The Wardrobe Clinic: Chaos

adulthood

As you read this, I am probably being hooked up to some pain killers and anaesthetic. So whilst I drift off, here is some light background into WHY I'm doing what I'm doing and an unflattering selfie for good measure!

Loving yourself is a personal matter, its deeply routed within our persona's as women to strive to be the best version of ourselves, to constantly improve and reinvent ourselves. Our bodies and looks come under fire every day, whilst simultaneously being told to "Love yourself the way you are". Something has gotta give.

I do love myself, and I don't all at the same time.

I do because I'm independent, fiercely protective over my friends and family, Honest, ambitious, the right height for most Children's clothes, and above all my ability to just dust myself off and keep on trucking is quiet frankly fucking impressive. I mean you throw as much shit at me as you like and I just move on. Unless I can't move on, in which case you'll find me obsessively cleaning my bedroom. I also rarely back down when I know I'm right, I don't compromise on what I know is right, what I feel is right, my beliefs or my morals. And I believe my relentless attitude has gotten me this far and also into a lot of trouble, but never mind that!

I don't just "love myself" the way I am because - I am a perfectionist. And that in itself comes with a whole heap of insecurities to deal with, with dreams and standards to meet. I never liked my butt and I've spent the past few years squatting and lunging and gym'ing like you wouldn't believe. (Butt is now pert and lovely, is that vain to say? Oh well, we're damned if we hate something because we shouldn't and were damned if we saw we love

Something because we're self obsessed) I've worked out many a stress in the gym, but my face, can't change without a little cosmetic intervention.

No one is perfect, but I strive to be comfortable in my own skin. I am most of the way there, and I believe if you can change something, do it. I don't want to reach 50, still unhappy wondering what my life would have been like if I took this risk, neither should you.

What ifs are painful and irrelevant. Take the jump, at least you can say you attempted it.

There is no tragic bullying story here. Just self improvement and what's wrong with that?

Motto; do what is right for you. Living someone else's life or dream is a recipe for disaster.

TWC x

2015

Giving up acrylics. A step too far?

08:00:00

Giving up unnecessary little luxuries which suck up my money. Part 1. Acrylic nails

I've been subjecting my nails to acrylics for as long as I could remember. On an off since I was about 15 and religiously since I was about 18 (7 years) with very few breaks. The longest I've gone is two weeks without and that was a few years ago.

Every year I tell myself, this year I will give them up, I will learn to love my own nails, I will let them grow and nourish them as if they were a small child. Every year that just seems like too much effort, and I liked the head space of sitting in a nail salon for an hour having my hands cared for after a week or two of frantic typing and setting the world straight.

However the cost bothered me, I don't smoke so I saw this as my vice, my addiction, cheaper than smoking. Around £30 a month on average which is £360 a year. And I wanted to save that, I desperately want to move out of mothers house, it's not like I don't love being at home because let's face it, it's a bit brilliant. Hungry? Ask Mum, Bought a new delicate top and two scared to wash it? Ask Mum. I just need my own little flat (and it will be fricking tiny in London) to make mine and to have as my little palace to spill things on the carpet and have to rearrange furniture to cover it up, to have people come round for dinner and drink all night instead. To lay on the sofa all day on a Sunday in my underwear because I spilt something on my pjs and can't bear dirtying another set before I lay in the tub for two hours and slink into bed having thoroughly wasted a Sunday before work in the morning.

So here I am 30 days into my cold turkey no false nails commitment. I hate it, really and truly, with all of my 5ft 3 body I hate it. Every time I have a spare hour I think, I could have them back, I want them back and I deserve them back. My cuticles are a mess, the skins peeling around the sides, I can't open a diet coke, I can't undo shoe laces, using my iPhone is a different kind of hell, typing is a nightmare, I can't open a diet coke, it's the diet coke thing I can't handle mostly.

Every time I meet someone new in a meeting for work my entire aura screams "DONT LOOK AT MY HANDS, THEY'RE HIDEOUS AND I'M SORRY YOU HAVE TO WITNESS THIS".

They are hideous, I wont lie when I say, after having them taken off I was ashamed, and in total disbelief of how much damage I have actually caused. I knew I was in for some damage but even now, 30 Days in, I would guess that I have another month or so of growing them out before I see any form of improvement. They're sore, sensitive and short and they bend (both ways, ick,).

But at this moment I can't have them back (I'll come back to this) so I think that's what makes it worse. When you can't do something you want it more.

On my quest to save money, I think I will just have to suck this one up and know that I'm spending £360 a year on my nails and despite that being utterly ridiculous on my budget I can't be without them. I am not me without them. So as soon as I can I will be putting them back on.

The Experiment (as i'm calling it, but it's more like Testing-TWCs-Patience) will be held for the longest period of time, the aim is 6 weeks then I will be skipping into my nail salon for a full set of nails and a pedicure. I gave up false lashes, nails is just one step too far into minimalism for me.

One bit of advice, if you're thinking of taking up Acrylic Nails, PLEASE DON'T. Please try and look after your own nails, grow them and after time they will become lovely/amazing, people like me will look at those perfect talons with envy. Strive for that envy.

TWC X

2015

Organisation, The Key To Spending Less?

08:30:00

This month, I aim to be more organised in all aspects of my life, I’m going to explore if being disorganised causes me to spend more. An I aim to be ruthless, being ruthless is something I’m no stranger to, but when it comes to being ruthless with what I own and stopping myself spending, that is another mission entirely. This is my reasoning:

I’ve often wondered, if keeping everything organised, and accessible, is the key to spending less. When everything feels organised and you can see and find everything you need instantly, you are constantly, subconsciously, keeping check of everything you own.

When things are chaos, you can’t find anything, so do you buy more because you either forget you own it, or simply can’t find it?

My room is currently a work in progress. I am renovating and moving things around and slowly getting rid of things I no longer have use for, or simply just don’t want. I almost feel like this in-between stage is the hardest. You are in limbo of one area being streamlined and clean, whilst another looks like my washing basket exploded.

I am purposefully waiting as long as possible to do any washing, so I am forced to wear everything I own. That washing basket chaos is my own fault, but I can now see how not being able to find anything tricks you into thinking you don’t have anything.

We live in a fast paced society, we are expected to grow up fast, we demand fast from our technology, we demand a fast paced career pushing ourselves to the brink, so when we cant’ find something “fast” are we assuming that we need to go out and get it? Are we being programmed to consume more and more?

I’ve said it before, space in London is limited, it’s almost impossible to put a price on space, although the estate agents will charge you upwards of 250pw for a small room, in a house. We are told that shopping is “Retail Therapy” to cram our tiny spaces full of the latest and greatest.

There are a few tricks to ensure we don’t cram our spaces full of things we don’t really need.

Organisational Tips

X Get into the habit of putting things back after you’ve used them. This makes tidying up quicker and things are less likely to build up.

X Regular clear outs, okay so everything has its space, but suddenly that space is becoming cluttered, work out what you no longer need, put it into storage, sell it, or donate it to charity.

X For all important documents, go digital. Download and store manuals on an external hardrive, scan in all receipts when necessary and go paperless for bank and credit card statements, you’ll be amazed at how much clearer everything becomes once it’s available at the click of a button.

Steps to accepting chaos (when chaos is inevitable).

X Work out how long you’ll be in Chaos for, write a plan for being out of the house, visit friends, the gym. Chaos is generally manageable in small doses.

X If you can, don’t sleep in chaos. We need a clear space to get a full nights rest, the more chaos we’re surrounded by, the less we sleep, the less patience we have resulting in that retail therapy trip you’ve been avoiding.

Clean mind, clean space, fuller wallet?

Mission for May, Consume less, appreciate more, slow down. Review will be up at the end of the month.

X TWC

2015

It cost how much?

09:00:00

I can honestly say that sometimes I amaze myself with the hard earned money I am willing to part with for a bag, pair of shoes, or sometimes even an item of clothing.

It’s true, we can all fall victim to a label, brand or marketing campaign (check out my post on Marketing Campaigns here).

I have come up with 3 simple steps to stick to when something beyond your wage catches your eye:

1. Can you ask for it as a present? – This is important, do you have a Birthday or is Christmas on the horizon? If so is this something you could ask your parents / other family members to chip in for? If not, try this simple step – How many nights out can it buy? Would you rather enjoy being social or give up that time with your friends for said expensive object? If not WALK AWAY.

2. As yourself if you REALLY want it – Or is it in a prime place on a magazine page and you think, mmm, that’ll sound nice when I say I own it e.g. “Yeah, I just teamed my Victoria Beckham tote with a simple black dress for the interview” Put it back, the person you’ve just said that to is thinking you’re an Idiot. Conclusion: WALK AWAY. (P.S I really want a VB tote, but alas, I cannot have one)(P.P.S I Once wore my Alexander McQueen scarf on a night out with a £7.99 Jersey dress from H&M just for the comments)

3. Would you save and wait for it? – If so, make a note, and start saving! If not, it’s an impulse purchase and you should… WALK AWAY.

These steps work if something is worth £50 or £500. If you’re on a budget and genuinely saving money every penny counts, so unless you really need it put it down, accept you can’t have it right now and walk away.

Easiest way to acceptance? Try thinking about this:

It’s okay to not have everything you want. If we had everything we wanted we would not be driven to succeed and the world would just stop. Knowing that you earned something through saving for it, or using a bonus to purchase something you really want or to be a bit closer to whatever your life’s “Dream” is (like owning house) is far more rewarding than impulse purchases, and the credit card debt that comes with them isn’t a bundle of joy either.

It takes a long time to reach the realisation of what you spend, often you realise what you've gotten yourself into when you can no longer keep up the rat race of credit card payments.

3 Deep Breaths, you can resist temptation.

My life has been run by my wardrobe for as long as I can remember. It is now time to take charge.

TWC X

2015

Marketing Campaigns. Friend or Foe?

07:00:00

As far as saving goes, I'm still a rookie. So, I decided part of my "Stuffocation" process was to find out WHY I own so much stuff, some of it is down marketing. So here is my current plan to quit the habit of falling for marketing campaigns.

Did you know, approximately 80% of celebrities, (Could be higher) and popular personalities get sent certain high profile brands to flaunt on their arms sent to them or loaned to them from PR Agencies. To make you want to buy a piece of the shiny new bag pie.

I’ll let you into a little secret, part of my degree was marketing. That’s right, I learned how to trick people into buying stuff. Yet I am sometimes no wiser to steering clear.

We all want that perfectly flawless skin, or those fitted jeans that will transform you into a leggy blonde model… no?

The advertising world is full of exaggerated truths.

1. You are perfectly perfect just the way you are. No amount of expensive jeans is going to increase your self-worth.

2. Unfortunately, a subscription to Photoshop isn’t included in the price of the foundation (nor is it needed)

Ways in which you’re targeted by a marketing campaign.

Emotion.

Whether it’s Fear, Value or Trendsetting we are all emotionally motivated to make purchases. We fear not having the latest and the newest will see us being left out by our peers, we’re motivated if we feel we’re getting Value for our money and nothing makes you feel better than be ahead of the crowd and feeling like an “insider”

Wording.

“Free Postage” – Oh yes, down with paying the postman to bring me my goods…

How many times have you spent an extra £10 to save £3 on postage? … Are you really getting a deal?

5 of the most powerful marketing words are:

SAVE, RESULTS, LOVE, HEALTH, GUARANTEE

A foundation can never SAVE you or give you LOVE, it can never GUARANTEE the best RESULTS (everyone's skin is different) for everyone and stressing about if it can is not good for your HEALTH.

Availability

Ever get texts from online brands? Click through the link and suddenly a day or two later there’s a new pair of shoes arriving? By making yourself constantly available and allowing companies to text you mean you can purchase on the go, during your lunch break, journey to or from work and in a split second, without knowing if you really want the item.

My Steps:

My mission is to become more aware of campaigns alerting me to things I genuinely need, a new oven for example, and when a campaign is playing on my insecurities.

I often skip the first few pages of fashion magazines because they’re full of adds, full of things I can’t afford. My new goal is to also skip out on the reading the marketing emails. As someone who has grown up with Marketing emails and written a few, I am much more likely to purchase through an email than I am through seeing an advert in a magazine.

How often do you purchase something because you aspire to be like the person in the campaign? Does E-Mail and text marketing annoy you?

TWC X