My masters degree has been consuming most of my time. I haven't even felt like writing or doing much in the way of creative things.
But! I wanted to write about something today: wardrobe posts and why you should do them.
The first question to ask yourself is what is your relationship with egl fashion? How frequently do you wear the fashion? Are you more interested in wearing it or collecting it?
If you are more of a collector, this is of course a good reason to document your wardrobe. To me this point is enough, no more convincing should be required as cataloguing is an important part of collecting.
If you use egl primarily as a conduit for socializing, even then it's a good idea. It could show that you care about adding to the community. It could be a good conversation starter. It could help you build relationships with others, for example, by opening up new opportunities to twin.
What about how frequently you wear the fashion? Maybe you barely wear it at all and nothing has changed in the past year. Maybe it's a good chance to pull everything out and appreciate everything you have. Lolita clothes don't lose value over time, looking upon your collection (even if it's small) should bring you happiness (during the duller winter months for northern hemisphere lolitas and for southern hemisphere lolitas during a time when it might be too hot to wear lolita). If it doesn't bring you happiness, that is an important message to listen to!
If you wear egl very frequently, consider the wardrobe post as an appreciation post to your clothes. "Thank you for being so wonderful, we had a great time this year!" (sorry if this sounds silly, but being thankful is important, it is good for your mental health) It would also give you a chance to re-evaluate where you are at (e.g. gaps in your wardrobe? a changing style?) and see which items you didn't wear too often that might need more love (either from you or from someone new 😉).
Should the size of your wardrobe have an effect on whether or not you're going to do a post?
I'm going to say no. And I think that the smaller your wardrobe is, the less of an effect size should have in the decision to make a wardrobe post. I have seen people say that they don't think they should do a wardrobe post because they only have very few items.
But you should make a post anyway! It's not a significant investment to document only a few items. The benefit is that you will be able to see your progress over the years. It should be about yourself and your collection, not showing off to other people. Don't feel discouraged! Maybe you think you will remember everything you had, this is only anecdotal evidence, but I definitely don't remember my small collection I had at first. I think if I had done wardrobe posts I could be filled with so much nostalgia looking at them right now.
If your wardrobe is very large, I can understand not wanting to do a wardrobe post because if the wardrobe is quite large, then it can be unmanageable to do the post.
I have some thoughts on this:
- Cataloging your items is a good way to check their condition. Are there any items that need repairs or maintenance?
- It is good chance to go through everything you have and ask yourself if you should let go of any items.
- It gives you an opportunity to reorganize your closet.
So regardless of size, consider doing a wardrobe post.
Maybe you do not want to do the post because you feel like you will be showing off to people? This is a personal thing, of course. I can only speak from my perspective that I've never considered wardrobe posts to be boasting. For me, it is about appreciating the collection that someone has curated. A lot of thought can go into an egl wardrobe. Gathering pieces to create coordinates, multiple coordinates per dress or items that can work with many different dresses. You can get a taste of that person's style. A peak into their internal world, perhaps. And when you reflect back on your past posts, it could remind you of that year of your life in the fashion.
The last thing to address:
"January is already over, it's too late!" No! It's never too late! Make the wardrobe post anyway. I don't care if it's March or April! 😊 If you are a person concerned with getting a lot of "views", then it could even be beneficial to post later because you won't be competing with everybody else.
Those are all my arguments for why you should make a wardrobe post! I hope I convinced you to create one this year because I really love seeing people post their wardrobe! (The selfish ulterior motive has been exposed!!)
NOTE: I interchangeably used the term egl and lolita because I want to include people that do other fashions that fall within egl.
Very well written, I agree with everything you said. For me, even though doing a wardrobe post is a lot of work, inevitably I'm grateful for having gone to the effort. It helps me plan coords without having to physically look inside my wardrobe and cupboards. It helps me keep track of where things are from (it's sad how often we forget what something is called or who made it, the creators deserve credit and recognition for their work instead of being lumped as 'Taobao', for example, as it often happens). And I always enjoy looking through other people's wardrobe posts, particularly when they've gone to the effort of showcasing everything. I love seeing what blouses and socks, and accessories people have. Just seeing the main pieces is still better than nothing, but seeing someone's builder pieces really lets you into their style.
ReplyDeleteYes! Keeping track of names and brands is a great point.
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