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7.19.2008

i don't wanna grow up

Yesterday, the real world caught up with me. There I was, shifting through the sale racks at Old Navy looking for a hidden gem when my sister- my older sister who has a doctorate degree- starts talking to me about work clothes and the importance of having the right basics. I was listening, honestly I was, but in the back of my mind all I could think was:
But I know all about clothes. I LOVE clothes.



So why don't have any work appropriate clothing?

Perhaps in response to years at a prep school with an unforgiving dress code, I spent my college years turning my closet into a collection of quirky thrift store finds and rejoicing over finally being able to wear t-shirts and jeans without ever stopping to think about the long term effects. Listening to my sister talk, I was beginning to suspect that even my intern outfits might be a little too "creative" for my new mature-young-adult-office life.

I felt a panic attack coming on. Normally the idea of shopping for lots of new clothes would make me happy but I was somewhere on the other side of the emotional spectrum- I was feeling dread. A subsequent trip to Forever 21 only worsened the whole ordeal. So many prints and slip dresses, I wanted to buy them all but sadly I knew there was no place for them in my new life of "basics".

I finally realized that I was being dramatic, but only a little, and consoled myself by spending a long time looking at Melissa Coker's designs for her clothing line, Wren.

Coker was once an intern at Helmut Lang, Vogue and W, and also worked at Abercrombie & Fitch. I'm inclined to put my faith in her style and who knows, maybe I'll find a way to retain a shred of my youthful passion for fashion as I enter the workforce.

-dramatic sigh-

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Those clothes could be boring but are styled perfectly. Good luck! You'll find the right balance.

Anonymous said...

alas, i totally empathize with your wes-style-dominated wardrobe. i'm working in a hospital for the summer, and i had to do a major overhaul in the officewear department.

what i've found is that one should never underestimate the power of awesome accessories. i wear big jewelry and cute shoes with flattering basics, and i never feel dumpy or boring. here are some of my favorites:

my tried-and-true dress. it fits amazingly on EVERYONE and is a fantastic investment because it transitions so easily from work to casual.

http://www.martinandosa.com/web/browse/outfit_bundle_page.jsp?o=sku110004&catId=womens

i wear it with these shoes, which are the perfect balance of heels and flats, cute and classy. they're made by clarks, a brand normally seen on the feet of an older generation... but who am i to judge?! they come in phenomenal colors and might be on sale.

http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/37051920/c/3.html

and as for the big jewelry, here are my favorite new earrings.

http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/productdetail.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_dynSessConf=-3197315942460043982&id=742210&parentid=JWL_EARRINGS_STATEMENTS&pushId=JWL_EARRINGS_STATEMENTS&popId=JEWELRY&sortProperties=&navCount=3&navAction=jump&fromCategoryPage=true&selectedProductSize=&selectedProductSize1=&color=gol


... another tip is to wear basic high-waisted skirts and tuck in the tops you normally wear to add color/print. throw on a shrug cardigan and it looks professional.

Sophista-Funk said...

Thanks for all the great tips! I'm definitely feeling the printed top/high waisted skirt combo.
-jillian