When I was 31… (or, the birth of a stylephile)
Being in my 30′s (shhh, don’t tell) has brought some cool bonuses along with it. My stages of life have varied wildly: I was a nerdy kid, awkward tween, rebellious wildchild turned hippie teen, and was left in my 20′s very confused and insecure in my own style. In fact, looking back I can see that I didn’t really have a style to speak of…. unless you call being unsure, erratic and wearing comfy clothes waaaay too often a style. No bueno!
I’d always heard that women really settle into themselves in their 30′s, and hoped it would be true for me as well. Now, I’m sure that there’s more to do with it besides numbers – hell, I don’t feel 31 and I certainly don’t act it. To me, age is just a number. And numbers aside, I’ve had some freaking amazing life defining moments in the last couple of years that I credit with helping me find my inner voice – a la this bloggity blog…. a la marriage… a la career satisfaction and direction, et cetera. Indeed, planning our wedding was the ultimate exercise in defining our style, and I think it reflected us perfectly: funky, bold, eclectic, whimsical, and vibrant!
So in my 30′s, I am learning to follow my own compass and not only embrace my colorful, eclectic personality, but really let it sing to the world as well. Know where this is going? SHOPPING, YO!
Starting with these so-hot-they’re-just-plain-SICK retro-y beauties from Sika
Effffffff, I lurve them SO much! (curse you, I mean, thank you Miss Poodle, for introducing me to these!)
Or these tribally influenced flouncey frocks from Zachary’s Smile, which also stocks the dopest vintage gear I’ve found…
source
You may remember my open letter to Kate Spade? Well, yeah. That’s my style, too. My problem? PRICE. This broke-ass has expensive taste, son! So I’ve been learning to stalk vintage shops and sample sales, keeping an ear to the proverbial ground of where to source the most “me” duds on the cheaps. Y’know…. ’tills I hits the jackpots 
The trick is patience. So far, I’ve found a handful of amazing dresses that I keep in rotation and try to care for with love. Investing in (or finding steals on) good quality dresses is a great alternative to what I call “fleeting frocks” from Forever 21 or H&M. They’re affordable, but rarely last much more than a season because the quality is just not there. Another great resource is invitation-only sales such as Rue La La, Ideeli, and Gilt Groupe – to name a few.
How did you find your style, and where do you shop for it? How are you incorporating your personal style into your wedding plans?
"unless you call being unsure, erratic and wearing comfy clothes waaaay too often a style"
if we did, then stacy and clinton would not have a show! lol.
i'm starting to settle into my own style, and gotten more comfy in dresses and skirts – though not on an everyday basis. there are some things you can't take from this girl and her jeans and nikes are one of them!
that said, i plan on having a pair of nike mary janes as my back up shoes. long live the sneaker!
Love your comment about Forever 21. I've always referred to them as "disposable fashion." They're designed to be chic in the moment and are priced and constructed to wear for a month or two, tops. Not to bash the store, because I've been known to spend my bucks there, but those clothes don't hold up AT ALL.
Absolute love. The Sika dresses remind me of the fabrics I bought when I lived in East Africa and tried to have made into dresses. (That was a disappointing experience in how to turn something beautiful into something ugly. Sigh.)
hello! we need to hit the shops together. these are beauties.
i'm totally with you on the fleeting frocks from forever21 and h&m thing. i'm always looking for new and AFFORDABLE places to shop that carry unique pieces that will actually last (as opposed to our fleeting frock friends). if you ever get a chance in a future post or wherever, i'd love to hear your favorite places to shop in LA (i live in LA too!)
Dana, you have GREAT style. I can relate to the "searching" part of the 20s, and I guess in some ways I still am searching, but I do know I love simple, natural and comfortable–in home style as well as personal style. As far as settling into oneself in one's thirties, I consider myself a bit of a 'late bloomer', but I do find as I get older, I am becoming more of myself, if that makes sense. Thanks for this interesting post!
Its really sad that as a "Grandma", I still haven't found my style. I'm 56 and still looking for it! Thanks for sharing.
Having just turned 30 not so long ago, I loved this post! Gorgeous style!… (even if I do sneak into Forever 21 from time to time
)
情趣,情趣用品,巴黎,
G點,按摩棒,
轉珠按摩棒,變頻跳蛋,
跳蛋,無線跳蛋,
飛機杯,男用強精長軟質套,
男用強精短軟質套,充氣娃娃,
男性性感內褲,性感內褲,
自慰套,自慰套,
情趣娃娃,自慰器,
電動自慰器,充氣娃娃器,
角色扮演,角色扮演服,
性感睡衣,情趣睡衣,
性感內衣褲,性感內衣,
內衣,性感內褲,
C字褲,內褲,
性感貓裝,性感睡衣,
貓裝,吊帶襪,
情趣內褲,丁字褲,
SM道具,SM,
震動環,潤滑液,
情趣禮物,情趣玩具,
威而柔,精油,
逼真按摩棒,數位按摩棒,
Can I say I love Sika? Goshhh I want everything one of their dresses!!
男女,潤滑液,
SM,情趣內衣,內衣,性感內衣,角色扮演,角色扮演服,吊帶襪,丁字褲,情趣用品,情趣用品,飛機杯,自慰套
自慰套,自慰器,情趣,自慰套,情趣,視訊交友,充氣娃娃,性感丁字褲,AV,按摩棒,電動按摩棒,情趣按摩棒,
按摩棒,變頻跳蛋,跳蛋,無線跳蛋,G點,
Dana~
The other day I stumbled upon a blog from a new yorker, called "cheapjap"
http://cheapjap.com/
Her motto is "Shop Cheap. Look Loaded." She had mentioned Zachary's Smile at one point, noting it's ridiculous prices….I think you'd enjoy the blog!!