Wardrobe Essentials, Volume Two

If there's anything more stress-inducing than trying on multiple pairs of jeans in a store's fitting room, I certainly don't know what it is. (That is the biggest lie I've ever typed to date - let's pause for a minute and imagine the idyllic life where the quest for denim actually IS your biggest problem.)  Seriously, though, jeans are probably my least favorite item of clothing to shop for. Not only is it hugely irritating to stuff yourself in and out of five different pairs of skinny jeans, but most of the time you leave with nothing because each pair missed a few points on your checklist. Everyone's list is different, but here are my requirements for a basic pair of jeans:

1) Higher rise - Muffin top is never a good idea, and a higher rise keeps everything smooth.
2) Straight or bootcut leg - Super skinny jeans are constricting on my calves and less flattering on my body!
3) Darker wash - For my everyday jeans, little to no whiskering/fading is more versatile and slimming.
4) Short length - I am short and I hate hemming. Enough said!

Now, this obviously doesn't apply to "trendy" jeans, just the classics! Everyone and their mother (Mom? You too?) is rocking distressed denim right now - holey, ripped, faded cutoffs and skinny jeans. And I'm no exception - I love the white and very light denim options right now, like these:

This pair of cutoffs:                                                                     This pair of white skinny jeans:

But I am no fool! Well, in this case at least. The examples above, while great for summer, are not classic pairs that will still be in my wardrobe rotation come fall. To me, it's about knowing what you need for each season (the "trendy" pieces) and finding those at a good value. Then, I can take a little more money and buy the "long-term" pieces that I will go to season after season. My wishlist for those looks like this:

Black straight leg jeans

Dark wash straight leg jeans

Dark wash bootcut jeans

Medium wash straight leg jeans

Medium wash bootcut jeans

These five options are really all my lifestyle calls for in terms of the basics. I can dress the skinnies up with wedges, dress the bootcuts down with converse, and wear the black pair for fancier events while still looking casual. Are these the only pairs I have in my wardrobe? No, definitely not! I've wasted too much money on pairs that don't fit right/are too long/are too light. These are simply what I'm looking for as I try to build up my wardrobe foundation (#firstworldproblems, y'all).

Making It Happen

One of my best friends and I forced ourselves to become friends. She was dating one of my favorite co-workers, and we knew if we kept at it, we were bound to become good friends! So we made a pact to go out to dinner once a week every week, powered through the awkward acquaintance stage, and made it happen. Now instead of going out to dinner every week, we sit around and drink wine in our sweatpants. That's the beauty of friendship, people!

Long story short, sometimes it is worth it to power through the difficult stage, because the end result is worth it. Take this pair of gladiator sandals:

To say I am obsessed with them makes me sound like a shallow person, which I am. But it's true - they're exactly what I've been looking for! However, they are also a little more bold than I normally go with my sandal choices, and I am therefore slightly intimidated by them. They've been sitting on my kitchen counter for days so that I can gaze at them - without having to actually wear them. And I'm getting increasingly frustrated with myself, because this is it! I've been looking for this style of gladiator sandals for almost a year now. These are comfortable, soft leather with a sturdy, non-slip sole. Once I wear them a few times, I know these will become my go-to sandals, and I will wear the crap out of them all summer long. So do it, self! Suck it up and wear them.

(This post is my motivation. I'm wearing them to trivia tonight!)

Recent Purchases (or, "What I've Wasted Money On Lately")

These are the perfect shorts. Legitimately. They are distressed but not overly so, medium blue wash to go with everything, boyfriend style (i.e. extremely comfortable), and cuffed to be every so slightly dressier than cutoffs. American Eagle has a great sale going on right now, too - buy one pair of shorts get one for $10!

These t-shirts from Target are the best I've found recently. I have never gotten into all the fuss about Everlane, as much as I wanted to, and my quest for the perfect tee continued. That is, until Target saved the day as always! They are super soft, hip-length (truly!), and have a very flattering scoop neck. Obviously, I bought it in every available color.

Wardrobe Essentials, Volume One

One of the things I'm striving towards in my never ending quest for the "perfect wardrobe" is to minimize clutter in my closet. Instead, I want to pack it instead with workhorses: items that can be worn many ways with a variety of pieces. Consider how easy it is to style a shirt that can be worn with a number of shorts, pants, or skirts, rather than one that only looks good when half-tucked into a high-waisted pencil skirt. If I'm not in the mood for that pencil skirt, I'm not going to wear that shirt - thus reducing my number of options for my daily outfit.

My goal, then, is to come up with my list of "Wardrobe Essentials". These are different for every person, and depends on what YOU like to wear and what looks good on you! I rarely wear heels but wear my ballet flats to death. Thus, many pairs of flats are on my essentials list, whereas someone else might only need one pair!

Here, then, is my tentative list of shoe essentials.

Black ballet flats - exact
Brown ballet flats
Nude ballet flats - exact
Black pumps
Black wedges
Brown wedges
Black gladiator sandals
Brown gladiator sandals
Black riding boots - exact
Black motorcycle boots
Brown riding boots - exact
Brown flat boots
Brown heeled boots - exact
Casual sneakers (Vans, Converse, etc) - exact, exact, exact
Running sneakers

There it is, short and sweet! I obviously like to have quite a few more "fun" pairs to mix it up a bit, but I am making an effort to slowly purchase all the items on my list. A strong foundation is the starting point to any good wardrobe, in my opinion, and for me this list of shoes is just that! I want to start with shoes I can grab and go when I just need a basic item to pull together my outfit.

It is also worth mentioning that I am a strong believer in quality over quantity! As a rule, I am not a big fan of faux-leather, especially for my shoes and purses. I want to buy something once and have it last for years, not re-purchase every six months. With my boots, for example, I only have five pairs. However, all five are real leather, well made, and investments that I know will last years to come! They may have a higher initial purchase price than a cheaper, faux-leather pair from Target, but over time will provide many more wears.

I plan on editing this post over time as I find these shoes to fill spots on my list, as well as with the ones I've already found! Until then, tell me about your shoe essentials - my list can always use some additions :)

And So It Begins...

I love reading blogs, but have not yet found one that fulfills all my requirements for my perfect morning read. I like a fashion blog that has accessible yet high-quality items. I like witty paragraphs of writing, not just a few pictures and a few words. I like correctly formatted sentences, good grammar, and lots of food for thought. And by food for thought, I of course mean many links to handbags I adore and jeans that quickly make it onto my "Essential Items to Purchase" list - a list that grows by the day. So that is what I'm setting out to do - provide this blog for girls like me, who love throwing their pennies at clothing, shoes and makeup as we all strive for the elusive dream of the perfect wardrobe.