I
set a little Fashion Challenge last week, to wear something new or
refashioned every day for work. It was a four-day week, so it couldn't
be so hard, right?
Tuesday
it was my Ultra Violet shirt, Wednesday the green blazer, Thursday the
navy sweater, and so all was well, right up until Friday. Friday, I had
big plans to wear a cute casual outfit featuring my new burgundy velvet
sock boots.
If you have been keeping up with my long-winded years-in-review, you know that both sock boots and velvet boots
have been ruling the footwear roost for a while now. I craved a pair of
velvet sock boots over a year ago, yet by early this fall, the closest I
had come was a suede sock boot (still never worn). Getting desperate, I
searched Google Shopping for the term, and finally found a slick
burgundy pair just under my maximum price at Forever 21.
I
was fairly surprised when the entire month of December afforded me zero
opportunities to wear this classically Christmas-colored shoe, so for
the new year, I resolved to get it out of its box and onto my foot as
soon as possible.
Cut to Friday,
the day I'd selected to finally wear these boots! I won't bore you with
the details of what I originally chose to wear with them, because I
didn't wear it. When I got to the office, I realized my wardrobe was
malfunctioning in a major way!* Although it wasn't the too-revealing
type of wardrobe malfunction, I looked unkempt and completely below my
standards. I was annoyed with myself and sad, for a minute, until I
realized that this misfortune was the perfect opportunity for me to
showcase my Backup Stash.
Backup Stash? You ask. What's that? Well, let me tell you!
Years
ago, I started keeping extra clothes at the office in a side drawer of
my desk. At first, it was basically just workout clothes, back when I
used to sometimes visit the gym after work. Over time, I realized it
might be helpful to keep an extra pair of socks and underwear. Maybe a
sweater, in case I get cold. A blazer, in case I have an unexpected
meeting. Flat shoes, for unplanned across-campus walks. Etc. Etc. Over
the years, I have completely filled that drawer with clothes and shoes
that might come in handy in an emergency situation. They are usually
things that I have retired from everyday wear, so they tend to fit
poorly or be out of style, but better that than walking around all day
with a huge stain on your pants, right?
The backup stash saved the day for my Fall Florals post a year ago, but I've never before worn garments from the stash so prominently as I did on Friday. What a momentous day!
I
was already wearing leggings, so it made sense to wear a dress—I keep a
black-and-white sheath dress in the stash. The dress has no sleeves, so
I topped it off with the blazer from the stash. A little too large, a
little wrinkly, but still better than my original outfit!
I
deliberately limit my stash to mostly black items so they'll look OK
with almost anything else I might be wearing, and it paid off for this
outfit. My burgundy velvet sock boots didn't look out of place at all,
in spite of being worn with clothes that were completely unplanned!
Fashion Challenge, complete!
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