Sunday, 5 July 2015

Sign Your Name

Well, I need to start with an apology for my long absence. I struggle with winter. A lot. The cold weather and grey skies seem to sap all my enthusiasm and creativity and I spend my time dreaming of summer and wishing I could hibernate. I will attempt to fight the urge to spend the next two months wrapped in a blanket in front of the TV, because I actually feel really excited and happy about my winter clothes this year.

Do you have a colour that you wear as part of most of your outfits? Along with the idea of uniforms, I have also been fascinated by the concept of a "signature colour". Angie at YouLookFab often mentions her love of bright, sour colours. Deborah at Stylish Murmurs corners the market in black and Janice at The Vivienne Files uses the idea of a signature colour in many of her capsules. My own approach has always been a bit haphazard, but planning and building a winter wardrobe has allowed me to step back a bit and realise that I love to incorporate a bit of tan into my outfits. I like the muted richness that the shade brings to the mostly neutral outfits that I wear. I love the way it plays with navy, my new favourite dark neutral base. And I enjoy the way it allows me to repeat my hair colour in my outfit.
                                                        Knit:Uniqlo
                                                        Top:ScanlonTheodore
                                                        Pants:Country Road (with Uniqlo leggings underneath!)
                                                        Boots:Wittner
                                                        Bag:Oroton
I bought this top at the beginning of winter, and have only just managed to get a picture. It is definitely a straight style, which I have mostly avoided in other tops as they feel too masculine. Surprisingly, I have found that I really enjoy the slightly boyish look this top imparts when I wear it with bottoms that have more volume. Paired with slouchy pants or an A-line skirt, the straightness of the top is offset by the curviness at the bottom, so it still feels playful and feminine. Isn't it interesting how often things come back to proportions, and how we feel in our clothes?

                                         
The bag was a birthday gift from my husband about 5 years ago, and I still love it and carry it every day. It is the perfect shade of tan. I also have a belt and a scarf in the same shade. I'm not sure if I can commit to one colour as my signature, but if I decide that I will, I think tan will be it!

 Do you have a signature colour? How did you arrive at it?

Sign Your Name by Terence Trent D'Arby

9 comments:

  1. First of all, welcome back! I was just beginning to get a tad worried, so glad that all is ok ( not to minimize the winter doldrums). As I reflect on my wardrobe, I have a A LOT of black...despite my love of bright colors! The most frequent color I have in clothing is a turqoise blue..it tends to be pretty popular here in the Southwest and I think it works well with my Silver jewlery. As I rebuild my wardrobe, I am purposelly trying to stay away from black. After the lastyear of surgeries and treatments, it just makes me sad. I want my clothes to feel more "celebratory" I guess. Maybe the word you use is more appropriate- " playful"? Perhaps this will be a passing phase...
    Glad to have you back :)

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    1. Thanks, Vickie. Turquoise is a beautiful colour and looks lovely with silver. I think it is good to wear things that make you feel happy - sometimes I will get changed if I feel like an outfit is not quite doing it for me!

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  2. I just wrote a comment that seems to have disappeared when I clicked 'publish.' Sorry if a duplicate shows up.

    I was excited to see your post! I hope your winter is over soon (which means my summer will be over! Summer in my part of Arizona is brutal, and I mostly hide inside my house with the blinds drawn until the sun goes down or I rush from the air conditioning of my car to the air conditioning inside buildings) and you can get back to easier seasons.

    I do not have a signature color, but I seem to be wearing more and more purple. Purple is my sister's favorite color; I was never opposed to wearing it, but I mostly let her have it. I'd wear green or red or any shade of blue or even yellow (my sister refuses to wear yellow b/c she thinks it makes her look ill), but purple was always underrepresented in my closet rainbow. Now that I am flat, I notice more and more purple creeping into my wardrobe. I suspect it is because I am currently choosing by fit instead of by color. But why are so many of the cute tops purple? I guess I wear purple now, but my sister still refuses to wear yellow.

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    1. No duplicates! I am envious of your heat, but I will probably moan once it gets very hot again here. It sounds like you may have ended up with a signature colour by default! :)

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    2. Yesterday I was thrift shopping while on vacation, and I realized I had chosen a purple shirt from the rack. I looked down and saw I was WEARING a purple shirt. I laughed and put the shirt back on the rack. I will resist the purple!

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  3. Hello Sharon, I'm interested in featuring your blog on another blog written for cancer survivors. Could I email you about this? I would enjoy being able to introduce your experiences and kind practical advice to a slightly wider audience. If you might be interested, email me at: amy.j.hawkins at gmail dot com.

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  4. Hi Amy, thanks for your interest. I will email you today.

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  5. I am 5 days post bilateral mastectomy, no reconstruction. I have devoured your blog and fashion tips and as a result, feel excited about dressing for a 'flat' future. Thank you for your inspiration.

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    1. I am so glad you have found this helpful! Best wishes for ongoing healing and health, and I hope you find lots of gorgeous things when you feel well enough to choose clothes for your new body.

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