Wardrobe Architect: Weeks 3 and 4

I am falling a little behind on the architecting.  But that's OK - I intended to work through this process when I had time and only if it seemed useful to me (it does!).

In weeks one and two we explored how style changes over time and how you feel about your personal style (argh!  feelings...!).  Week three was a little more specific - allowing you to explore shapes and how you feel about them and your style.  My preferences are apparently exceedingly middle of the road and can be summarised as below:

• Pants and skirts can be any length except really really short and I like a mid to high waist
• Tops and jackets are generally fine but never loose (that pregnant look...mmm!) and never cropped
• I don't like high necklines (round, turtle) - I find them really unflattering with a large chest. I also don't like strapless or spaghetti straps (again, the boobalinas are influencing preferences).

I enjoyed this week's exercise, probably because it was easy for me and not overly threatening :)

Week four looked like an annoying amount of effort but I actually really enjoyed it.  I ventured into the world of Polyvore to build my preferred silhouettes, then posted them back to my pinterest board.  As a side note - building the things in Polyvore was surprisingly fun, though am not sure what I would ever use it for again...!!  Here are some of my silhouette favourites:

This was the first mashup board I made.  The combo of long leg, fitted but not super skinny jeans and a flowing (but not baggy) shirt seems to suit my figure.   I am tall with long legs, but also curvy.  I couldn't actually make my self just do silhouettes during this exercise - I had to find examples of clothes in colours and fabrics I actually wanted to wear :)

 Not sure this silhouette is really very fundamentally different to the one above :)  This one is slightly more aspirational as I can never find a non-stretch shirt which will fit the girls comfortably but not be baggy around the waist.  Yes, I know I can sew.  I am getting around to it!

I don't wear skirts often but really like that one above and it should suit me.  I also have the Mouse House Creations Julia Cardigan ready to sew (pattern is taped!) which is very similar to the black cardigan in this one.  The sleeveless top again works well with my dimensions and I have lots of tops of that ilk already...in fact - that sort of top became a bit of a theme when I did my final set - which was a many items work mega-mix below:

What do I want to wear to work?  Apparently, the same thing every day :)  These aren't that dissimilar from the top two casual sets.  Does that matter?  Not sure.  I didn't explore other silhouettes which I like, such as maxi dresses and the like, but that's because we are headed for winter and I won't wear them as much as this stuff (I work 9 days out of every 10).  If I am starting to build a basic wardrobe which is comfortable, flattering and in my style, this is probably how I need to begin.  I can add things which step outside of the basic later.

I did notice there are no dresses in here.  I like the idea of dresses, but not really wearing them.  I am trying to find the pattern which suits me, fits me well and makes me feel good - and the Go To Casual Lady I modified isn't far off, but it's still a journey which is as much emotional as about practical matters such as fit.  I think I should work on making the basics the staples of the wardrobe I own, then perhaps start working out how to sew more of the things I can never get to fit in RTW.

We'll see.  I am currently making a quilt so I expect this might be a long journey :)  Anyone else trying to refine their style and stop themselves buying stuff that doesn't suit because they like the "idea" of wearing that style?

C x