Think Less, Uniform More

Hi,

Welcome to my world. This is my first blog post and I’m excited to connect with you.  Why am I blogging? I have asked myself this question a lot! I have several reasons. The most obvious answer for anyone who knows me is that I was born a “Chatty Cathy” or perhaps a “Babbling Brooke” is more fitting. I love nothing more than sharing stories and things I’ve learned with my friends, family and now you!  I love to talk.. always have AND I love an audience. I’m simply schmoozy.

I’ve been very fortunate to have had so many experiences in my seventeen year fashion career and I want to share them with you! I learned some big lessons along the way and have stories that even I sometimes cannot believe are real. How I got to have this incredible fashion career makes no sense on some level and is also 100% clear in the rear view mirror. Life.

I’m originally from Washington DC, a city not best known for it’s fashion sense. I think I thought navy was a “bright” color as a child. I went to an all girls school in Bethesda, Maryland called Holton-Arms. We were required to wear a uniform.  For ten years of my life I was either in a plaid jumper or kilt with corresponding white button down or white polo shirt. There was a “no jewelry” policy outside of demure stud earrings and our shoes were either Bass Weejuns or white sneakers. I secretly miss my Weejuns! Some of you out there are now nodding yes, this makes a lot of sense.

Here is the truth. I loved wearing a uniform all those years. I loved not having to think about my outfit and focusing on school, friends and everything I was passionate about like theater, dance, tennis and yes, chorus (alto in case you’re wondering). I also liked how the confines of my uniform forced me to be creative with the little bit I could be creative with. How do you think I got so good at blow drying my hair? The truth is I've been accessorizing since I came out of the womb. Heavy lip gloss and stickers put on my earlobes were signatures of my look from ages 2-6. The point is I've always found a way to work with what's been made available.

So why am I waxing nostalgic over my uniform days? I think I learned a good lesson. As an adult finding and experimenting with fashion and style since college and then in my 20’s and 30’s, I’ve been in search of my uniform; that “go to “outfit that when I put it on, I don’t have to think and I feel like me every time. I am relentlessly testing and trying clothing with the goal of knowing what works for me. I’ve finally gotten to a place where I can eyeball a blazer or dress with a certain fit and flare silhouette and know in my gut it will work on me. It is a beautiful thing to know what you look good in and to use this as a baseline for everything. I am human and anyone who knows me knows I could talk about the trends for hours. You will come to find that calling the trends early is one of my favorite pastimes. As a trend lover, I often can’t resist hoping a hot trend will work for me even when I know better. I’ve tried dozens of times to make printed midi length ruffle dresses work on me- three seasons worth to be exact- guess what? They look horrific on me. I don't know where the dress ends and I begin. I simply don't feel like myself. And even though printed ruffles sadly “wear me”,  I still love them- just on someone else. I look better in simpler more tailored clothing. Period. I tend to just feel more like myself that way. Don’t get me wrong, I have never met an embellished anything I didn’t like and I have a deep passion for jewelry (especially the costume variety). For me jewelry is my accessory exclamation point- a differentiator. What's yours?

Through a great deal of trial and error I’ve created some go-to uniforms for myself as an adult . Life is busy and we all need a few seasonal "old faithfuls" we can count on. Ever stood in front of your mirror planning an outfit that takes you from 7 am to a dinner that ends at 10 pm and you need to look professional, appropriate, confident and then sexy by dinner? ..I could go on..? We've all been there and sometimes the look we imagined just doesn't feel great the morning of. Uniforms help you minimize that panicked morning scramble.

I am a proud repeat wearer, in fact I feel good about investing in pieces you’ll see me in weekly. I don’t like thinking of my wardrobe as disposable even when buying fun pieces that don’t break the bank. I hope I can help you find your uniform. Here is one of my spring weekend uniforms.

xox

Brooke

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