I’m pretty much a natural slob. By that, I mean I’ll spill stuff on myself. I’ll forget to close drawers completely. I’ll leave closet doors opened. I’ll be the one with that tuft of hair sticking out like Alfalfa. I’ll be the one who is all dressed up and the bra strap just insists on sticking out. I’ll get a heel stuck in my hem, ripping it and having to tape the falling hem until I can get to a tailor. I’ll have that random piece of spinach from the salad that I just ate sticking in between my two front teeth.
But—in spite of it all, I like things to be uniform and organized in my home.
For what it’s also worth, I like my wardrobe to be uniform—in more ways than one.
Come on in—I’ll explain:
I suppose I could blame my parents for this. Or I could actually blame the nuns who adhered to our strict dress code while in school. But I won’t. I’m an adult with choices. I chose to stick to what I grew up wearing—UNIFORMS!
A blazer. A bright, crisply ironed, white shirt. A skirt. Shoes—either loafers or oxfords.
St. Patrick School. Long Island. We wore dark green blazers with an “SPS” emblem. (I didn’t have a dark green marker. Sorry!). We wore the standard white blouse with a Peter Pan collar. We girls also had a plaid beret that was absolutely adorable–but sometimes it was hard to keep on your head–depending how big your hair would get!
Our skirt was pleated. It was deep green and deep red–actually more of a burgundy with yellow threading making the plaid actually pretty nice! Yes. it WAS burgundy. Red is the color of the devil! The nuns did not allow us to wear red!
Accessories? No pierced earrings. Actually NO earrings. The only jewelry permissible was a thin gold chain with a crucifix or a Miraculous Medal of Mary.
THIS was fine jewelry!
No polished nails. No makeup. Hair ribbons but only to tie our hair back with.
Only white or green sock or tights were compliant with the dress code. One day a classmate showed up wearing red tights. RED, Satan’s, and my favorite color! The principal, Sr. Mary Isabel showed up, and booted her ass home to change into more appropriate tights or socks. From that day, I was petrified of going to the beach during the warmer weather. What if I got sunburned legs? Those red legs would set Sister Mary Isabel on a tangent that I wanted no part of!
“No sister, it isn’t the devil’s work. It’s the sun’s work. I’m burnt!” “But you’ll be thrilled to know that I am suffering for my vanity!”
My office attire was always a take on the uniformed look worn in school.
A blazer.
Behind my two fitted denim jackets hangs a collection of J. Crew Schoolboy blazers. And YES. I even have red!
A bright white shirt—could be a blouse or a white t-shirt. And naturally, a collection of J. Crew Tippi Sweaters!
Ya think I have enough white shirts? I also have about 15 white fitted tees!
My wild side shows up in the form of bright J. Crew Tippi Sweaters….
..and some that have yet to be worn!
A skirt—usually solid to match the blazer, or still—plaid. Pants—skinny, usually ankle length.
Shoes. As I’ve gotten older, I like my dress shoes slightly slutty. Pointy toed, a low vamp allowing for toe cleavage. I’m too prudish for boob-cleavage. I am also quite fond of a thin high heel.
My kinda dress and work shoes. Check out the toe cleavage…
I still love and have my Bass Weejuns. In addition, my love for the Repetto ballet flats knows no boundaries!
For the seasons in which I cannot frolic about barefoot, my casual shoe preferences are Weejuns and Repetto Ballet flats. When it gets REALLY cold–knee high boots!
While I’ve strayed from this zone of comfort, I still manage to return to “The Uniform Basics”
One of my favorite skirts. I got it from J. Crew on sale. I can pair it with a red Tippi Sweater and my red slutty shoes! Notice the faux pearls! It’s a nice simple look. Or..
I can take that same skirt and this time pair it with a black Tippi sweater and J. Crew black Dulci kitten heels for a more demure look. Notice the different faux pearls…or…
Yup! Same skirt and shoes. This time with a J. Crew Schoolboy blazer in black, a white fitted T from Old Navy AND a strand of tiny faux pearls. Notice a habit here with the various pearls. I like everything uniform!
Same black blazer, same shoes, same T shirt and same faux pearls. This time with a black pencil skirt. It looks kind of severe but the skirt is shorter. The shorter length actually looks a bit better than a longer skirt. Sometimes longer skirts can look a bit frumpy!
My “backup” navy J. Crew Schoolboy blazer. I haven’t even taken the paper off the buttons yet. I love my navy blazer so much that I ordered a backup when I saw it for fifty percent off!…I wear it all the time..
The navy blazer looks great with these black watch plaid ankle pants from J. Crew. The navy lacey shoes are Ivanka Trump…
I also have the same plaid in a pencil skirt–again, J. Crew.
Navy pencil skirt with a bright green Tippi sweater and yet, another different pair of faux pearls can also be worn as a make shift suit with the navy blazer..
I love navy and bright yellow! J. Crew Factory pencil skirt, the navy shoes and a navy Tippi sweater with faux pearl are another part of my uniform look!
This is my “Holiday/Christmas” uniform! A red (Santa red, not Satan red) flouncy skirt (Yeah–J. Crew. I got it for 29.00 on sale, beautifully heavy wool!), black Tippi Sweater and the black heels. I cannot believe I can still fit my fat gut into this. I must be dropping a bit of weight!!
LOL! Obligatory “fashion blogger” cute pose! I HAD to do that! Sorry!
I’ve got a ton of clothing hanging in my closet and folded neatly into drawers and shelves; I thought I would wear these items but I don’t. Alright– I’ve worn a few— maybe once or twice but never felt fully comfortable in them. Yet, I have this strange need to hold onto them!
A few years back I was on a Lilly Pulitzer tunic kick. I think I may have worn these tunics a total of twice each. I’m not kidding! They make me look pregnant! Why on earth would I continue to wear these tunics? WTF would I even think of holding on to them?
Is it because I grew up wearing Lilly? Is it because I think of my life in Lilly as one big pink and lime green cocktail party? I’m going to purge the tunics.
Those brightly colored tunics are now purged and thrown into a bag to be on the way to Goodwill!
I have a few sweaters that are somewhat short. They “cut” my body in half, making me look a bit stocky. I like my sweaters longer—especially since I have a pretty long torso. Time to purge the cropped and shorter length sweaters.
Listen. I may be “older” and a “woman of a certain age”, but truth be told. I like my skirts and dresses more toward the shorter side than the longer side. If the dress or skirt rides up too much when I sit down (Ladies, you know what I’m talking about) and my origin of the world is on display, then it’s time to purge!
Too-short sweaters, Lilly Pulitzer tunics AND dresses, and shorts like the Milly for Banana Republic. Nice stuff but I don’t wear it regularly. The dresses are just too short when I sit down–they ride all the way up my thighs. It’s not a pretty sight! Someone else can purchase it at the Goodwill. I feel so much better now that I did a purge!
I don’t want to be “On Trend”.
I don’t want anything I wear to “Pop”! God knows I’ve had buttons and snaps popping against my will for years.
I simply want to blend. I want to be comfortable. I just want to be in my uniform.
My uniform can be changed up with different scarfs, jewelry, shoes, boots and bags.
I can change up my uniform look with a scarf–I’ve got a shitload of ’em!
I’m set. It’s all good.
Go. Go get your uniforms ready people. Whether your uniform is similar to mine—or whether it isn’t! Wear your uniform and wear it well and with confidence.
You’re gaw-juhs!!! Keep being that way and don’t let anyone dictate to you what you should wear!
Well, since I rambled a bit about clothes–here’s David Bowie! “Fashion” Enjoy! XOXOXOXO!
