OOTD: In Praise of the Outfit Repeater

Photography by Cassidy Hopkins

Alright, let's be real: who among us has NOT re-worn their favorite outfit (or outfits)? After all, if you love something, why not indulge in it more than once? That's how I feel about these striped pants and white crop top.

Maybe it's just that "The Lizzie McGuire Movie" had a huge effect on my childhood, but I've long operated under the assumption that wearing an outfit (or even a special piece) more than once is ~against the rules~.

This moment shaped my approach toward fashion more than I care to admit.

For the most part, striving to not re-wear the same outfit pushes me to be creative with my wardrobe. I love mixing and matching everything I own to create something new every day. There are, however, a number of reasons to re-wear your favorite outfit.

Sometimes, you buy a piece that only goes with one other thing in your closet. As you might imagine, these pants are a bit tricky to match with. Not only is the pattern a little daunting, but the thin fabric makes it hard to tuck a shirt into them, a trick I rely heavily upon. This shirt is one of the only things I own that works well with these pants.

I also tend to outfit repeat when I know I'm going to be seen by different people each time I wear the outfit. I wore this outfit first to work, then on a weekend outing with friends, and finally on a casual date. Each time I wore the outfit, someone was seeing it for the first time. In their eyes, I wasn't really outfit repeating.

Finally (and this is the most important argument in my case for outfit repeating), you should re-wear an outfit if and whenever you damn well please. Do you like the outfit? Yes? Great, then wear it as often as you'd like. Clothing serves a number of functions: to express ourselves, to cover our naked bodies, to signal belonging to a specific social group, etc. The most important function clothing serves is to please ourselves. If you like it, wear it. If you really like it, keep wearing it.

Someone recently told me about a coworker of theirs who, in an experiment to test peoples' awareness, wore the same outfit every day for a week. By the end of the week, they were still receiving compliments from the rest of the office, even though theoretically they'd seen the dress every day for five days. People are generally too unobservant to care that you've worn the same outfit multiple times, or even multiple days in a row. Just wear whatever makes you feel your best.

OOTD: Wardrobe Malfunction

So, a funny thing happened when I went to put on this skirt to meet my friends in Soho the other day: the pull on the zipper burst off. Most of my skirts are too big for me anyways, so I knew I'd have to use a safety pin to make this skirt fit. Instead, I had to use it to actually keep my skirt together. 

Do you see where the skirt overlaps? Yeah, that's where the safety pin is.

As I've already mentioned, I have to use safety pins on most of my skirts because I simply can't afford to replace everything I own that's too big for me. I've had to get pretty creative about wearing all the clothing I own that doesn't fit, is broken, or is stained. I rock a lot of belts, layers, and, of course, safety pins. I recently used a twist tie that came on some cotton candy to fix a necklace that'd broken in the middle of the day. 

That's all part of the Broke & Fabulous lifestyle: making it work. In addition to reselling my clothing to fund new additions to my closet, I also continue to wear things past their expiration date. I don't even try to hide it that well all the time. I used to really worry about it, but I've realized that people don't look as closely at you as you worry that they do. Even when they do, what does their opinion matter? I'm just living my best life, and using the money I would have used to replace this skirt to fund a trip or to pay off my student loans.

It's not just economical: it's also more environmentally conscious. The average American throws away dozens of pounds of textiles, including clothing, every year. This makes fashion one of the most wasteful and polluting industries in the world. Even though most of this waste and pollution comes from the textile factories themselves, individuals can do their part in not contributing to this issue by not throwing away still-usable clothing. I mean, look how cute this skirt still looks!

OOTD: Up and Down Manhattan

Welcome to my ideal Saturday: walking Luxe all over Manhattan (seriously, I walked 8.9 miles the day I took these pictures). Claire and I started off on 81st street and walked all the way down to 4th street over the course of several hours.

When you're walking around in 80+ degree heat, you have to be really strategic about what you wear. Usually, I don't wear black when it's hotter than 75F, but I made an exception for this loose-fitting dress. Pairing it with a light crop top really helped, especially since it left an opening for my torso to breathe.

If you'd met me a year ago, you'd be very confused by my shoe choice. I've owned one pair of tennis shoes in the last 7 years, and they've been too uncomfortable for me to wear for longer than a couple hours at a time. These shoes, though, aren't like that. Sure, they're a little uncomfortable, but I'm chalking it up to them still needing to be broken in. Either way, one of my roommates gave me these shoes, and I'm always willing to try anything that comes to me for free.

OOTD: Rock 'n' Roll

Pink perspex booties - high-waisted fringe jeans - black mock neck crop top - H&M black moto jacket

In case you couldn't tell by the unevenness of the fringe, I made these pants! Well, I sewed the fringe onto the bottom of a $6 pair of pants that I bought in the men's section of Goodwill. In case you haven't noticed, I love sewing black fringe onto clothing to make something basic look more interesting. It's really easy to do: the whole process took me maybe 45 minutes. You can do it with any trim: velvet, lace, pom poms, etc.

OOTD: The Cat's Meow

I must say: this is one of the trendiest outfits I've ever put together. Between the hat, the crop top, the plaid skirt, the (faux) leather jacket, and the cat tights, I'm surprised I came up with this look. I've never been able to afford to pay attention to trends (they come and go so quickly, my shopping budget doesn't allow me to keep up with what's "in"). Before I stopped shopping at fast-fashion providers, they made it easier for me to keep up with trends: that's where this jacket and skirt came from. Now, I try to get my trend fix from fast-turnaround sources like Poshmark and consignment stores. This hat was part of a POPSUGAR Must Have Box and these tights were a birthday gift from my mom, making them easy trends to justify buying into. I may not be this trendy all the time, but every now and then I can make looks like this happen with a little bit of smart spending and some help from my friends.

Depressed Cake Shop

This Saturday, I attended NAMI's Depressed Cake Shop to buy treats to benefit NAMI and to help raise awareness about mental health issues. Anyone who knows me knows I'm always down for cupcakes; especially when they're for a cause.

NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is dedicated to promoting awareness of mental health issues and providing support for those living with mental illness. They have chapters all over America, including in Seattle. This was their fourth annual Depressed Cake Shop, an event which gathers together members of the community to become more informed on mental health issues and to help raise money for the programs that NAMI puts on.

The theme of the treats was simple: gray on the outside, colorful on the inside, to show that everyone has the strength and sheer capacity inside them to make it through anything life throws their way. Personally, I thought this was a brilliant approach, as it promoted hope alongside awareness. This is a perspective that, I feel, more appropriately includes members of the population this movement is looking to help. It can be difficult to read articles and attend events that distance those with mental health disorders from the rest of the population by talking about us as our disorders instead of as people. As important as it is to know more about mental health conditions, the dialogue is so much stronger when it doesn't have to dehumanize us.

I was so impressed with how many people showed up: when Evelyn and I got there, the line wrapped around the building and was almost out the door. This made sense, considering the 800+ people who RSVP'd to the Facebook event. Even so, it was amazing seeing members of my community come together in support of mental health.

Of course, you don't have to wait in line for an hour to show your support for those with mental health disorders. Taking as little as 15 minutes to read a little bit more about mental health can do so much. Offer support to the people in your life who struggle with mental health issues: whether it's picking up groceries for them or giving a shoulder to cry on, even the motion of offering to be there for someone can do so much. Think critically about how your choices affect those with mental health disorders. This is especially important in light of the upcoming presidential election. Your vote can go a long way to provide the necessary medical, psychological, and social support so needed by so many people with mental health disorders.