Defining my wardrobe: to begin the fashion challenge I had to throughly clean out my closet and put into suitcases the clothes I would not be wearing. I did not include in this challenge things like pajamas of course. I did however limit myself to only 1 winter coat instead of the 3 I normally wear. As I began to put away mostly the printed items that are difficult to style I started to think about the clothes I feel most comfortable in and typically wear. I decided I would be leaving out 2 black trousers, 1 pair of pinstriped pants, 1 pair of grey pants, 2 pairs of different style jeans and 4 large crewneck sweatshirts. I also left out 2 skirts, a simple black dress, 3 pairs of sports leggings and 3 t-shirts, 2 black sweaters, 1 grey sweaters, 1 white sweater, 1 light blue sweater, 3 jackets (1 leather, 1 athletic, 1 canvas), I also left 2 simple silk and 2 cotton shirt for warmer days and a turtleneck. What I found by doing this is that I left out clothes I already wear most of the time anyway. As I sorted through my clothes I decided I would be giving away some of the things I have not worn in a while. I took a large bag of clothes to the nearby thrift store Beacons Closet.
The constraints: I went into this project scared because of the limitations. I was not wrong to assume so. Because of the unpredictable weather it was difficult to work with what I had clothing-wise. I also felt somewhat frustrated and insecure that people thought I was wearing the same thing everyday. Because of this during the week I resorted to mostly sweatpants and gym clothes. Having that as a backup option was helpful for class options. I also found that my leather jacket was the most useful item in making my outfits look different and trying to put together new looks. What helped was that I had a variety of shoes and accessories to pick from when going out for dinner with friends or something. However, even tho I was able to accessorize and make the most of what I had, this was extremely difficult for me.
Testimonial from my friend Matthew DePalo:
“I was so surprised to see Sofie pull off the Minimalist Fashion Challenge! I would not have expected her to do this and definitely noticed a shift in her lifestyle. Sofie wore sweatpants to class much more often which was a departure from her style and also placed an emphasis on the versatility and durability of the clothing she selected to keep. She kept a lot of grey, black and white and definitely ran into trouble putting together outfits but made it through.”
Reflection: this challenge made me very grateful for having clothing of higher quality as I believe if I had only fast fashion items to pick from they would have been physically impossible to wear by the end of the challenge. I learned a lot about my personal style and the things I gravitate towards in fashion. This challenge made me think about how much stuff I have and how I do not necessarily need all those clothes that I previously thought I “could not live without”. While I was often frustrated with these limitations the versatility of the clothing items I selected allowed for some room to explore new outfits. This challenge definitely made me think about what is important in clothes and as a future designer this was an important lesson as it taught me what clothing items are essentials and how a simple black turtleneck and leather jacket can go a very long way. My style inspirations for this challenge were Pheobe Philo and Hamish Bowles, two powerful individuals in the fashion industry who found what looks good on them and stick to it.
Inspiration:
Process Photos:
