Uniform Project, Altered

For any who pay attention to my sidebar or monthly recaps, I thought I'd provide a little explanation of one of the items I've been tracking: "Uniform Project Days." This was one of those little personal goals I set for myself when I began my new job in late July. My available funds were extremely limited at that point, and I was staring down the barrel of five days a week of business casual attire with, I thought, nothing to wear. My last job was more laid-back (jeans were the norm), and the few staple purchases I'd made years ago - two pairs of more professional pants, a couple of button-up blouses, etc. - no longer fit. I thought about running to the nearest Target and stocking up again on a few of the cheapest, most versatile "professional" articles of clothing I could find, but then a much better idea struck. It was inspired by The Uniform Project - one girl's quest to wear a single dress for an entire year, with varying accessories, as "an exercise in sustainable fashion" and a fundraiser to educate children living in Indian slums. This is a woman after my own heart.

My own Uniform Project is only tangentially related to the ideas of the original, in that its goal is to consume less and be more creative with putting together outfits from what I already own. In this case, this applies only to my work "uniform." I took stock of all the skirts and dresses I do own that do fit, and started keeping track of how long I could go pulling together office-appropriate outfits from them, switching things up without repeating a single outfit. 26 days and counting! As much as I usually tend to wear the same couple of favorite outfits over and over again, it's been a fun challenge to pull out skirts I've owned since high school and dresses I wear very rarely and force myself to find ways to turn them into decent work outfits. I've managed to convince myself that although a few more professional blazers and trousers and pencil skirts will be solid investments down the line, for now the less professional side of business casual will be more than adequate for my needs. And I do in fact have plenty to wear - with the addition of my cardigans and tights supplies to switch things up even more and tide me over for several seasons!

(Full disclosure: while the goal of this project was to save money and delay buying myself a new wardrobe, in the past week several important factors have converged, including my pay period, some killer clearance sales, and the biannual event known as Employee Appreciation at UO, Anthropologie, and Free People that I am fortunate enough to take part in. I must admit I've broken my spending freeze tenfold and purchased: 1 pair of flats, 1 pair of sneakers, 1 pair of jeans, 3 t-shirts, 1 knit top, 2 cardigans, 1 dress, 2 pairs of tights, 1 set of speakers, 1 scarf, 1 flower for my hair, 1 laptop case, and 1 pizza cutter. I won't say what I spent, but for what I got, it's mere pennies. I will now quietly integrate these purchases into my Uniform Project and proceed.)