owning your style - part 2

today i'm continuing the discussion on owning your own style and if you are even slightly interested in the subject you are in for a real treat today.  today vix from vintage vixen is sharing her thoughts on the subject with us.  i adore vix and admire her commitment to thrift and how that commitment actually makes her life and style richer.  i must have read her blog for about a month before i made my first comment b/c our styles are so different.  i wasn't sure what she'd think of me but in true vix style, she was as gracious as could be.  in this huge blog sea of sameness vix stands out like a shining psychedelic star.   her authenticity overwhelms me with each and every post she writes.

so before you read what she has to say, let me tell you a little bit about her.  vix makes her living selling vintage clothes on ebay.  she makes it look easy, but i know from experience it is a lot of hard work.  she and jon love travelling to the beaches of india often w/o any advance reservations at all.  they really are free spirits.  they save all year long, carry no debt (not even a mortgage) in order to follow their travel passions and to attend music festivals all summer long.  a penny saved is a penny toward the beach!  she makes clothing out of vintage drapery and drapes out of vintage clothing.  i'm not kidding!  plus she is a vegetarian.  i'm very honored to call her my friend and very grateful to her for taking the time to answer my question.  vix you are awesome!

so vix, what are your tips on owning your style?

I've been pondering on this all weekend (with a break for booze and shopping, obviously)! 

Where do I start? To own your style you'll have to find it first. For me this came about by ditching buying retail completely and only shopping second-hand. Buying from fashion stores limits your choice to what the buyers consider fashionable (the same shaped pants and skirts, in-season colours or "it" prints)  whereas charity (thrift) shops are a hotch-potch of absolutely everything and you just have to learn to trust your eye and instinct. After six months of limiting yourself to thrift shopping you'll soon get a taste of what you're attracted to.

Regularly cull your wardrobe (closet) and give away/donate/sell anything that doesn't make you feel fabulous, if you have to ask others whether something suits you then it needs to go.

My trademark style includes statement pieces of ethnic jewellery, aged denim & vintage leather or suede and bright colours and loud prints. Including just one of these elements to any outfit means that everything I wear always looks and feels like me. 

Never allow an item of clothing to "wear" you, own it by adding tried and trusted pieces so that the real you shines through.  A necklace fiercely haggled over in an Indian village, a 20-year old denim waistcoat roughly patched together, a tote bag hand-made from a curtain salvaged from a relative's rag bag or a top remade from your boyfriend's old band tee shirt add personality, substance and texture to any outfit I dress in.

thank you dear vix for sharing your thoughts.  besides being so fabulous, you make me think and rethink just about everything i do.  

pop over and say hi wouldya?

vintage vixen

xo
janet