My Intentional Fall Style: A Follow-Up

A few months ago, I opened-up about my struggle with developing and understanding my personal style. I'm not going to lie, it has been really hard to resist giving into trends, especially because there are so many good ones this season, but I've managed to do it. 

Over the course of the past few weeks, I've been zeroing in on what I want my style to be and how I want to dress myself day to day. Since I work from home, comfort is key, and since I also have to leave the house for meetings and events, I need versatility. Here's what has been working for me:

A consistent color palette. I am basically rotating between black, navy, and gray, and I'm not sad about it. These colors not only look pulled together, but they're interchangeable with each other too. 

Investing in multi-season shoes. I picked up a pair of flats during the Nordstrom sale that I am still wearing almost every day. I also added a pair of peep-toe booties and black booties which were amazing in fall and will carry me through a lot of the winter too - hooray for mild winters in the South. 

Remembering comfort. Like I mentioned above, comfort is really important to me. Besides the fact that I just like to be comfortable, I work from home and need the freedom to be casual but pulled together. Before I purchase something, I ask myself a few questions:

1. Does it fit into my wardrobe's style?

2. Is it versatile for working from home/attending daytime/nighttime events?

3. Will I be comfortable? 

As a reminder, here's what I've been picked-up this season!

Fall Style + Closet Overhaul

Since Friday, I've had fall on my mind. I spent basically all day on Monday sifting through Labor Day sales and really thinking hard about the future of my wardrobe. As I shared with a friend, I've made a few mistakes when stocking my closet over the past few years. Here's where I am (and where I'm headed!). 

Let's start at the beginning. I left the education field a little over two years ago. At the time, I was wearing office appropriate clothes during the week that I would rarely, if ever, bust back out at night or on the weekends. At the time, that meant I essentially had two wardrobes: one for work and one for play. That also meant that I developed this very bad habit of purchasing items for an occasion versus for a season. If I needed something for a night out with friends, I went shopping. If I needed something for a tailgate, I went shopping. I always found myself picking up an item or two of terrible quality on major sale, wearing it once (because I liked it enough) and never wearing it again. 

Last spring, I did a major spring/summer overhaul. I got rid of a ton of items, but I have to admit, I sank right back into my old ways. There are tops I bought this summer that I wore once. UGH! But today, I am standing before you committed to making a change. Fall is the season that I get myself under control and start buying things that are staples. 

My new work world is working from home which means I end up wearing a lot of t-shirts. Too many, actually, and when it comes time for a meeting, I rotate 2-3 items. My goal for this fall is to buy some items that are casual and cute, but also functional. I think these leggings are a prime example of exactly that! They're leggings, but the gold zipper detail immediately punches them up to a more sophisticated level. If I wear them with a chunky sweater and some fun heels, I think I'm in business! 

In a perfect world, I probably wouldn't shop at any of the fast fashion companies, but let's be real: in the midst of my fashion crisis, I am also working on furnishing a house. My goal is to get back to a basic color scheme, so I can mix and match, but continue to punch up my wardrobe with a few fun items from time to time. Because the reality is, that there's always going to be a football game, there's always going to be fun dinner with friends, and there's always going to be a reason to shop. 

Whew. This turned out to be really long. Here's a peek at what's headed my way this week. I can't wait to see how my closet starts to morph! I'll let you know if I stick to it. Hold me accountable, please!