Dress For How You Feel

Dressing authentically is an important ideal I take from when styling others. An outfit has to make sense for the person. Fashion can perfectly encapsulate the essence of a person, and that is its true job. I always get frustrated when I see people of such beauty and uniqueness try to fit into those fashion boxes. Uniqueness is a fantastic quality in the fashion realm and should be embraced. Do not feel the need to confide in social standards of how you think you should dress. If it is authentic and makes sense for you it will shine through.

The perfect thing about human existence is the layers we discover within. The different moods, feelings, and attitudes we acquire all shape who we are. Some days, were simply not feeling as bright and bubbly as others. I use fashion as a great indicator of how I am feeling that day and you can too. Too many people find they have to stay in the little fashion bubble they've created even on days when they're feeling rebellious, angry, or sad. I challenge everyone to let fashion be an indicator in their life. When I wear an outfit that I feel reflects my feelings, I feel power.

Typically, I am a very dainty feminine dresser in my daily life. I truly love lace, ribbon, and pink. Sometimes I don't want to feel like the girliest girl in the room, sometimes I want to be the badass and that is important. Start listening to your heart when you wake up in the morning, instead of the expectations you put on yourself. An easy way I like to determine how I am feeling that day is by picking a color. Measuring your feelings can be hard in the morning especially, but a process you can benefit from. Most mornings, I am feeling pink and creamy. This morning however I was feeling black. I do not wear black often, but when I do I feel powerful. Though shy to admit, I believe most people, even subconsciously, associate colors with feelings. Start using that as an indicator when you dress as it will naturally have you feeling some type of way. Natural instincts typically follow on how to improve upon the color you've chosen.

When I choose to dress more bold than feminine, I opt for statement pieces. I love things that are so powerful, that the rest of the ensemble can be muted, yet the power has not diminished at once. That is the ensemble below for example. The day I mapped this outfit I was feeling quite angry. It is easy to clock that I was feeling a tonal shift with this outfit which I love. I wanted to wear black so I focused on the skirt. This is my all-time favorite statement mini skirt that I got from Urban Outfitters last year. It is low rise which can be daunting for a lot but I find it is a statement in itself. I didn't want anything too busy as the skirt was how I was feeling that day. I paired the skirt with a green cropped turtleneck and some cheap black boots. Mixing high and low brands is always an option and often makes the outfit more approachable. Putting this angry outfit on, helped me channel some of my anger. I was expressing it through what I was wearing instead of what I was doing.