Oh my gosh, I am so here for fashion, hon.
I am loving the clothes I’m procuring. I’m loving the outfits I’m putting together. And I’m not gonna lie, I am LOVING the compliments.
Because I have realized something about myself:
I dress for the people.
I really do.
When I’m getting dressed in the morning, I’m not necessarily thinking, What statement am I trying to make today? I’m thinking, What is aesthetically pleasing to the eye? What would be fun for somebody else to look at? What kind of energy do I want to put into the room?
Sometimes I want to look cozy and make you feel cozy.
Sometimes I want COLOR. Something happy and uplifting that makes you go, Oh my God, I love that sweater.
Sometimes I want calm and serene.
Sometimes I want classic and clean.
And sometimes I want you to look at me and think, Well, this is fun.
That’s it.
I want to be a little entertainment for the eye.
Because clothes have energy.
The outfit I put on in the morning can portray the energy I’m bringing into the world that day. And when somebody notices it? Ohhhh, it makes me so happy.
“Oh my God, I love your sweater.”
“That color is SO good.”
“Where did you get that?”
And inevitably, I want to scream:
GOODWILL!!!!
Because apparently everything I own is from Goodwill at this point.
I was at Huriyali today, walking out the door, when this girl looked at me and said, “Oh my God, cutest sweater!”
I spun around: “OH MY GOD, THANK YOU!”
And immediately I wanted to tell her it was from Goodwill.
But then I thought, Brooks, you say that about everything.
Because it’s true facts.
And honestly? That’s part of what makes fashion so fun for me right now.
You don’t have to spend $300 to put something beautiful on your body. You don’t have to chase every trend. You don’t have to have the newest anything.
Go spend $5.95 on a dress.
Wear it to church.
Suddenly church is more exciting.
You’re more exciting.
And somebody else gets to see a beautiful dress that morning.
Everybody wins.
And that is what I love about Goodwill. When people donate clothes, so often they’re giving away something they once loved.
That sweater had a life before you. Somebody picked it out. Somebody wore it. Somebody had a memory in it. And eventually they decided, Okay, I’m finished with this.
And now?
Tag. You’re it.
You get to love it next.
You get to style it differently. You get to give it a whole new personality. You get to walk into a coffee shop wearing somebody else’s old sweater and have a stranger stop you to tell you how cute you look.
That is FULL CIRCLE FASHION, honey.
And there’s something about that I absolutely love.
I don’t dress because I need everybody to look at me.
I dress because if you do look at me, I hope what you see makes you feel good.
Maybe it’s a beautiful color.
Maybe it’s a ridiculous sweater.
Maybe it’s a perfectly simple outfit that feels calm.
Maybe it’s something that makes you smile.
Because why can’t fashion be another way of giving?
Why can’t getting dressed be another little opportunity to put some good energy into the world?
I want my clothes to feel the way I want me to feel: warm, fun, welcoming, colorful when necessary, peaceful when necessary, and never taking myself too seriously.
So yes.
I am dressing for myself.
But I’m also dressing for the people.
And apparently, I’m dressing the people for $5.95.
