Since high school, I have pretty much been dressing the same way: jeans or leggings (shorts if it’s hot), a t-shirt or tank top (usually with a print of a band I like), and slippas (flip-flops), Vans, or Doc Martens. It’s pretty basic, very casual, and not how I want to dress going forward. I’ve wanted to elevate my style for quite a while, and I think the perfect time to do it is during my transition from a college student to a working professional. My time in university is nearly up, and I want to have a more sophisticated and cohesive style to walk into true adulthood with. I’ve started trying to find this “dream style” of mine already, and I thought I’d share my process of doing so. If you are also trying to find your “dream style” and haven’t quite figured out how to find it just yet, I hope my process helps you!
Disclaimer
I am by no means a professional stylist. None of what you are about to read is professional advice. All of this is a personal discovery process and comes from my personal experience.
Step 1: Find what inspires you
One of the most important foundation steps is to find your style inspirations. I don’t just mean people whose style you want to emulate, specific fashion styles you like, or specific motifs. Of course, I do mean all of that, but I also mean the other non-fashion-specific things that inspire you. Personally, some things that inspire me are:
- Painters, such as Van Gogh and Monet
- 70s hippie fashion
- Goth fashion
- Whimsigoth fashion
- Astronomy and celestial bodies
- My ancestral roots
- Many different films I’ve seen
This list isn’t all-encompassing, of course. This is just a quick list of things that I would like to take elements of to incorporate into my personal fashion. You can easily make a Pinterest Board of your style inspirations or a vision board.
Step 2: Create a budget
Personally, I can’t afford a complete, immediate overhaul of my closet. I can afford to start slowly incorporating my dream style into my closet, and over time, it will turn into my ideal wardrobe. Make a plan that best suits you.
Step 3: Clear out your closet
Since I am wanting to create a new wardrobe for myself, I also must create room for said wardrobe in my closet. I have lots of clothes that I no longer wear, so I need to get rid of them. I normally either donate my old, unwanted clothing to someplace like GoodWill, or I’ll try and sell them to a thrift store or secondhand shop.
Step 4: Figure out how you will tie your inspirations together to create a cohesive style
I have a lot of different elements that inspire me that traditionally don’t really go together. Lots of 70s hippie fashion is colorful with lots of patterns and embellishments. Lots of traditional goth fashion has a limited color palette and feels more structured than flowy (at least to me). You wouldn’t think that those two styles could be matched very well. However, I can take elements that I like from both styles, like certain motifs or certain silhouettes, and put them together to create a new look that is unique to me.
Step 5: Go shopping (or get sewing) and start building your new wardrobe!
Once you’ve completed the foundational steps, you get to go and build your wardrobe! I am definitely going to be buying lots of new pieces, but I am also hoping to get back into one of my hobbies (sewing) and make some custom clothes in my dream style.
I hope these tips have either inspired you or helped you in some way!