As I was standing in front of the mirror feeling a bit bummed about the unflattering denim I had gotten my hopes up about, I found myself wishing that the sweatshirt was more versatile so I could justify buying it. But here's the thing: I wasn't at a loss for occasions I would be able to wear it. Actually I was thinking that this would be perfect for hanging out with friends on the weekend, a section of my wardrobe that is severely lacking. The problem I was getting hung up on was that I would only be able to wear it casually. It is not a piece that can be dressed up for a day at the office or dinner at a nice restaurant and as a result I was ready to skip it.
The problem with the versatility trap is that it leaves holes in your wardrobe, especially on the far ends of the spectrum. We don't expect our fancy party dresses to pull double or triple duty so why should we expect all of our casual clothes to? When I was working in retail, I found it hard to justify buying anything that I wouldn't be able to wear to work. This meant that I bought a ton of business casual clothes and I found ways to incorporate those pieces into my more casual social life. It also meant that I wore cardigans and blazers pretty much 24/7. As much as I love layering pieces, there are a lot of times when a cardigan isn't really appropriate, like a friend's birthday party at a bar or a concert where people are inevitably going to spill their drinks on you. For the past few months I have been trying to put my finger on why I am dissatisfied with my casual wardrobe and in the Levi's fitting room I had an epiphany--I didn't really have a casual wardrobe. Many of my casual outfits consisted of work tops paired with denim. |
The motto of this blog is "love what you wear everyday." Somewhere along the way I got distracted from that. Luckily I had a pile of coupons burning a hole in my pocket so I got the sweatshirt from Levi's and another one (in a floral print) from LOFT. I might only get to wear them on the weekends, but that's okay. Not everything in your wardrobe has to be versatile as long as everything has a purpose.