Outfit of the Month: My New Experiment

Okay, time for some honesty. On the weekdays, I wake up exactly an hour before I have to be at work. Usually my morning routine includes a shower, blow drying my hair, throwing some clothes on, making tea in my Keurig while making Mike's lunch [You think I'm lame for doing that? It makes him smile so much and he appreciates it, so I'm happy to do it.], and running out the door. I don't spend time on makeup, I don't spend time matching the perfect outfit, and I usually just wear what's comfortable and warm [In the winter, my office is like 60 degrees and in the summer, my office is like...60 degrees. Not to mention, at least a few times a week in any season of the year, I'm teaching golf, so I'm in all golf attire.  Even for "Skirtember" half of my outfits were golf outfits!]. 

Yes, I'm basically a train wreck when it comes to "fashion" and being put together.

Here's the deal: I don't spend money on "real" clothes.  I think it stems back to being the same height I am now [5' 0"] since 5th grade.  I never really had to buy clothes because I wasn't growing out of any.  Now, on the other side of things, I have the most awesome golf wardrobe. I have tons of plaid pants, polos and sweaters in every color of the rainbow, and at least 15 pairs of golf shoes [In comparison, for real life clothes, I have like 5 pairs of Uggs, a pair of navy flats, a pair of black flats, some black leather boots, and tons of flip flops.]. Now, the reason I bring up the golf wardrobe is because for men, this wardrobe would be so fantastic and acceptable for everyday life. Mike had something crazy like 80 golf polos.  He wears one to his office job, out to dinner, to the grocery store, and even just around the house. He always looks great and always looks dressed appropriately. Me, on the other hand? I wear my typical golf outfit of a polo and golf pants out on a date, and I look so out of place!

Left is my "regular clothes" closet [with about a third of that being formal dresses] and both closets on the right are for my golf clothes: outerwear and polos

Now here's where I'm going with this. Every year for Christmas, I ask my parents for clothes. Usually I'll buy them online and have them shipped to their house. Well, this Christmas, I got two great shirts. I love how they look, feel, and especially the confidence I feel when I wear them. I never really thought about clothes before, but now I see how great they can make me feel.  I've decided to make a change; each month I'm going to go out and buy one whole outfit. I'm really bad at spending money on clothes, so I hope to keep each month's purchases around $50 or $60. I want to buy pieces that I can mix and match as well as wear in different settings [obviously other than on the golf course]. I plan to shop at Target, Old Navy, maybe American Eagle or Forever 21 [don't judge me, I said I was going to buy new clothes, but completely change my style].

My goal is that I'll gradually begin to care more about what I wear as well as feel more confident in my own skin.  I want to get out of the mid 2000s and look more like a 25 year old soon-to-be newlywed.

Wow, that was a long rant.  So, here is my first outfit.

Dress: Xhilaration Junior's Textured Knit Dress [Ugh, that's embarrassing! There isn't a "junior's" section in Target, so I swear, I was shopping in the women's section!!]

Cardigan: Merona long sleeve crew-neck

Flats: Madeline Ballet Flat in coral

Belt: Already owned, but this Mossimo belt is very similar

Earrings: Dangle in gold and coral

Necklace: Already owned - everyone has a gold necklace, right?

Here's the outfit on me.  I wore it a couple of weekends back to our wedding tasting, and I loved it!

#pale

So, there you have it!  Any tips or suggestions for future months?  As you can tell, I need all the help I can get!