How to Define Your Style

One of the questions I get asked frequently is how to edit your closet and curate your wardrobe. I’m definitely not an expert on the subject, but I’ve been able to get my closet to a much more curated place over the past couple of years so I wanted to share what has worked for me. This is going to be a multi-post series—I’ll be sharing some of my wardrobe essentials in an upcoming post, but in the mean time you can shop my closet here and here!

THE EDIT

Editing your wardrobe and finding your personal style is definitely not a quick process, but something that evolves naturally over time and with practice. One of the best things I did last year was to do the whole Marie Kondo closet cleanout. I took out everythingggggg I owned and went through ruthlessly—really editing out the pieces that I didn’t love, wasn’t wearing and didn’t fit my lifestyle.

I came to LA with only a small part of my closet and it’s honestly been so nice having a limited amount of pieces to choose from every day (obviously the consistent weather helps). When we move into our new home, I might even do another big edit because I’ve loved having less!

your lifestyle

When you’re editing or shopping, it’s so important to think about your lifestyle and be super true to how you live. Comfort is a huge priority to me so I got rid of a lot of pieces that were too fussy or uncomfortable to wear. My style tends to be a bit more masculine so I found I wasn’t wearing pieces that were more feminine unless it was for a special event. I also recognized that while I am drawn to certain colors or styles, in reality I was never wearing them and got rid of them. I do believe that if you haven’t worn something in the last year, you probably can edit it out!

INSPIRATION

Something I find incredibly helpful is to save images of outfits I like so I can help guide my closet. I’ve found that I’m (obviously) drawn to denim with simple tops, cozy knits, oversized coats and feminine white tops. I love feeling polished and put together, but always in a comfortable, easy way. Some of the people I continually look to for inspiration are Elin Kling, Brittany Bathgate, Amalie + Cecilie Moosgaard Nielsen, TyLynn Nguyen, Jeana Sohn and Gucci Westman.

shopping

I always keep a running list of pieces I feel like I am missing from my closet so when I want to shop I turn to that first. I also keep a wishlist and add to it as I find things I want to buy. I started becoming more diligent with my shopping budget about a year and a half ago and this helps me prioritize what I am spending on. I typically sit on things for a little while before deciding to purchase, especially if they are more expensive pieces. If I can’t stop thinking about it, it usually will be a good purchase for me! I’ve found that this system has helped me buy less filler pieces and more pieces that I know I’ll wear over and over again.

I hope this was helpful! I’ll be sharing my wardrobe essentials in an upcoming post so stay tuned for that…