My Shopping Checklist
If you read my recent post about My Mindset Towards Fashion, then you know that how I go about shopping for clothes and other fashion items has evolved over the years.
At this point in my life, I like to refer to the life stage that I’m in as “building mode”. What I mean when I say I’m in building mode is that I am currently building my dream life. I’m building and creating my dream career, my dream home, and in this case my dream wardrobe. Everything I want in life is currently under construction as I am doing the work to get to that dream stage of my life. This will take years of hard work, but it gets me excited and motivated to think about how far I’ve already come on this journey.
When it comes to fashion, I am building to create my dream wardrobe. My dream wardrobe consists of a closet full of items that make me feel my best. These items fit me just right and everything makes me feel like a million dollars. I would love to get to a place where I don’t have to shop as much because I have my capsule wardrobe with everything I need. I don’t want to need to go shopping but I want to want to go shopping every once in a while to treat myself.
Even though I have a long way to go, I wanted to share with you the checklist that I use when shopping to build my dream wardrobe.
Alicia’s Shopping Checklist
First and foremost, I value quality. I’ve reached a state of mind that I value quality over quantity in my wardrobe. I want to rewear pieces in my wardrobe over and over again. When shopping I often ask myself, will this piece stand the test of time? What kind of fabric or materials are used? How is it made? These are all things I take into account when considering a purchase. Valuing quality may also mean only being able to afford one or two pieces to stay within your shopping budget instead of purchasing multiple at a time. At first it may not feel like you’re making a huge difference in leveling up your wardrobe, but remember building a dream wardrobe takes time.
The next thing that I look for when shopping is tailoring. When trying on an item I ask myself, how does this make me look? Does it work with my body shape? Is it the right size? Does it need to be taken in? When purchasing a quality product, the structure and tailoring of a piece is often done to perfection. However, there are many times that I have purchased something and have been so-so about the tailoring. I’ve purchased pieces that were too big or didn’t fit my body shape, but I kept them because I didn’t want to go through the trouble of making a return. I started to ask myself, if an item doesn’t fit me right then why am I spending money on it? Why am I “investing” in a piece with no return? Now when shopping (even online), I will make sure I have the right size and that it fits me perfectly, otherwise, I will simply not purchase the item altogether.
Something I never thought about when purchasing clothes is color. I love color! Even though I've been wearing mostly neutrals lately, I have really come to appreciate color in my wardrobe. However, I’ve recently realized how important it is to get the right colors. I am currently in the process of recognizing what colors look best with my skin tone. There have been many times I’ve worn certain colors and have looked completely washed out versus other colors that make me look amazing. Understanding the colors that make you look your best is a great way to build a wardrobe. Stick to the colors that make you shine and purchase less of the colors that make you look dull. This doesn’t mean you can never wear the colors that “don’t work for you”, this just means you may have to style them differently.
This rule of mine ties in with the previous three rules. That rule is: purchasing clothes that make me feel like a million dollars. This is so important to me because again, why am I purchasing an item that doesn’t make me feel my best? It’s so funny because this is such a simple concept, but this is something I often look over because of multiple reasons. Along with not wanting to make a return, there have been times where I settle because the size or color I want is sold out or I feel like I don’t have another option. The thing is, over time, do I want to collect items that make me feel so-so? I realized if I keep settling with my clothing purchases then I will end up feeling like I have nothing to wear, which in turn, will lead to more shopping in the future. Now when I shop, I only buy items that make me feel like my absolute best self.
The last thing I consider when shopping is whether I see myself wearing an item for seasons to come or if it’s just a trend. I often ask myself, does this really help me build my wardrobe? Does this fill a gap that I have in my wardrobe or is this something I just want now? I never want to be bored of a piece a year down the line. I want to incorporate new pieces that build a long-lasting wardrobe. It is important to me to have pieces that I love genuinely for me and not for any other reason. With some more trendy items, I tend to wait until the trend dies down and if I still want it months (sometimes a year later), then I will go ahead and buy it for myself.
I hope this checklist helps you with your shopping endeavors. I would love to expand upon some of these tips in future posts. Please feel free to DM me your thoughts on Instagram and let me know what you think. I encourage you to take a moment and think about what is important to you when it comes to fashion and what your dream wardrobe looks like. There are some things that may be more important to you that aren’t listed or that may be different than what I’m currently focusing on. Whatever your fashion sense or style is, I hope this inspires you to build your dream wardrobe over the years to come.