some things never change
Last week, I wrote about how personal style can evolve over time. As we age, our tastes and personal style naturally shift.
A few days later, I was prepping for a fall photoshoot with Northern Virginia Magazine. I was dressed down since I did not have any client appointments. I met my 23-year-old (read: young and hip) assistant at Sak’s Fifth Avenue to scout looks, and when she saw me, her eyes immediately lit up.
“You look so hip-hop today!”
I smiled. Nothing like a compliment from a 23-year-old to make you feel young again. More than that, though, I had been feeling what she was saying all morning long. I had on a few pieces that have been go-tos over the years (decades, truth be told) and always remind me of that 18-year-old girl with multiple piercings in need of a slight attitude adjustment.
My large hoop earrings and concert tees are two of those pieces. The silver hoops I have owned since I was 18. I purchased them during a summer trip to Thailand. If my lobes permit, I will be rocking my hoops when the mood strikes me for years to come.
The Pretenders concert tee is one of an extensive collection of band t-shirts in my closet. It is a newer vintage purchase from Amalgamated in Del Ray, and I have been wearing it nonstop.
It got me thinking — we all must have certain pieces that give us a feeling of youth, vibrancy…and irreverence. No matter how old we are, we put those pieces on and– bam!–we are 15, 18, 21 again.
I asked a couple of my most stylish pals what pieces they wore when they were smelling like teen spirit that still make the cut today as moms, businesswomen and real bonafide grownups.
“Since high school I have loved band tees,” says my good friend and local style blogger Alison Gary of Wardrobe Oxygen. “I wear them now in a more ‘adult’ way that fits my current life–paired with blazers, pencil skirts and heels. They’re a good reminder of how far I’ve come since I was 16 but that I’m essentially the same girl who considered the orginial 9:30 Club her home away from home.”
My other pal Alison Santighian of DC Celine puts on denim and “gets the spirit of 1989” but for today. “Over the years, a pair of jeans has taken on different forms, but always gives me a sense of easy confidence I can take anywhere.”
For me? I am a married mom of three living in the suburbs of DC. My days are spent running and growing my business, and taking care of my family. I talk to clients every day about letting go of things that no longer work for their current lives, are dated, don’t fit, or are worn. But there is always room to keep special pieces that give us That Feeling. No part of me wishes to be in any other stage of my life except the one I am in, but that doesn’t mean I have forgotten.
Some things do change, but then some things never do.
- About the company
DC Style Factory is a personal shopping and styling service for men and women looking to add polish and individuality to their wardrobes. We believe personal style is for anyone who wants it — regardless of age, size or budget.
