A Commitment to Myself

Anyone that knows me knows that I love clothes (maybe even more than alcohol, shh, don’t tell the booze). My love of clothing runs deep. For about 5 years I worked as a personal stylist for J.Crew and still reminisce of the days of yore when I was able to make purchase upon purchase of wonderful clothing. I then moved on to a job working in a Communications/Marketing department for an extremely conservative, style-less finance company. For the past almost two years I have sunk into a world of pleated slacks (those words alone make me cringe) and ill fitting dress shirts. When I say “I have sunk” I don’t mean to say that I personally have taken to dressing like a shlub but I’m definitely surrounded by it. Truth be known, I have definitely taken the style bar and lowered it for myself. It’s hard to wear a micro floral print shirt under a bright cashmere sweater when a) people will stare at you like you’re from an alien planet and b) it’s such a waste on those that can’t appreciate. Case in point: I once wore a skinny tie to work under a cardigan and an executive asked me if I had an interview for a new job later. Haters be hatin’. This isn’t to say that I’ve let my free time wardrobe drop to depths of despair, but the times they are a changing.

While I find it hard to muster up the courage and desire to put my styling smarts to use at a place where no one will give it the time of day, I’ve also been thinking lately that, since I spend the majority of my life at this place, shouldn’t I feel good while doing it? And for me feeling good means looking good.

So, this my friends is a declaration, a public commitment to myself that I will from here forward, not let my dress be defined by the lack luster lugs that surround me but hold myself to a higher standard. I will not use only the black, blue and gray pinstripe shirt section, but the vast array of colored and print shirts that make up my closet. I will wear that bright flame v neck sweater that’s been collecting dust. And I will allow my tie collection to proclaim their purpose from beneath my beard.

This I promise.