#02 What I Wore: creative integrity, why I don't moodboard, black outfits & the postpartum jeans 276 women bought.

A weekly diary of my clothes, thoughts, recs and challenges...

Apologies this is (super) late. I underestimated how long it takes to link everything and also childcare fell through so it all goes out the window. On the plus side, there will be another paid newsletter this week along with a free one!

I truly ate my own words last Friday. I made a rather silly statement about not caring about staying up all night, as long as I get to write. Ha. I mean, sure, I was on a high from receiving so many encouraging messages about putting a paywall up but I. Was. Tired. But I still am and it feels as though that is a constant for now. But I am proud to say that rather than rot in my own exhaustion, I got dressed and carried on. When I got dressed, I didn’t fuss about. I didn’t bother styling. The thought crossed my mind then it left. I added only the bare minimum to my outfit last Friday, and to most of my outfits this week. I still considered what I wanted to wear and how I wanted to feel but truth be told, I looked more like the before rather than the after on styling videos. Doing less when getting dressed does feel freeing. Rebellious even. It goes against every stylist’s and fashion maven’s rule when comparing “wearing VS styling”. Though, a lot of the time I do prefer the wearing.

I’m still getting use to my son’s school schedule and all the homework and emotions and small talk in the playground that goes with it. I pretty much ran out the door this morning as it’s my husband’s day to do drop-off. I did feel guilty. I’m not sure why exactly. This is what we planned and I had made and packed my five-year-old’s lunch and laid out his uniform. As well as measured the baby’s formula and mashed some banana and avocado to ensure he did not miss out on his solids. Today, I wanted to wear a shirt and jeans layered over my grey skims bodysuit but it is too hot for that. So, I wore the black pants I always wear, the Matteau nineties crop I always wear, the A.Emery thongs I always wear but instead of the statement gold earrings I usually wear, I went for the Gucci stud earrings my husband surprised me with for Christmas a few years ago. I just didn’t feel like wearing big earrings and I haven’t felt like wearing them all week. Which is very off-brand for me. This brings me to my first longwinded thought about how moodboarding is not only wildly time-consuming but it can also feel restricting…

Below the paywall you will find:

• Why I don’t mood-board– what we miss out on and what I do/would do if I was starting over?

• A few rather plain (all black!) outfits.

• Creative integrity – My thought process when offered paid partnerships that pay well but do not align.

• Jeans I’m eyeing off and the pair I lived in postpartum.