8 Weeks to a Better Me: Week 7/Personal Style

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Hello there! I'm Elsie From A Beautiful Mess. I'm a lifestyle blogger from Springfield, Missouri. I own Red Velvet, a boutique, and just created my first dress collection this past spring! While designing dresses is my passion in business, collection fun personal pieces is also my most beloved hobby! I started wearing vintage in high school and have never stopped. In more recent years I've also grown fond of collecting pieces that support up-and-coming independent designers, like myself! In short, I love fashion. I'm here today to share with you my top three tips for developing a personal style that you love!

1. Only wear trends you absolutely love!

Trends will always come and go. I am a huge fan of 50s and 60s clothing and this year 70s styles have been incredibly popular! I've enjoyed picking and choosing the aspects of the 70s that I love to wear. It's really important not to pressure yourself to try every single trend. Just choose the trends that make you happy!

Over time you will develop a style of dressing that you will consider your 'comfort zone'. I have this with 50s dresses, bows and heels and big hair (ultra feminine). Once you have established your basic style, you can incorporate trends and off beat pieces that inspire you on occasion! It's definitely fun to try new things! Just be sure to be true to yourself and your favorite styles at least 75% of the time.

2. Know your body type and choose a fit that flatters!

Every woman has a unique body and styles that flatter her shape! It's important to know your shape and know what looks good on you (and, of course, what does not). Here are a few easy ways to figure this out.... Find a celebrity, musician or even fashion blogger (anyone who is photographed often) who has a similar body type to yours. Watch what they wear and what looks best! Another easy thing to do is look through your own photos and try to spot the most flattering outfits. Choose new styles that are similar in different colors and patterns.

It can be discouraging when a major trend rolls around that doesn't work with your body type. A couple years ago flowy tops (similar to maternity tops) were popular and they were really unflattering on me. Over time I've learned a few tricks. I'm short and busty, so I almost always wear a belt or fitted waist. Also, I like to keep my hair color pretty dark, so I feel like color looks good on me. I stay away from all black outfits and I don't usually wear flat shoes in photos.

What are your best physical features? You should definitely play those up! Choose outfits that show off the things you love about yourself and stay away from styles that cover them up!

One more tip.... I took a huge step in confidence when I choose to work with my natural body type instead of against it. When I was younger I felt like the problem with finding clothing was me. Learning to dress for my natural body type has been a huge self esteem builder for me!

3. Save lots and splurge a little!

I love thrifting, but I also love picking dresses off the "not sale" rack at Anthropologie. My best tip is to save a lot and splurge a little. It's fun to buy new clothes every season. I also love the challenge of being thrifty. I like to buy most of my pieces for reasonable (and sometimes low) prices. Great example of this are vintage shops, Etsy, mall stores and even thrifting. That said, it's also good to buy special pieces that you can wear for more than one season. My grandmother was great at this and in the last few years she's given me some amazing bags and swimsuits from the 1960s. She still remembers the exact price she paid for them, because they were a splurge. Splurge pieces should be items you will want to keep forever. I have a few really nice dresses that I know I'll keep for life. I think that it's a great combination for guilt free wardrobe building to save your pennies on trendy and daily wear pieces and invest in more special pieces like dresses, outerwear, bags and shoes.

I hope this little feature has inspired you to work on building your personal style. Styling is a great hobby for any age. It's a confidence builder and a lot of fun! Don't be afraid to start simple and build your dream wardrobe as you go! There's no reason why you shouldn't dress the way you really want to dress!

Have fun! Elsie

This week's post has me really thinking, because recently I've been super into purging my closet to make room for items that really speak to me and make me happy. In the past I've shopped too much, and bought things without really thinking about them. Sure, a blouse may be cute, but now I try and ask myself if I really see myself wearing this season after season rather than impulse buying too many items. So, here are my goals for this week! We only have ONE more week left, and I'm excited to make a goals run down post to conclude this project as well.

1. Do another Shop My Closet. I did one two weeks ago and it was so successful- I made tons of room for new items, and go to reevaluate what I need and what I don't. This next round will be even better, because it's all the items I really wanted to keep, but the more I think about them, the more I just want to simplify my wardrobe. This week I'd also like to go through all of my clothes and take a look at what fits well and what doesn't. I feel best when I wear flattering clothing, so why not have an entire closet filled with flattering items?

2. Lately I feel like I've been stuck in such a style rut. I've been wearing the same outfits, feeling totally uninspired. Looking at Elsie's pretty photos has me feeling super motivated to change it up a bit, and work some new fun twists into my daily outfits- maybe a cute pair of heels or a fun hairstyle.

3. And on the same note, try out new outfits all week. This week I'm looking forward to mixing matching some of the clothes I already have to create outfits that look and feel great. Elsie inspires me to step out of the box a little- I think it would be great for me to stay true to my personal style but branch out a little more. For instance, I love the look of her layered blouse and dress above- I have a lot of fun separates that would look great paired in a new way.