Why I'm moving beyond aesthetics and dressing for joy

Hi guys! Welcome back to the blog!! It has been a while since I've written an actual blog post. But, to be honest, I feel like I needed some time to creatively re-charge to really create posts that have meaning to me. It's so easy to just create for the purpose of it. But creating with meaning means being in-tune with myself and creating with intention and purpose. So, here I am back with a blog post!! And this one is a really interesting topic in my opinion.

Image Credit: Pinterest

Over the past months, I've really thought deeply about style and fashion and what those things mean to me. For the past few years, getting dressed has really been a means of expression and feeling most like myself at a given moment, on a given day. It brings me joy. It allows me to express to the world how I feel internally or how I want to feel. And lately, I've come to this reality with style that having an aesthetic can feel really limiting. I would say that when it has come to getting dressed daily, I've embodied aesthetics. Its given me structure. Its made getting dressed easier. It felt like I was connected to something in the fashion world and part of a certain aesthetic. But, lately, I just have really drifted away from the idea of an aesthetic because its been so limiting for me to just explore and have fun with fashion.

For the longest time, my style has been super preppy, classic, and put-together. That's how I'd describe it for the most part. And every day, I would look in my closet and re-cycle the same items and wear them in the same kind of way to fit an aesthetic. For instance, wearing a button down with a different colored sweater over and a different color of ballet flats. But, this didn't allow me to grow and express with my style. It just felt easy and safe and right in the moment. And that leads me into my biggest style revelation which is that staying within that timeless, put-together style outfit aesthetic was making me miss out on the true fun of fashion.

Image Credit: Pinterest

The way in which I look at style now is a means for expression. Style is putting on clothes that spark joy on a certain day. Style is wearing clothes that embody how you feel on a certain day, or allow you to feel how you want to feel. And embodying a classified style just really hindered my ability to do all the things I just listed. Now, I'll look in my closet and be like, "hey, this is cute and this is bringing me joy right now, so I'm going to wear it". This mentality has allowed me to truly bring things out of my closet I had disliked before. Because it didn't align with a certain aesthetic I was trying to achieve. Shifting away from a defined style has allowed me to pair pieces together that society might not typically match, but that I personally feel bring me joy. And that's what style is about. Pairing items together that may not match but make you feel cute and happy. And what letting go of that classified style allows you to do is to just explore, grow, try new things, and unlock this kind of looseness that just lets you wear what you honestly want to wear. You know?

Anyway, this post is totally not meant to discourage you to wear what brings you joy right now, and drift away from an aeshtetic is you honestly love it. But, it's rather to give you a new perspective on style and how getting dressed can be a bit different. And, honestly not embodying an aesthetic has been so much easier that embodying one lately. Sounds funny, but it's so true. And I encourage you to have more fun with your style. Look in your closet this week, today, tomorrow, whenever you get some time, and see what really sparks joy. Not what "fits" that aesthetic. But, rather what really will allow you to express how you feel or want to feel. Try a new pairing of sneakers and a sweater. Or flats and loafers with pants other than jeans. And then see how you feel that day.

So, that's it for this short and sweet post but I'll see ya back soon on the blog. Gonna try to be more consistent..

Take good care of yourself, and remember to get dressed to feel like your most authentic self every single day <3

Xx,

Esha