Instead I tend to pick and choose from various influences, building up a wardrobe that's cohesive, but also able to quickly split up into different categories, if need by. Ultimately, I think that too many of us are that way, really, but does that mean that everyone is keen to call themselves an eclectic, too?
But Jess, I hear you saying, you're style is clearly defined and easy to identify, it's vintage! Indeed it is, my lovelies, indeed it is, but under the waving flag of vintage fashion, one finds various styles that emerge in the outfits I wear.
The two most dominate personalities, as I've affectionately come to think of them, are my sophisticated/elegant/teetering on ladies-who-lunch side and my super girly-girly, cutesy loving side. The two merge sometimes for sure, but by the same token frequently exist as entities unto themselves.
For as long as I can recall, the most fundamental element to my wardrobe - whether I was wearing vintage or not - has been a sense of femininity (a point which I touched on a bit in this post last June). I adore being a woman and love that (even if my body is a million miles away from perfect!) I was blessed with an hourglass figure that takes to womanly looks like a duck to water.
Way back in elementary school, already loving - and living in dresses - to no end, I attempted to talk my friends and female classmates into starting an "Dresses Only Club" comprised of members who, as you might guess, only wore dresses to school, but in an era of neon parachute pants and baggy acid wash overalls, there weren't too many interested participants.
Undeterred, I continued to frequently wear dresses and skirts all throughout my school days, and have done so even more often in the year since I last carried a textbook to class. While I'm not implying that one needs to wear (or even own) a dress to feel and be feminine, of course, I do find that for me personally, skirts and dresses help me to bring the sense of femininity that I adore to the forefront of my world - and wardrobe.
These pieces exist in both the girly-girl and elegant realms of my closet, but they also crop up elsewhere, too. Though one might not see it as often as the aforementioned two, another style I'm long been a fan of is the preppy look (akin, for my friends in the UK, to sloan ranger style).
From twinsets and pearls to quilted jackets and Top-Siders, I've got a nuance of country club meets Martha Stewart meets Tommy Hilfiger running deep through my veins. Subcategorizing that even further, I'm drawn to an equestrian look something fierce. Though I've certainly ridden a few horses in my time, I'm by no means an accomplished horsewoman and most definitely don't have the trust fund that can accompany the horsey set look. Nevertheless, all it takes is the flash of a classic forest green Hunter boot and I'm hooked on a look.
Sometimes though, my mood veers far from the prep school circuit quite a bit and the wanderlust loving, gypsy-like side of personality comes a calling. She craves flowy skirts, tunic tops, and long dangly chandelier earrings that look as though they could have been plucked from a bazaar in Morocco. More boho then full on 1960s hippie, this style can be a bit tricky to incorporate into a mid-century vintage wardrobe, but is by no means impossible (especially if you're a fan of peasant skirts and blouses).
Then there's my June Cleaver 1950s homemaker side, which one might say lies somewhere between Jacques Fath chic and girl-next-door cute, and in a way incorporates a little hint of preppiness, too. It's all about shirtwaist dresses, perfectly coifed hair, PTA approved heal heights, and scads of classic gloves. Whether drawing on the 1940s and 50s interpretation of this look, it's one that I turn to often, because it's so wonderfully versatile and enjoyable to wear.
In stark contrast to all that is perceived as being 1950s wholesome, lies a tiny part of my sartorial soul that has a goth streak. Yes, I said it, a goth steak. Like more teenagers than you can shake an Anne Rice book at before (and after) me, I found myself drawn to the goth look as a youngster, yet, despite the advantage of my naturally pale skin, just couldn't pull it off.
Instead of looking broody, moody, gorgeous and mysterious like some of the goth gals I knew, I looked kinda silly, kinda adorable and more like my mom had just dressed me up for Halloween. As such, instead of going full goth, I opted to incorporate subtle elements of the style - Morica Addams approved long black frocks, deep burgundy lipstick, Victorian inspired jewelry - into my closet instead, to live merrily alongside my posh skirt suits, kawaii tops, monogramed sweater, poet blouses, and pearl stud earrings.
Does the pick and mix stop there? Not quite, there's also the outdoorsy meets country lass side that comes less from a desire to hike Mt. Everest and more from wanting to look cute in vintage plaid and classic tweed. I think it's the Canadian in me that draws this side out, what with all the lakes, rivers, trees, lumberjacks and canoes that we have in this vast country. That, and perhaps, the wonderful childhood years I spent as a Girl Guide.
{Images in this post come by way of my Pinterest boards. Please click on them here and then
again on Pinterest to be taken to their respective sources.}
I love that my wardrobe is not a one sided being. Many of the pieces that it's comprised of can mingle among several of the styles mentioned above, as well as others still (a touch of the old wild west, say) that pop up every once in a blue moon. I often admire the style of those who clearly channel the same influence day in and day out, but beyond the scope of 1940s and 50s vintage, I don't feel like that's really me. I find beauty and inspiration in too many looks and influences to stop at just one or two styles and love the richness that having an eclectic steak brings to my wardrobe.
Rarely do I open my closet door and stand their wondering what to wear, more often it's a matter of what look do I want to don today and which pieces can I (re)style into new and delightful ways. As I've always - at least since I've been old enough to buy my own clothes - been this way, I suspect that I will be always and rather love that I get to house so many different styles on one wardrobe bar.
When you think of your own look, is it clearly defined by (and devoted to) a single style or two, or, like me, do you like dip into various looks to create a wardrobe of many distinct, yet ultimately, harmonious voices?
