to leave, and undergo a massive decluttering and cleanout of my belongings. Despite my staying put, that's a worthy endeavor and I'll use this quarantine time to do that.

By the way: I'm patting myself on the back for the underwear purchase since I now know I have another year of handwashing ahead of me!

On my third winter in Boston, I finally bought a puffy

I'm giving away my vintage leather jacket, and I bought a down puffy from Uniqlo for triple its price. This was a good decision. Watch me justify it.

I bought and loved this vintage leather jacket when I was 17, in 2012. It saw me through the coldest, windiest day in Berkeley. It even saw me through a torrential downpour in Berkeley when I was walking home, and saw two raccoons slide into a storm drain -- it stopped me dead in my tracks, and I forgot to worry about the effect of rainwater on old leather (no effect). But in truth, I almost never wore it because it was almost never cold enough to tolerate it in Berkeley.

I wore it a lot more in Boston, where there are a lot more cold (30-50F) and non-rainy days where a heavy leather jacket is appropriate. But the more I wore it, the more its flaws bothered me. Windproof, but way too heavy. A distinctive look, but it added so much bulk to my frame. It's an attention-grabbing piece in person, and I'm not one who wants all the same wow cool jacket every time I wear it. It also smells bad when rained on.

I had a gap in my wardrobe to the effect of "too warm for the parka, but too wet for the peacoat or the leather jacket." For a long time now, I've wanted a down puffy, a staple of Boston because of its practicality. Added bonus of being important when camping. Something lightweight, reliably warm, and easy to layer under or over.

Recently, my disdain for the leather jacket and disenchantment of the wild, wild west Americana look it brought reached its peak, and it got cold enough to wish I had a down jacket. So I did it. I decided to lose the $20 and not bother reselling the leather jacket, and shell out $70 for a hooded down jacket at Uniqlo.

Which seems at odds with the minimalism-sustainability-slow fashion ethos I admire: I'm ditching a secondhand, high quality piece for a more expensive fast fashion one. But it's a decision two winters and cold springs in the making, and one that makes sense given my shift in tastes and priorities. I can take the puffy camping. It weighs almost nothing. It's subdued and functional, and just as warm. It has a hood and a high collar.

That's the way it is. As goes my favorite William Morris quote: "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." I have replaced something that has never been useful and was formerly beautiful, with something that is extremely useful and kind of beautiful.

Thank u, next

And to further my point, this is a picture of me from college with that leather jacket. Possibly Halloween 2012?

Ten item summer clinic capsule wardrobe - Family Medicine, Radiology

Clothes, hand washed, drying

This is more of a capsule wardrobe by circumstance, not deliberate curation. A bit about the status of my personal style and wardrobe now: I was building my professional wardrobe slowly over the past two years, and have settled on an equilibrium that I am happy with. I also moved to an apartment with much more limited storage, and am content being confined by space and eye-stress from clutter, if that makes sense. We also don't have a laundry in the building, so I am hand washing for the most part, and dragging my stuff to the laundromat less frequently.

I had my Family Medicine rotation - primary care, outpatient, plus a train commute - for six weeks, and it's over. The weather is slowly changing, but still swelteringly hot into the 90sF some days. I'm on Radiology nowadays and though nobody is really going to pay attention to what I'm wearing in a dark radiology reading room, we are in the hospital and I do feel obligated to dress better than I did in FM (+ no commute).

Here are my pieces:

Tops

1. Dark red sleeveless blouse - $20 - bought this for my medical school interviews and wore it to each one, looked very smart and professional under the suit that I babied it a lot. Now it's shown its nature as a cheaply made, fast fashion item and as nice as the color looks against my skin, I will definitely be spending more on my residency interview blouse
2. Purple flutter sleeve blouse - $15 - bought in 2010 for my high school job. It's very airy and breezy in hot weather, but that hardly matters if I have to wear a white coat. Unfortunately, it's showing its age and the fabric looks pretty worn (100% polyester), but I like the cut and the way it looks on me. I would not choose this color for myself again, though
3. Navy linen sleeveless shirt - $20 - this is a Uniqlo shirt that I wear usually for casual occasions, but it works in a pinch for the hottest of summer days. Very wrinkled, as expected of linen. I don't really want to buy more Uniqlo, but I am considering getting one of their rayon blouses
4. Black silk t-shirt - $25 - secondhand Eileen Fisher from Poshmark. Really good-looking shirt and fabric. With some of the above blouses nearing the end of their useful lifetime, I am definitely looking at buying secondhand, higher quality silk blouses for clinic purposes
5. Dark red mock neck shirt - $6 - from Uniqlo. This cheap little shirt is just barely appropriate for a casual primary care clinic, but I would not dare to wear this in the main hospital campus, even in the cover of darkness (again, Radiology). However, I did rely on it quite a few times in FM when it wasn't disgustingly hot
6. Blue and white psychadelic dress - $14 - this one again. It's 100% polyester too, but the movement makes it comfortable for the summer. I don't wear it too often

Bottoms

1. Black polyester A-line skirt - ??? - bought in 2010. Hardworking little skirt. I love it a lot, very versatile. I took in the waist and shortened (!!!) it to make it more professional, less witchy. It moves very well, and despite the 100% polyester, the cut is very breezy and comfortable in the hot, hot summer. I wear this about three times a week and hand wash on the weekends
2. Navy trousers - $9 - from H&M in 2011, a bit too casual for the hospital, but when there were FM attendings literally wearing leggings in clinic, I didn't care. I feel like this is okay for Radiology, but I have more professional trousers waiting for cooler weather

Shoes

1. Black flats - ??? - Lucky Brand flats dug up from my closet in high school. Don't remember ever buying them, and I never was a flats wearer until this year. I didn't want to tear up my pumps wearing them every day, and they were too formal for FM clinic anyways. These little flats are clear staples in my wardrobe now.
2. Sperry boat shoes - $95 - I don't remember exactly how much I got these for, but they are my default casual shoe and work when I'm wearing the trousers. Not sure I can pull these off once cooler weather hits, with darker trousers. Wouldn't dare wear them on Surgery, though

Looking back at this, ten items is a bit...Spartan. But I do promise you I'm handwashing very diligently. I'm not always comfortable with the "minimalism" game, but I feel pretty good about this. I am still actively pre-buying, that is, browsing Poshmark and keeping track of items I would want to buy. The plan is to replace the purple blouse with one of a similar cut, and buy another one. Professional shoes, too, for the cooler weather. 

The next post may be a roundup of outfits, and the one after that will be wardrobe planning for the autumn and winter. These are the kind of posts suitable for microblogging about minimalism in 2018.

Raw denim - a 13 month update, and some thoughts on jeans

A few years ago in college, one of my friends fell down the rabbit hole of r/malefashionadvice and took it upon himself to start dressing well. There was a period of time when he texted me and two others in our group every single time he bought something -- raw denim, cordovan boots, leather belt, weird thrifted sweatshirt with a painting of a dog screenprinted on it...

My jeans

...one thing we gave him particular shit about was his obsession with raw denim. Selvedge. Vocabulary words that I still don't completely understand or care to understand at this point. He babied his jeans, cared about each crease and fade, wore them every single day, soaked them in the bathtub. I didn't get it. I still don't really get it.

My tumble down the rabbit hole of raw denim was gradual over the years, and it was only 13 months ago that I bought a pair -- a less expensive pair, from Uniqlo. My two older Uniqlo jeans were stretchy and getting uncomfortably skinny, and I wanted the option of layering tights or leggings underneath them if it got that cold. So I got a new pair of jeans -- men's raw denim -- in size 29. That's another thing: I needed to accept that my body has changed since I was 19. I wanted a looser fit and that's what I bought.

I retired the two old pairs (of three - the other I wear in spring and autumn) and wore my new selvedge jeans damn near every day for the rest of the winter. And then I did it again this winter. They were stiff the first winter, rubbed indigo everywhere (I paid more attention to where I sat and leaned), and I actually think I should have sized down. I had too much fabric around my waist, and it sat weird under a belt. I really thought about getting them tailored.

Not really qualified to say what combo of soaking, washing, etc is the best. But I'm not dead set on having Reddit-worthy fades, so I wash my jeans regularly now. Then I made the stupid, stupid mistake of putting them through the dryer. This shrank them down to be more of a slim instead of a relaxed fit, but it fixed the waist issue. Now they fit like women's size 26 or 27. I'm glad I sized up when I did.

I liked not having to decide what kind of pants to wear every day. Unexpectedly, I got compliments on my style, that it was cohesive for so consistently featuring "dark blue or black" jeans. I don't own black jeans, but my winter ones are dark blue indeed.

So, that's where I am. I kind of wish I had taken more pictures with them over the past year. But, in the end, they're just jeans.

--

My own story of jeans began with something from Marshall's or Ross in middle school, then three <$10 pairs from Forever 21, then two pairs from Uniqlo in college, a thrifted pair, to present day. My preferred fit is mid-to-high rise, slim or straight leg, true or dark blue. I have to be able to squat and deadlift with full range of motion in them. Must look good cuffed or uncuffed. Nondescript. Absolutely no obvious branding. And for now, the search is over. I had a pretty bad relationship with jeans and body image as a youth, and I'm better at keeping it at bay. I think I'm in a good place now.

L.L. Bean black watch scotch plaid flannel | Outfit and Review

I present the L.L. Bean black watch scotch plaid flannel, the shirt of my dreams. It is warm. It is soft. The colorway is perfect. It fits well. I love it. I went from owning one L.L. Bean item -- the very sweater I am wearing here -- to five since coming to Boston. Shipping from Freeport, Maine to Boston is quick and easy. Here is a demonstration of an outfit I was pretty pleased with including those very items, as well as my preliminary thoughts on the shirt.

Sunglasses - Ray-Ban | Fisherman sweater - thrifted (L.L. Bean) | Flannel shirt - L.L. Bean | Belt - Uniqlo | Jeans - Uniqlo | Boots - Dr. Martens

Internet reviews agree that this shirt is boxy and runs very large -- fine by me, as I was looking for a looser fit. My first order of XS completely swallowed me up so I exchanged it for a XXS. At some point, I talked to a lovely customer service representative from Maine whose son was interested in applying to my medical school.

Shipping is free, but I was charged about $7 for the exchange, which I was fine with. I bought the original on sale, and that discount was honored on the exchange. L.L. Bean has a godly warranty, and I have heard that their scotch plaid flannels are still high quality and well worth the price ($45 regular, though I got 20%).

Please do forgive the weird angles and proportions -- I am a novice at outfit photos, and fashion blogger I am not. The only decoration in my room are my maps of Boston, Massachusetts, and New England, though I may put up some postcards when I have the motivation. Also, the sunglasses are there because I prefer to go internet incognito when convenient.

For more context on the fit, I am 5' 5" and have an approximate bust and waist measurement of 32" and 25". The shirt is in the Misses' Relaxed fit, and XXS supposedly fits bust sizes 31-32" with a 29" sleeve. It feels perfect at the shoulders, but I have cuffed the sleeves once in these pictures. The actual body of the shirt angles slightly outwards, it seems, and there is generally a lot of fabric at the midsection and in the sleeves.

The flannel is 100% cotton and made in El Salvador, very heavy and soft, and almost too warm to wear indoors. I wore it layered under this sweater -- 100% cotton, wooden buttons, made in Maine -- and was toasty warm on my walk to class this morning at 39F, and overheated when walking home at 52F at lunchtime. It is quite a stiff fabric, which is especially notable at the collar, cuffs, and midline.

I like to think that this shirt is one first step towards a wardrobe that I am very, very happy with. I was uncertain about buying a flannel shirt new for $45 ($36 on sale), but I have wanted this specific one for a very long time, and know I will cherish it for many years to come. The navy fisherman's sweater has long been a California winter staple since my senior year in high school, and I am happy that it will get more use in the Massachusetts autumns to come.

P.S. These grey jeans are too small for me, I know. When I bought them, I did not even lift, and I have made leg gains since coming to Boston. Upper body gains, on the other hand...

P.P.S Here I am wearing this shirt out in the field, a preview for an imminent blog post and adventure report.

A quick costume change

This is not the first time I have decided to go for fairy wings as a low-effort Halloween costume. However, this costume quickly became medium-effort when I found that there is a huge floral supply warehouse just a five minute walk from campus.

In ninth grade, I was a fairy in our school's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream; subsequently, I have been drawn to fairies in art, literature, and design. If it isn't clear from this blog, I like plants and want to be surrounded by them. The florist supplier was a wonderland of silk flowers and foliage and ribbons -- my favorite part of any arts and crafts store, but at an unreal scale.

If/when I enter private/group practice, I will decorate my clinic to my heart's desire.

I still do want to revisit my autumnal fairy costume from two years ago (sparkly orange wings with foliage) and make a crown and wand. Maybe I can alternate Halloweens with these fairy costumes. Anyhow, I don't have a good name for this dark fairy costume. I place curses and may cause disease (congenital birth defects of the thorax, abdomen, or pelvis...exam tomorrow).

I'll keep the wings, crown, and wand for future Halloweens or costume-required events. They're props and don't take up much space, and will save me the trouble of hunting down costume items in the future. The wings were bought new, and the big blue flower, the blueberry pick, and the black leaves came from the aforementioned florist supplier. I used a friend's black electrical tape and the whole effort looks kind of cool.

I haven't decided if I'll be going to the exam tomorrow in costume. I'll bring it with me to school just in case.

---

And to follow, I have a more reflective post coming up, mostly about gross anatomy and my career goals and about Boston. As spoilers: it's fun/sadly almost over/lots of Latin, surgery, cold and historical. I'm possibly going backpacking in New Hampshire or Vermont this coming weekend, but I'm not sure about that yet.

Kleidung in Deutschland

For a "personal style, etc" blog, there aren't many pictures of myself or my clothing here. It's partially because I am unfamiliar and uncomfortable photographing myself, but also because I think I dress very dully. What better occasion to showcase my wardrobe than a recap/reconstruction of the things I wore in Germany?

For about two weeks of travel (hiatus post said three, but I was a fool), I packed the following articles of clothing, sleeping clothes, and undergarments in a backpack just barely acceptable as carry-on luggage. I've also reconstructed some example outfits to incorporate all these pieces, and leave the imagination of other combinations that I could have worn as an exercise to the reader. Because I am a liar/don't like taking pictures of myself, all these photos come from my parents' house in California, but do represent fits appropriate for time, place, and weather on some leg of my trip.

Temperature range: mid-60s to mid-80s F

Weather: blazing hot cloudless sunny days to torrential downpour and thunderstorms

Steps taken (day): 10,000 to 41,000

Mileage (day): 5 to 17 miles

Lots of walking done, lots of ground covered, lots of sites (and sights) seen. Looking at all these outfits, it's clear that most of my wardrobe consists of schwarz, blau, grau.

grey t-shirt (Forever 21, autumn 2013) | belt (Uniqlo, autumn 2014) | trousers (H&M, spring 2013) | watch (Casio, spring 2016) | bag (somewhere in China, summer 2012) | shoes (Sperry, spring 2016) | cardigan (Gap, autumn 2015) | raincoat (REI, winter 2004) | sunglasses (Ray-Ban, spring 2012)

Look at all that fast fashion! Truthfully, most of my wardrobe is like this.

The first six days in Berlin and Hamburg were on the cooler, rainier side, and I basically wore this outfit with different t-shirts. Because I did not pay attention to the weather forecast, I packed one pair of long trousers and needed to borrow a pair of jeans from my sibling. We got completely drenched in one storm in Hamburg and I wondered if all the summer clothes I packed were wasted (they weren't). Freak thunderstorms in Heidelberg as well, but warmer weather in general.

I did not bring this bag to Germany, but it is more practical than the black Fossil Sydney top zip that I brought. I also brought a very un-chic mesh track bag for more active days of sightseeing, or if I wanted to bring my raincoat, snacks, water bottle, etc. 

black t-shirt (Forever 21, fall 2014) | denim shorts (American Apparel, summer 2015) | twill shorts (J. Crew, thrifted spring 2014) | sandals (Salt-Water, summer 2015) | black dress (ASOS, spring 2014)

I also brought and wore a few pairs of socks, but that's not represented here. Sandals were worn on unbearably hot days (mostly Salzburg). Sperrys without socks is possible on walking-heavy vacations! Just air them out and make sure they dry.

Here is a good place to share some of my observations about German dress. The temperature threshold for shorts is much higher than I am used to, and people generally dress more modestly than Californians. On one day in Berlin (high-60s F), I wore the first outfit here and was one of the only people I saw showing leg, which did make me feel self-conscious. But come our Bavaria/Salzburg, Austria/Heidelberg section, shorts and skirts and dresses galore.

Because Germany warmed up as our trip continued (and we made our way counter-clockwise south), I can't really make any observation about dressing in the north and the south. Funnily enough, it seemed like the starkest differences between German and American dressing was in the men's clothing than women's. Also, it amused me to see so many white leather Stan Smith/Adidas sneakers on German youth and early-20s -- my sibling explained that it's so they can seem trendy, but sporty. Hardly any casual leather shoes unless worn by fellow American tourists or older German Herren. More Isabel Marant Dickers-style boots there than here.

blue & white dress (Heavenly Couture, spring 2014) | grey shirt (Forever 21, summer 2012) | linen shorts (Old Navy, summer 2016) | hat (Columbia, very old) | striped crop top (Forever 21, summer 2015)

I wore the black linen shorts a ton on this trip, particularly in walking-heavy days and for any time spent in the woods. Despite the hat, my summer tan came from Austria, not California. While I did get some time hiking trails, the rigor of the "hiking" was doable with Sperrys and casual clothes. Fortunately, I packed lightweight, breathable, and easily-washed shirts and shorts so even on days when I was drenched in sweat (Salzburg), I was generally comfortable.

A bit more on comfort: with the exception of the grey denim shorts, all of these clothes were comfortable to wear on the many train rides we took. Having a light cardigan at hand was good for changing temperatures on/off trains. I never felt too out-of-place wearing the clothes that I did, though I am an oblivious, slovenly American tourist here. My feet never hurt from poor choice of shoes, but if you are going for a more nature-based trip, boat shoes will not be sufficient.

I think I have worn all of these varieties of outfits in museums and palaces. However, I opted for more conservative clothes when visiting memorial sites, government buildings, and cathedrals. Specifically, raincoat + cardigan + t-shirt + trousers in the House of the Wansee Conference, Reichstag building, and Hamburg Rathaus; t-shirt and jeans in the Cologne cathedral; and cardigan + blue & white dress at Dachau concentration camp and Munich Rathaus. At the Salzburg cathedral, I wore shorts (black linen) as did >60% of the visitors. I didn't see any dress code guidelines anywhere save for Dachau, but use your best judgment and show respect for the location.

Overall, I think that if I packed exactly these items with one pair of jeans and without one pair of shorts, I would have had the perfect set of clothes for the specific places and weather conditions of my trip. Though we encountered more forest "terrain" and did more walking than I expected, my footwear options were appropriate and sufficient. Accessories consisted of my sunglasses and watch, and I'm still not sure what the perfect bag to take would have been, but that's just details.

I own several other t-shirts, but this accounts for the majority of my warm weather wardrobe, actually. Also, these outfits include all of the S/S purchases I've made in 2015 and 2016 as outlined in previous wardrobe planning posts.

And the rest of this is post is just bonus material.

• die Hose - trousers
• das Kleid - dress
• die Lederschuhe - leather shoes
• die Sandalen - sandals
• der Hut - hat
• die Handtasche - handbag
• die Armbanduhr - wristwatch
• die Bluse - shirt
• die Strickjacke - cardigan
• der Regenmantel - raincoat
• die Sonnenbrille - sunglasses
• die Kleidung - clothing

Anonymous personal style (or, style thoughts at Anthropologie)

About a week ago, I had some time to kill in my hometown and went into Anthropologie, which is a favorite window shopping location with my friends and me. I must be honest: I like its whimsical, happy homemaker, slightly storybook aesthetic. My friends and I always spend some time in our hometown's Anthro when we visit, mostly looking at the homeware because the clothing, quite frankly, is not for the likes of us. I have no doubt that when I'm thirty and an attending, I'll find some dearly beloved frock there for leisure wear.

I've been thinking a lot more lately about personal style lately. It's been a very long time since I've purchased anything that wasn't black (this time last year, I bought a maroon blouse for med school interviews). In looking at Into-Mind's resources for refining personal style, I got to thinking that I occupy a very sartorially conservative,  almost featureless comfort zone of style. I'm not all that confident in my own clothes, and as I seek to build my personal and professional wardrobe over the next few years (and transition into adulthood, of course), I need to know myself better.

And before I keep rambling, the spoiler is that you can know yourself better by trying on clothes you have no intention of buying at all, and critique thoughtfully.

As a starting point, I present the following two dresses, both fast fashion items that I happen to be very fond of and wear often:

Though I haven't shared much of what I wear on this here blog, these dresses fly in the face of what I normally wear (though, they are both blue). I like the bold floral prints on both of them, though the left dress can be interpreted as 50-50 floral-psychadelic. What I know about myself from these two: I am comfortable wearing loud prints in an otherwise plain wardrobe, I favor knee-length and wide to full skirts, I like to show my arms and waist. They're both synthetic, but I'm prefer natural fibers in general.

With that in mind, I set off to play dress-up in Anthropologie. This is what I came up with:

Left:

• Pros: great shape, cotton feels good, ample pockets
• Cons: unlined bodice, pale plaid bores me to death, way too much fabric

Right:

• Pros: trousers are nice and flowy
• Cons: shapeless, thin synthetic fabric

• Pros: linen, turmeric yellow looks okay on me?
• Cons: unflattering cut, shapeless, makes me look like ye olde peasant wench in a bad way

• Pros: paprika red + navy + cream work for me, loud and haphazard botanical pattern is great, linen, ye olde peasant wench in a good way
• Cons: a ton of fabric and a generally shapeless cut, but I kind of like it

Long damn post, but here are my final thoughts about this exercise:

1. I never put a lot of thought into what "season" I was, but from the colors I think look good on me and my own coloring, I'd say I'm an autumn.  I was surprised to see that scarlet + dark yellow + navy + cream (muted, warmer colors) look better on me than midnight blue + white + baby pink (clearer, cooler colors on my high-necked floral dress)
2. Do not fear prints, especially if they are botanical.
3. I picked these items to represent outfits I thought would be realistic and practical (shirt + trousers), different but still conservative (yellow dress and plaid dress), and a complete novelty (last dress). As it happens, the last one was an unexpected favorite that I could see myself wearing often. I suppose the lesson here is to just try on a lot of clothes before making a choice, and to be aware of unlikely stars
4. I much prefer the feel of linen and cotton to synthetics, regardless of the cut
5. Though I generally prefer a defined waist, I liked the cut of the last dress quite a bit. The plaid dress was weighed down by too much fabric everywhere (sleeves, waist bow, skirt), and generally looks more juvenile
6. Reaffirmation of preferred dress: fuller skirt, mid-thigh to knee length, show arms, define waist
7. Black leather sandals match everything

Outfit sampler for the early spring

I always feel strange taking pictures of myself, and feel even stranger putting them on here. However, this here blog is a bit of an archive of my thoughts about personal aesthetic and taste (of which I have little, I think). I think I am easily influenced by trends in aesthetic and style, and though I think I'm a fairly moderate consumer, fitting into (or not) a category that I admire does make me feel a certain way about myself. Why isn't personal style as simple as wearing what we please? Maybe for a more steadfast, self-aware individual, it is. I'm not quite there yet.

T-shirt: Forever 21 | Belt: Uniqlo | Watch: Casio | Trousers: H&M | Shoes: Sperry

And now here is the debut of the shoes I listed in my S/S 2016 wardrobe planning post. I bought them, enjoy them, but am not 100% satisfied with the color. I wish I'd chosen the darker brown, or the Sahara/honey colorway. Anyhow, I'm still getting the hang of wearing the boat shoes with/without socks. I wish I'd gotten them years ago.

I used to love/hate/never wear these trousers back when my everyday shoe was the Dr. Martens Chelsea boots. At that point, it was just a bit too utilitarian for my liking, and I still think that they look a bit like part of a uniform. However, they're the ideal weight/texture for a cool, early spring day, and I've worn them most days that average 65-70 F.

Top: Forever 21 | Watch: Casio | Shorts: Old Navy | Shoes: Sperry

Here is the debut of the black linen shorts I purchased from my S/S 2016 wardrobe planning. I went shopping with my sibling during spring break and thought I'd gotten a pretty good deal on these (40% or something), but the khakis my sib got came out to be <$1. A few days later, I bit the bullet on the full price Sperry's so I guess I lost the frugality rivalry pretty soundly.

I feel like a recurring theme of my wardrobe is blatant violation of some archaic rule where navy + black + brown should never be worn together. I also feel like I vaguely try to emulate a breezy nautical/Yankee prep aesthetic. That, or I'm still trying to dress like the French (or French-adoring) girls. Je ne sais quois, ok?

The deathless Red Polo

Here are a few pictures of myself wearing a dark red polo, a beloved, worn-down garment that has been stretched thin from too many wash-wear cycles, a tenacious representative of fast-fashion throwaway clothing that has stayed with me for too many years. I bought the Red Polo in summer of 2006 as part of my back to school outfit and wore it to picture day in seventh grade that same month. The first picture comes from 2010, the second from spring 2015 in lab to mimic the 2010 picture, the third from spring 2013 where the Red Polo (and I) made an appearance on a campus banner, and the fourth from summer 2015 at SF Pride.

The Red Polo was from the now-deceased department store Mervyn's, and cost around $5. The quality is not very good and the fabric has not survived well. The shirt itself is very long, the fabric clingy, which makes for easy tucking into jeans or layering under cardigans or jackets. It's in my favorite color of high school and early college. It was due to be recycled as a cleaning rag years ago, and it's still holding on by literal threads.

The point of this post is sort of to promise myself that I will not allow myself to continue wearing this very dated, very adored shirt from middle school past summer 2016. I have not tossed this shirt because it was the first item of clothing that I felt good about myself in, which is a very important thing for the insecure middle school whelp. I've worn it so many times and have no strong memories tying me to it. I have tried and failed to find a Red Polo to replace it, and thus, I have kept it in my closet. The Red Polo is my prime example of forming strong emotional attachments to material possessions, even after they've served their purpose. In the spirit of creating a more useful, concise wardrobe, I think it is reasonable for me to face that this deathless shirt that I love will need to die soon (and be replaced, of course, by a higher quality version).

Consider this the prologue of a forthcoming S/S 2016 wardrobe planning post. It's becoming clearer to me that if I, at age 21 and at the starting line of my professional career, I will need to buy higher quality if I want to wear clothes with the frequency and longevity that I wish for.

Sullen summer day

I fell hard for the skater/fit-and-flare trend, and this garment is but one of my troop of dark blue dresses. The fabric, as you may be able to tell, is yet another trendy trait: scuba (neoprene), love it or hate it. It gives this dress structure, and while ZZ and I disagree whether it looks old-fashioned or futuristic, it looks different.

My issue with this dress was simply how do I even wear this? None of my shoes looked right with it, the material retains heat while the cut leaves me with cold shoulders, and the print demands attention. I saw a girl walking about campus with some brown fabric boots and a leather jacket over this dress and I was perplexed.

Once I found the right shoes, though, things became simple. Why complicate things at all? Dress + shoes = outfit. I own no accessories or jewelry, and this dress is articulate on its own. What does it say? It flatters my figure, which is to say, it hides where my legs begin and accentuates the length of my arms and neck. The fabric is heavy and sturdy enough where a gust of wind wouldn't faze me in the least. It's long enough where I can sit down in any way I please. With the right shoes, dresses like this are the easiest thing to wear: crawl through it and go (though the high collar does have two annoying-to-do buttons at the back).

There's an aesthetic and a MAC collection titled 'Moody Blooms,' which always comes to mind when I look at this dress. Though I wish the flowers were bigger and less Forever 21, I like the color and print just fine. As I try to move towards a more beloved and consistent wardrobe, I will analyze outfits that I feel confident, attractive, and happy in. To me, I am in power and comfortable in this kind of a get-up. It's something that doesn't take much thought to put on, and though I hesitated to wear it in spring semester because I thought it looked a bit too dressy, screw that. I wear what I like.

Though I think it looks vaguely sci-fi and futuristic, I do feel like this when I walk slowly and purposefully in this outfit.