The Effort in Being Effortless (related: Favorite SF Brands)

my Cuyana tote

Now that it's spring and the weather has been nicer, it seems like there's a lot more to do (which is not new to me, apparently). This month I've had two weekend camping trips, a jazz show, a drag show, birthday parties, wine country, and friends visiting in town. I've been outdoors as much as possible when not stuck behind a computer screen. 

One small way I find simplicity in busy times is to rely on a more streamlined style that fits wherever I go. After all, wardrobe style is part of lifestyle. And I've adapted a style over the first decade or so of adulthood that I really rely on. 

For me, part of 'growing up' was developing my own style (in professional settings, this would be referred to as 'creating your brand and image'). In grammar school and high school I wore a uniform, so my classmates and I would express creativity, or not, with accessories. I was very excited to build out an everyday wardrobe once I hit college and over a few years amassed so. many. clothes. It didn't help that I came of age along with fast fashion, so it was almost too easy to play around with different styles and trends and you know, really "find myself". (insert winking emoji here) Even friends would remark that I had an eclectic style and would even say "that's totally an Ingrid type of [whatever item]" when we were out shopping.

In the last few years, once I hit the later 20's, I started to pare things down a bit and stick to more of the same looks, if not a strict uniform. This also came about with lifestyle changes - new cities, jobs, activities. I wanted to focus less on the activity of shopping and instead on buying higher quality pieces and feel more like my grown-up self.

Luckily this train of thought came along the time that minimalism and capsule wardrobes also became more mainstream. (I don't know about anyone else, but after reading a ton of blogs I feel like I should be able to develop the perfect minimal capsule wardrobe, even if I don't want to.) I've still had some hits and misses, but overall I see my wardrobe becoming more streamlined. Even now I know I have more items in my closet than I truly "need". But my truth is that I still want the choices to play around with style a bit, while of course still looking and feeling "effortless".

There's the sophisticated, gamine, French-girl image of being "effortless". And there's the "groomed" kind of effortless - I know women who admit they straighten their hair and put on makeup so they're perceived as professional, or hardworking, or whatever. Then there's the stereotypical Silicon Valley "effortless" of hoodie, jeans and backpack. (Now despite the Bay Area being known more technological innovations there are some great companies catering to the more fashionably-inclined part of the population, which I'll get to in a bit.) I knew I had to come up with what kind of "effortless" style I wanted for myself. 

As much as I enjoy fashion, what l appreciate most are clothes and accessories that let me live my life, not get in the way of it. Therefore, my aesthetic has evolved in line with trying to simplify a fairly busy schedule that is probably familiar to other 30-year-old urban professionals: commuting to the office, figuring out after-work plans, packing in as much as possible on the weekends and of course, making exciting travel plans, preferably with friends. For all of this I want clothes with forgiving cuts (I just love a draped sweater or blouse), colors and prints that go together, and versatile basics that stand up to everyday wear. Also on my list of demands: clothes that don't make me feel guilty for adding to the human rights and environmental problems that fast fashion has fostered. Luckily, besides checking out some good consignment shops in the Bay Area, I've found some companies that answer this call with the clothes they manufacture. And I've realized that quite a few of my wardrobe staples come from them. Over the last few years I've become a loyal fan of these local brands:

• Everlane - The first of the local brands that I tried, I appreciated Everlane's 'luxury without the markup' and 'transparent supply chain' strategies. I started with their t-shirt, then bought a couple silk tops for <$100, and most recently their wallet. Here's a referral link if you want to try them out: https://www.everlane.com/r/y2nkha
• Cuyana - They first caught my eye with their lean closet movement and fewer, better motto. They also provide the story of where they source their materials. I was doing periodic closet purges and bringing bags of my unused items to Community Thrift. I first purchased a bag from them, not for myself but for my mom (who now has two, go figure). Finally this past Christmas my gift to myself was one of their classic tote bags (above) which I use nearly every day. I'm also interested in some of their clothing items for when I need to replace some wardrobe items.
• Amour Vert - I love the variety of cuts and prints by Amour Vert. They have a couple shops in the Bay Area and are distributed by some department stores. Over the last couple years I've collected silk/cotton mixed media tees, cotton tees, a silk pineapple-print tank, and silk printed pants.
• Betabrand - Dress pant yoga pants! (I wear the cropped version which hits my ankles) They  really are a dressy-enough material to not get called out as leggings, and they really are very comfortable. This is a fun company that crowdsources designs and makes most of their stuff right in SF. Again, a referral link: https://www.betabrand.com/referrals/landing/friend/?r=70dH (they also have student discounts)

These brands have gotten press elsewhere so they don't need me to sing their praises, nor do I wear them exclusively, but I did want to call them out since I was happy to find them close to home. Everyone has different brands they like and not everyone even cares so much about what's in their closet. I still care what my wardrobe is made up of, but in a different way than I did when I was an excited college student. Below is some more reading on this topic, I'd be interested if anyone else has more suggestions.

Ethical Shopping on Refinery 29
Local Fashion Labels on SFist

Life (& Links) Lately

good advice, Mission district

I've had a bunch of ideas and unfinished drafts for posts that hopefully I'll get to soon. It's hard to believe summer is 'over' though in SF terms we are still drawing it out. This past weekend I was at Ocean Beach for a few glorious hours with friends (& their friends) coming and going. It was one of those serendipitous times when everyone is actually free at the same time and willing to meet in the same spot.


Links I've Been Reading:
Claire Mazur's My Beauty Uniform interview on Cup of Jo - I really love the Of a Kind newsletter by Claire and her business partner Erica, and I'd be lying by omission if I didn't say I admire Claire's curly hair.

a reflection on clothing purchases on The Billfold - recently I donated another (small) bag of clothes that mostly came from the "I haven't worn this in a while but maybe I still want it" pile. Luckily they weren't items I purchased in the past year.

Good news came today in that my alma mater made a gesture in support of Cosby's victims and women everywhere. This is the first time Fordham has taken back an honorary degree. Sometimes there is a little bit of justice in the world.

Elle's interview of Judith Light - I finally got around to checking out Transparent and love her in it, so I googled what was up with her.

[updated] This interview of travel writer Kelly Lack after I came across her instagram and heard about the new app Spot.

I also finished Mindy Kaling's Why Not Me? in less than a week (that's really quick for me these days) while commuting and waiting for a table at a trendy brunch place. I definitely want to write more about that - and some friends and I decided we should finally just create a book club and make that our first book. Coming up soon are a family visit, some concerts, and some friends' weddings. Finally, I have just a few weeks left of my 20s. I always consider my birthday my own personal 'new year' and, helped along with back-to-school season I guess, usually around this time of year I try to recharge and consider how far I've come (pretty far), and what else there is to accomplish (quite a lot).

Summer Style

Over the last couple years my wardrobe purchases have slanted toward neutral/minimalist/basic (it just makes it so much easier to get dressed in the morning!) but that doesn't mean I've completely ruled out the fun and bright pieces. Here are some of the items I've bought in recent months to round out my summer wardrobe, aka what I throw on when I'm headed to the park, to brunch, to the stadium, the beach, the woods, the bar, etc. 

Except for my Birkenstocks, my sandals from previous years are pretty worn and I need more comfortable options. I found the above brightly patterned cloth espadrilles on the clearance rack at Anthropologie and they have been so fun to wear around; they are actually padded which I find rare in espadrilles and they feel like I'm walking around in slippers. They're a jolt of brightness to otherwise neutral outfits. The sandals below are a Nordstrom Rack discovery, and the silk pineapple-print top was a sample sale find from Amour Vert, a local sustainable (& beautiful) clothing line. I also bought printed silk pants at that sample sale though sadly I haven't taken any photos with them; you'll have to trust me when I say they go nicely with a plain top and sandals.

And here are some of the more neutral pieces making up my wardrobe, aside from the usual jeans and t-shirts:

Not-so-impulsive Buys

For the past couple years, I've been paring down the contents of my closet, donating all the things I just don't wear anymore, and usually buying only classic basic elements to round out my wardrobe. A few things factored into this endeavor: I started a new job (w/quite a commute) and wanted to make getting dressed easy despite not being a morning person; I moved across the country, got married, and began sharing an apartment (& closet!) with my husband; and I just didn't want to keep adding to the fast fashion industry. It's not like shopping ever put me in debt, but the Pareto principle definitely applied to my wardrobe, so I also realized I didn't need to spend money on additional items beyond the kinds I wear most often. I had started viewing shopping as more of a hobby and not a necessity, and there are other things I'd rather spend my free time on.

I've been trying to practice a little more simplicity and minimalism rather than impulsively buying the trendy stuff at fast fashion spots. I am definitely inspired by sustainable brands (like Amour Vert's awesome basics) but also I can be more 'sustainable' by refraining from buying cheap things made to fall apart. I keep a running list of items I want/need on an app on my phone and a Pinterest board of wardrobe workhorses. These mechanisms remind me to consider my purchases in the full context of my closet, and choose things I can wear for a long time. 

I am still a design-loving consumer for sure. I'll flip through magazines and check out Remodelista and WhoWhatWear and random blogs. (Brooklyn Nine-Nine had a nerdy joke about going to a museum to see an exhibit of a chair, and my husband & I burst out laughing because we both knew I'd totally do that.) I've just tried to be more mindful of my personal style versus fashion trends... I'm no "minimalist pixie dream girl" but I can read about trendy items and still feel alright wearing an old sweater and simple jewelry out in public.

I've noticed, over the last couple of years, that I make fewer impulse buys and I'm pretty happy about that (so is my closet). But this winter I tried putting myself on an outright shopping fast for two months and almost got through it. For over a month I didn't even go into a store. However, I would still browse e-commerce sites, basically for sport, fully aware I wasn't going to put anything in the shopping cart.

At the end of March, just four days shy of hitting my two-month mark, I ordered a pair of shoes. This week, I ordered another. Both pairs (suede d'orsay flats, and black ankle boots) are ones I've wanted for a year or so (I have older versions of each), and they could match nearly every outfit I wear. I ordered them now because I found out the exact ones I've wanted were on sale via some fashion blogs, and they were still available in my size. I thought I might feel guilty for not making it the full two months, but then I realized these weren't impulse buys per se and I'm glad I could pull the trigger on items that my closet has been waiting for.