What do you call one of these?
a button-down shirt ... a button-up shirt ... or a button-front shirt?
Whatever you call it, it can be somewhat uncomfortable to wear. If it fits across my back, it will more than likely be too big everywhere else and it'll hang on me like a great big bag -- not the most fashionable look. If it fits me nicely on the sides, then chances are that it will be uncomfortably tight around my shoulders, arms, and back.
However, it's supposed to be a wardrobe staple, so I thought that I'd try wearing it a little differently from how I normally do and see if the IFF (it feels funny) factor would improve. Maybe I'll even end up looking so awesome that I won't notice how uncomfortable I really was.
shirt -- Notations Clothing Co. (thrifted)
jeggings -- 17/21 exclusive denim (Marshalls)
shoes -- Thom McKan (Kmart)
So here I am wearing a button down with a pair of jeggings and a belt over the top of the shirt (ignore the fact that the belt is twisted -- why oh why don't I notice these things during the photo shoot, and not after?!). Normally, I would have tucked the shirt into my pants, my belt would have been threaded through the loops in my pants, and I would have spent the entire day obsessing over the way my shirt was puffing and ballooning and pulling out of my pants.
I think this is an improvement over the tucked-in look. The shirt was still rather uncomfortably tight under my arms and across my back, but I didn't have to deal with a puffy shirt all day.
My earrings were a gift from my daughter -- she got them at the Fair Trade store in town.
And now, horrors! I was patting myself on the back yesterday because I didn't think that I looked like a stereotypical science nerd. I even chided Larry and Al for fitting those stereotypes, remember? Look at what both of them are wearing?!
and now look at what I'm wearing!
Yikes! Maybe I fit the stereotype after all?!
Seriously speaking, I always thought that paying attention to your clothes and make-up and your hair was for "girly-girls" -- girls who were shallow and materialistic
and who were the proverbial "dumb blondes".
and who were the proverbial "dumb blondes".
I am coming very late to this whole idea that when you look good, you feel good about yourself and that is the image that you will project. I was always clean and presentable, but I didn't dress in a way that made people look at me and see someone who was strong, self-assured, and confident. I dressed and styled myself to make myself as invisible as possible.
This is a whole new experience for me, and I'm learning that playing around with the way I dress and the way I do my hair is not only fun but that it's also helping me feel better about me.
The trick I find for a button down (that is what I call them) Is buy a fitted one.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise they can seem to boxy and fit weird.
I like the untucked, belted look here
Brett
I don't care if they're supposed to be a wardrobe staple, I don't like button downs. I have a broad back and broad shoulders and they never fit right there or across my chest. Which is not big, so I blame the clothes and not myself.
ReplyDeleteI do, however, very much like how you've styled your button down (and no one can see the belt is twisted, trust me). I'm not saying it'll make me run out and buy one, but I can appreciate it when they are done well.
I'm glad you're no longer dressing for invisibility - you're lovely and deserve to be seen.
@silvergirl -- do you buy a particular brand? I have tried different brands and have the same result.
ReplyDelete@Gracey -- thanks! I have the same problem -- I probably don't look it, but I have the typical Scandinavian build, with broad shoulders and a broad back (and very little in the front, although menopause is changing that part of my body too -- the one thing that I do like about menopause :-)).
I'm starting to think that I wear my button downs too big...as I don't have these problems. I'm late to the game myself...because I was too busy to care for so many years and like you, I ACTIVELY tried to keep a low profile.
ReplyDelete