Collect
Dress: Urban Outfitters (2009)
Cardigan: J.Crew ($3-ish)
Boots: Jeffrey Campbell "Rumi" (ModCloth)
Earrings c/o Noble Town Vintage
Chain Bracelet: ModCloth (old)
I've had this dress for three years, and I just now feel like I've figured out how to wear it- or maybe I'm just more comfortable with things being simpler now. Either way, I definitely have a tendency to over think things. I've been making the conscious effort to simplify lately, an uncomplicated outfit is what I always end up feeling best in, and I feel as though I have to constantly remind myself of that. There's that inner voice that insists "LAYER!" "ADD MORE SHIT!", but inevitably I don't end up feeling good in those outfits. I can't decide if this tendency for "more" is a side-effect from blogging- of constantly seeing other outfits that might be deemed "better" and/or more interesting- or just another iteration of my natural tendency to hoard and drape and collect.
It's a stifling tendency. Whether it's in the context of an outfit or a space, there needs to be room to breathe. When we made the move to Pittsburgh, we only had three weeks notice of our departure, which lead to us moving with more stuff than we needed to. There was no time to clean out, throw out, or sort, all this baggage came with us from our past life and every weekend I sort, throw away, and donate more unwanted, and unnecessary stuff. It's not just our apartment, it's my closet as well. As I unpacked my summer stuff from storage, I noticed hemlines and silhouettes that were no longer of interest to me. After the initial purging of stuff, I felt as if I was finished, like I had gotten rid of what I had to. But as I scanned my closet yesterday, looking for this dress, I saw lurkers. I'm clearly not finished yet.