I recently had an impromptu chat with a woman at a coffee shop about a fashion inspiration experience she had. She described the power of a style vision board she created and how it totally changed her outlook on what she could and couldn’t wear.
She told me that she never ever thought she could “pull-off” a zippered, rock-star-amazing leather jacket. But when she looked at her fashion inspiration board on Pinterest she had dozens of them pinned. She really loved these jackets and the stylish look they inspired.
Seeing all these leather jacket pictures was just the encouragement she needed to search out an inexpensive version of the jacket and give it a go.
And then, she inspired me to write this post.
“What if every woman tried a stylish new piece just because it made her happy? We’d have such an inspired community of women.”
So here I am, encouraging you to take a small leap and find your own personal fashion inspiration. A style that feels awesome to you. This fashion inspiration may not be a current trend or get you further ahead in your job, but it will inspire you, put a smile on your face, make you feel like you.
If you’re not sure what your very own fashion inspiration looks like, follow these few steps and you’ll the clarification you’re looking for. I’ll be holding your hand the whole way.
Create your style vision board
You can do this virtually on Pinterest or tangibly with magazines.
With Pinterest:
– sign-up for this amazing website
– add a style pinboard to your profile
With Magazines:
– you need a cross section of at least 3 magazines: one high-fashion magazine (like Vogue), one lifestyle (like Real Simple), and one country specific (like Elle Canada)
– you also need a glue stick, scissors, and a poster-size Bristol board
Pull or pin fashion inspiration
Open your mind and go with your gut here! This is not the time to be thinking “Would I wear that?” If you like it use it, it may give you incredible insight later.
Your fashion inspirations can come from an entire outfit or a single piece. Make notes on Pinterest or cut around what you like with magazine pulls so you’re left with only the really good stuff.
This could take 30 minutes, or it could take hours… whatever suits you best.
Just make sure that you don’t get too wrapped up in this step, because the next one is a goodie!
Make note of the patterns you see
This may be the most important step! Make a list of 5 patterns you see after you’ve completed your board. The patterns could be general, like “bright colours”, or they could be specific, like “gray suede booties”. What you see as a pattern doesn’t really matter, it’s the specific list of stylish things you like that really counts here.
Choose one fashion inspiration to try
Now that you have the list it’s time to choose one item on that list to try! Create a reasonable budget for this item, so you don’t feel guilty if you only wear it once. (This is about expanding horizons so you need room to make mistakes!) Head to 3 stores max to find this fun piece so you don’t feel too overwhelmed. Buy one that you find and like best.
Wear it!
Make a commitment to yourself that you will actually wear the item you purchase within a week. Rip the tags off, spend some time designing an outfit, and wear it for a day. Check in with yourself at the end of the day to see how it felt and if you’d like to wear it again.
Have you had an awesome fashion inspiration experience? Please share it with us in the comments below so other can be inspired by, and learn from, you.
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