Almost a month ago, I shared a post talking about my style and how I want to rediscover it. It has been a fun month of looking at what is out there and checking in with myself to see how I feel about it. I have found a lot of fun things to look at so far, and I am focusing on wearing what I already have and adding a few essential pieces to my closet. It’s been kinda easy to wear a little bit of everything because we’re in this super confusing time when the weather does not know what it wants to do in Texas. It was literally 100+ a month ago, has since dipped down into the 30s, and is now lingering around the 80s. This yo-yo effect is doing nothing for my allergies and sinuses but my closet sure is getting a workout.
After sharing the post, I started to look for some items I knew I needed and wanted to add to my closet for the upcoming cooler months. That list included:
non-fitted jeans
a necklace I can wear every day with pretty much anything
a set of bracelets I can wear almost every day
a pair of small gold hoops
black ballet flats
sweaters and tops for the fall/winter
specifically, a black sweater that’s not heavy that I could wear year-round if I wanted to
a couple of cozy, comfortable options that I can wear at home or to school drop-off
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If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen my dilemma with Old Navy’s jeans. In short, I am 2 inches taller than your average American woman, and for whatever reason Old Navy insists on making their inseams the length that’s on the high end of what is considered average by industry standards. After finally finding that loose jeans work best with my thicker calves, I ended up finding a short inseam of theirs that works really well for me. They are the High-Waisted Wow Loose Jeans and I think they will be a great option for the season.
I haven’t actually worn them yet because I don’t like how they look on my legs. And it’s not that I don’t like the jeans. I’m just not used to seeing my legs in jeans so it’s taking some getting used to. I figured out that I haven’t worn a pair of jeans since possibly early 2022 because I was in my third trimester last fall and early winter and then I know I absolutely did not wear jeans when I was immediately postpartum. So it’s taking some getting used to and I just need to wear them out and about and get over it. I’ll be okay once I get a wear in, but right now I find myself gravitating towards black pants and leggings which makes sense considering that has been the bulk of my pants options for the past year and a half.
Speaking of black pants, after almost 2 weeks of Instagram ads I ended up buying a pair of black pants also from Old Navy. I went with this little flared option which is a nice alternative to all of the tapered pants I have from pre-COVID times. I’ve already worn these because they seemed more my speed and a nice middle ground from leggings to getting into the jeans.
I also found a couple of tops from Old Navy that I ended up liking that totally fit the vibe of my original mood board. The first is this long-sleeve striped tee that makes me think of France, which may be really cliche but I’m here for it. I’ve worn it with the black pants and I loved the look and it was super comfortable. I also hit a home run with this mock neck striped sweater. I haven’t had a chance to wear it yet but this sweater + jeans + black ballet flats + small gold hoops is my ideal fall/winter look. It’s a bit of a heavier weight so I’m saving it for a colder day.
I’ve struck out on a bunch of items though. I had visions of cute white button-downs with jeans and ballet flats, a long lightweight overcoat, a black silk skirt, and long-sleeved maxi dresses. So far none of these items have made their way into my closet, but I’m not giving up on them. I need to find different places to buy them from because Old Navy was not giving me what I needed as all of the items were waaaaaay oversized. And sizing down didn’t seem to fix the issue of there being too much fabric.
Meanwhile, I moved on to a more comfortable area for me to play around in - accessories. One thing I have been wanting for a while is a necklace I can wear every day with anything - casual, dressed up, athleisure, whatever. Something that can help pull me together a bit better for Zoom calls or just add an elevated look when I go out for a quick errand. I love the Clemence necklace from dorsey that things.i.bought.and.liked features but I’m not looking to spend $240 right now. Maybe I’ll put it on my Christmas or birthday wishlist but it’s a bit more than I’m willing to put into a necklace at this exact moment. So I found this dupe on Amazon for less than $30 that I think is a great alternative to try out the style and see how/if I end up wearing it every day before really committing.
I also got this pair of small gold hoops from Amazon in the 20mm size. I’m usually a stud girl and have been wearing more hoops but they’ve either been huggies or more of the 40mm size and I wanted something in between. I think these will be great to wear this season with dresses, sweaters, etc.
Lastly, I have been shopping my closet. It’s been fun getting to wear some of the things I bought last year but didn’t end up wearing much or at all because I was either just about to have a baby or had just had a baby. One of those items has been my J. Crew Factory Blackwatch “nap dress”. I liked my nap dress from Hill House Home, but there were a lot of things I didn’t love about it either, and couldn’t justify the new $150 price tag for a dress I only liked. Last winter I bought the J. Crew Factory version of their nap dress in Blackwatch for the holidays and I ended up liking the bodice, pockets, and price tag a lot more. It is also perfectly breastfeeding-friendly as I style mine with a black cardigan over the top. If they come out with this dress again this year, I highly recommend it! It’s perfect for chasing around kids, and I somewhat feel like a little Christmas doll when I wear it but in a good way.
I have also still been wearing my polka-dotted silk midi skirt from Amazon with this short-sleeved black tee, a dress from J. Crew Factory, my favorite J. Crew Factory leggings that I bought for immediate postpartum life, and athleisurewear.
I feel like I’m making progress and taking more care to dress myself lately and it’s been a nice form of self-care.
’s post about this topic recently really resonated with me and I encourage you to give it a read if you’re in a similar place, though she is much better at putting cute outfits together and has such a great eye for style. That’s the update for now! Thanks for following along and please feel free to drop any recommendations or thoughts in the comments!xoxo, Kate