the beauty of blogs

This dress is my namesake dress from when I was ModCloth's Blogger of the Moment about a year ago! It's been hanging in my closet for quite a while because it's very much a spring/summer dress. I've worn it in some pretty girly ways in the past, since as a floral minidress it lends itself well to such styling, but lately I've been really inspired by tomboy style and more casual looks. I've always been very much a tomboy and always dressed like it as a kid and teen, but in a way that was not at all stylish (sweatpants and baggy t-shirts? yuck). I've been looking at a lot of more menswear inspired, casual, tomboy-esque styles and feeling like incorporating that style into my own wardrobe, which is a bit difficult because my closet is full of feminine dresses. I'm actually thinking of selling a lot of my wardrobe so I can do a proverbial style facelift/makeover.

I think one thing that I've been concerned about in the past is that that my body type doesn't lend itself well to tomboy-type styling. Usually when I see more masculine styles done really successfully, it's on a girl who is very tall, quite slender, and almost has a boyish body (so it would make sense that a "tomboy" style would suit her well). I, on the other hand, am 5'1" and have curves. My hip measurement is well over 10 inches bigger than my waist measurement, I have thighs, and an ass. Dresses with a nipped-in waist lend themselves quite nicely to my body type, which is why it's so easy to fall into wearing vintage dresses. They just fit me well. Don't get me wrong, I love me some vintage dresses, but I don't feel like wearing dresses and being feminine everyday. I'm excited to try new styles though. I got stuck in this rut of what was easiest to wear and stopped trying new and different things. Well, take that, old-stuck-in-ruts-self, I'm trying new things! First it was the Maxi skirt/dress, which I thought wouldn't look good on my short self, but no! I love it! Now, on to more new and different styles!

namesake dress/courtesy of modcloth :: denim top/thrifted :: jacket/empyre

tights/target :: necklace/handmade :: shoes/keds :: shades/vintage

Someone who I think does both feminine and tomboy styles really well is Julie from Orchid Grey, and I love her because I feel like we have similar body types (though she's a bit taller than me). I know I say this a lot, but the diversity in body types is one of my absolute favorite things about blogging. There are girls who are 5'9" and super slender, girls who are 5'7" and full figured, 5'1" and super tiny, 5'2" and curvy... and so on! And they all have amazing style! I was reading a post on The Sartorialist from last month where he called a girl "curvy" and people got super upset about it because they thought he was saying she was heavy or fat or something, when in reality he was just commenting on her body shape and how it complimented the way she dressed. I think it's very interesting how people get stuck on words like, "curvy" and think it means one thing. Lately "curvy" seems to have become another synonym for "plus size" or "heavy," which I think does a disservice to that word by limiting its definition to one body type. For example, I would 100% describe myself as curvy, even though I'm pretty sure no one would ever say that I was overweight or plus size. I don't believe that curves have anything to do with weight, it has to do with how a body is constructed, and even with how a woman carries herself. I personally think "curvy" is one of the most flattering ways to describe a woman's body and having curves makes me feel incredibly sexy. At the same time, there are women who have very androgynous body types that are incredibly sexy as well. It's crazy how many different body types are out there (basically an infinite amount!) and yet there are beautiful women with each type of body! I think that's mind blowing.

Okay, wow, I totally digressed from what I was talking about before, haha! What are your guys' thoughts on the subject? I know it's a subject (weight/body image in the fashion industry and in America in general) that sparks a lot of strong emotions and oftentimes knee-jerk reactions, but I think it's nice that blogs are a place where a conversation about it can occur.