Minimalist Wardrobe

Minimalism, Productivity, and Shopping Addiction San Francisco

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2016 Recap (Final Entry?)

I’ve almost abandoned this blog because reasons that will be detailed later in this entry, but I still want to write a recap for my few readers.

I don’t know if this blog is about my career failures or about clothes, but yes, I have been fired yet again. I’m not going to get into detail why but I believe it was completely unjustified. I was even given a contract for the 2016-2017 school year and was constantly praised by my head teacher for being a great assistant. But on the last day of school my principal said that I would not be returning next school year. 

I was completely devastated. Still am. I’ve never had any job other than working with kids but I’ve decided to never work with kids or at a school again. I felt like I just wasn’t the right fit for that career and that I should look elsewhere.

After that I could barely even look at my professional/teacher clothes anymore. I went out and bought new t-shirts at Target and wore t-shirts, jeans, shorts, hoodies, and sneakers every day. I called it my “unemployed wardrobe.” 

Luckily I have the support of my family and my boyfriend and I’m extremely grateful for them. I had to leave my apartment in Oakland. To be honest, I felt like I had too many houses - my apartment, my BF’s place, and my parent’s house. So that’s one thing that I minimized successfully.

Despite all the bad things that happened this year, good things happened too. Even though I got fired from my job, I still gained skills and experience that I can use to apply for new jobs. I traveled a lot - to Seattle and Portland, Los Angeles and San Diego, and New York City. I also organized a zine fest, which was one of my goals when I first moved to the East Bay. 

This is probably going to be my last entry because one thing I’ve wanted to do for awhile is to move to a normal blogging platform. 

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Rainy day. Finally getting use out of my new BOC Sharlene boots. Please excuse the silly oversize beanie. 

Beanie: H&M Rain jacket: Gap Jeans: J. Crew Boots: B.O.C.

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Small boots for skinny calves alert!

B.O.C. Sharlene

These boots are not easy to find online but I bought them at DB Shoes. DB Shoes is like a cheaper version of DSW. And I mean really cheap. These boots were $60, and one of the more expensive pairs in the store. They mostly sell off-brands and last season shoes. If you have one in your area I highly suggest checking it out.

I’ve wasted a lot of money on boots in my life. I have a pair of skinny black knee highs, but I never wear them because 1) they are black and 2) they are quilted and make my calves look fat. People think they are rainboots when actually they are leather. Since I’ve purchased them I have only worn them in rainy weather. I also never wear my Madewell ankle boots because I just cannot wear heels. 

Before I cared so much about fit and color I used to wear a pair of knee high black boots almost every day! I wore them with black leggings or blue jeans. I tossed them when I bought the aforementioned better fitting pair of black boots. 

So after a long time of searching I finally found a pair of slim fitting, reasonably priced, brown boots that I can wear with jeans or dresses. They are not actually slim calf boots, they just have an adjustable buckle that actually works! So if I gain a ton of weight, I can still wear them (this isn’t going to happen though). The shaft height is also appropriate for my 5′3″ frame; most of the time I can feel the back of a pair of boots touching the back of my thighs when I sit (this is a sign that your boots are too tall). I cannot stand thigh high boots because I can’t bend my legs in them. The foot runs big. I bought a size 6; I usually wear 6.5-7. They do wrinkle at the ankles but it’s not too bad. I’m excited to wear them out when it get cooler.

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I feel bad today and I thought that dressing nicely would help, but it didn’t work.

Blazer: Forever 21 Sweater: J. Crew Skirt: Forever 21 Shoes: Forever 21

Yes, I have an iPhone 6 now.

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Banana Republic trench coat Forever 21 dress Forever 21 loafers

Trench coats hide poorly fitting dresses and they really look classy.

I can’t get those loafer tassels to stay down.

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My buys this month:

Forever 21 navy and white pinstriped dress The dress looks a tent on me, but I like it enough to get it tailored. Fabric feels substantial. I love navy dresses.

Forever 21 tan tasseled loafers Forever 21 shoes are actually decent quality, in my experience. I have a pair of silver loafers that I wear when I want to dress up without wearing heels and they don’t feel bad at all. I really need another pair of loafers because my Calvin Klein shoes are so worn down.

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Winter is here in full force. I often get comments from teachers and parents, saying that I never get cold. That is because I often wear skirts/dresses with flat shoes and bare legs. My co-workers wear leggings and boots when they want to wear a dress in the winter. 

I have a pair of knee high boots, but they are black and don’t really match my style anymore. It’s been hard since spring shoes are in stores now, skinny calf boots are scarce, and over-the-knee boots are all the rage.

Anyway, I almost bought these boots even though they are black and over the knee, because they actually fit. However, I could not bend my legs at all. I also did not like the gaudy fake silver zipper. I didn’t buy them, but they look hot.

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I have almost no clothes at my apartment so I loathe school spirit days. Instead of a nice navy blazer, I was wearing this abomination for “Dress Like An Animal Day.” I borrowed it from a co-worker. People kept complimenting my outfit and telling me that I looked cute but I wanted to die.

Shirt: Uniqlo Jeans: J. Crew Shoes: Forever 21

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First purchase of 2016: Red and white striped t shirt from Uniqlo

Super cheap ($19.90), mid weight fabric. Sleeves are a little long so I’ll have to get them tailored. It comes in other colors too and I want it in navy/white. I’m excited to add warm colors to my wardrobe.

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I've been working on a minimalist wardrobe on a budget so I mainly shop at forever21. However because they aren't quality clothes the items tend to lose shape and stuff for me after a few washes. Do you take special care of f21 clothes? How do you wash/dry them to make them last?

I’ve never understood the issues people have with Forever 21′s clothing. I’ve gotten rid of some of their stuff because of quality before (the seams on the side of a t-shirt where not sewn straight) but for the most part every thing has been good. I don’t care if it’s wrinkly (100% of my clothing is wrinkly), buttons fall off (a dry cleaner can fix that for cheap), or pills (I shave it off).

A friend once described a dryer as a microwave for clothes so that might be the reason why my clothes last. I have never used a dryer for clothes in my entire life. My parents have always hung their laundry out to dry in the backyard. We do not own a dryer. 

I also keep an eye out for hidden gems while shopping at Forever 21. For example, my beloved camel blazer is fully lined, a feature I don’t always see in far more expensive jackets. I have a breton tee made from thick t shirt fabric that is the only t shirt I own. As for their button ups, it appears that all buttons up for women are made out of tissue paper so I just deal with it. I usually head straight to the “Contemporary” department at Forever 21 because they sell more classic and better made clothing in that section. 

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Everything I bought in 2015

Total: 32 items. I did worse then last year.

Tops J. Crew blue silk blouse J. Crew burgundy cardigan J. Crew striped sweatshirt Gap sweatshirt Soft blue gingham shirt Forever 21 chambray shirt Forever 21 burgundy shirt H&M green shirt J. Crew teal silk shirt Banana Republic lace top

Dresses Forever 21 blue dress Banana Republic blue dress  Charlotte Russe dress

Jackets   Forever 21 camel blazer H&M navy blazer  Barbour jacket Gap short mac

Bags Herschel backpack Nicole Miller tote bag Urban Oxide blue laptop bag

Shoes Converse jack purcell Sperry boat shoes Forever 21 silver loafers Calvin Klein loafers Charles David heels

Pants Gap khakis J. Crew jeans J. Crew shoes Banana Republic joggers  Banana Republic jeans

Skirts Banana Republic gray skirt  J. Crew skirt

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Worst Purchases

The good news is, I can only think of two times (out of 32) this year that I completely wasted my money.

1. Urban Oxide laptop bag I only used it a few times and then started using a backpack to carry my laptop around.

2. J. Crew navy skirt I wanted a longer skirt to wear to work. It barely fit and it looked unflattering. I bought it off eBay and I can’t return.

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2015 Purchases

I finally got around to tallying up my purchases in 2015, and it is quite embarrassing, especially considering the fact that I did not work for three months in 2015. 

Top 5 Purchases:

1. Charles David heels I’m pretty sure they got me my job

Scroll down to my other entries to see a picture.

2. Forever 21 camel blazer I wear it all the time

3. Herschel Ware backpack It’s so convenient and I wear it instead of a purse on the weekend

 4. Calvin Klein taupe loafers It’s hard for me to not wear these shoes every day because they are so comfortable and professional looking.

5. Three way tie between J. Crew tassel oxfords, J. Crew toothpick jeans, and Barbour Beadnell All three worn together are my winter uniform.

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Every weekend, I try to break in my Madewell boots. I can’t wear them at work since I have to stand all day. My main gripe is having to take them off (right foot at least) when I drive because I can’t drive in heels and the ankle will stretch out too much.

Jacket: Barbour beadnell Blazer: Forever 21 (the perfect layering piece) Shirt: H&M Jeans: J. Crew toothpick Shoes: Madewell Ames boots

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2015 Recap

I’ve had an interesting year. At the end of 2014 I was fired from my job after only a few months and no where near accomplishing my life goals. In 2015 I got a full time job and moved to another city.

As for my goals within minimalism, I did a good job in some areas and a poor job in others. One of my long term goals was to do a total bedroom makeover, which I accomplished over the summer. It cost a lot of money and took a lot of cleaning.

I bought a lot of clothes this year, but in my defense, I had a bigger paycheck and a new lifestyle to account for. As a private school teacher, I can’t wear jeans every day (only Fridays). I suddenly had to leave the house in nice clothing every day. I bought loafers for school (because I wasn’t going to be comfortable wearing ballet flats all day) and by the end of the semester they looked trashed. I ran in them, got my feet stepped on, and stood all day inside and out on the yard. My clothes didn’t just get worn a lot, they also got run down.

My goal for 2016 is to look even preppier because I am a prep school teacher (well not really...). I want to add warmer tones to my wardrobe like brown and red. And, like every year, become minimalist.

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Excuse the messy room but I think my Christmas outfit is really cute.

Sweater: J. Crew Shirt: Love Tree Leggings: Hot Kiss (purchased at Ross) Shoes: J. Crew Jacket: Barbour (not pictured)

Perfect mix of J. Crew and not J. Crew, LOL.

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I finally brought my beloved Forever 21 camel blazer in for tailoring. I wore it so much these last few months that I couldn’t bear to part with it for a week. Now that it is winter break and I’m not going anywhere during Christmas, I took it to my tailor. She charged $28 to shorten the sleeves, which is more than the cost of the blazer itself. At least I know it is worth it since I wear the jacket so much. I should really find a cheaper tailor but my current one has such a great eye for fit.