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You can still be stylish at any size!
So these days your weight has been up and down? Perhaps you have been just dealing with this recently. Or, maybe this has been an issue that you’ve dealt with your whole life. Add stress, babies, jobs, and life and then weight gets even harder to manage. I feel you! I really do.
As someone who has struggled with weight management most of my life, I understand and know what it’s like to be all kinds of sizes but it doesn’t mean that your style has to suffer.
You can still be stylish and look great at any size!
Even if I’m not a size “0,” I still want to be stylish!
Personal style has always been an important thing for me. I’ve always been a creative and artistic person and I enjoy using fashion and accessories as a means of personal expression. To me, it’s a very fulfilling outlet to exhibit my artistic side and my creativity. It’s like a form of art and a way that I reflect and combine my mood, trends, and my own original ideas. Also, since weight management has always been an issue for me I had to come up with ideas where I could deal with weight but not sacrifice style.
The story of my own struggle with weight
For most of my life, I have struggled with weight management. It’s not fun at all – it’s an uphill battle and requires a constant effort to keep my weight at bay. As a kid, I was a pretty normal size. Always a little “big boned” as I was told but within a healthy weight range and normal size. When I was 12 I remember I got a bit “chunky.” At 13 I slimmed down a somewhat bit due to a cross-country move but then got a little pudgy again the next year.
From the age of 14, I started exercising regularly and dieting. I still have kept these habits up to this day. Exercise has been a part of my routine since I was a teenager and because my weight has always crept up I have always had to be mindful of what I eat as well.
During college, I gained the “Freshman 15” and then some. Due to poor habits and bad food choices, I got fairly heavy. In my last year of college, I lost about 50 pounds and was thinner than I had ever been.
While in my twenties, I was a little fuller than my last year of college but my weight was still healthy. I did have to work super hard, though, to keep it in that range.
So my weight as you can tell has always been up and down.
Pregnancy
After having my daughter I ballooned up to 225 pounds. I slowly lost weight over the years and got down to 155. Ever since I have fluctuated up and down 20-30 pounds. I don’t really like that but my body tends to gain weight extremely easily but unfortunately, it’s something I didn’t choose. Sometimes life can get in the way and weight management takes the back seat.
Well as a reminder of all the frequent weight fluctuations I have a closet filled with clothes of all different sizes. Because I’m always going up and down I don’t get rid of the clothes. I also don’t want to invest a lot of money in any one size unless I’m sure I am going to be that size for a while.
I still want to look nice, though, put together, and stylish. This being said I developed the perfect strategy to be able to invest in my style and wardrobe by focusing on items that I can wear regardless of my clothing size.
So here are the top items I suggest to invest in below.
My Style Strategy ~ Invest in items that enhance your style at any weight
1. Shoes
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Okay, so what woman does love shoes? It’s in our blood. I lived for a time in New York City and shoes were the main fashion feature. It is all about the shoes in NYC! I always remembered that and equated it to the fact that New Yorkers don’t drive much. Therefore instead of having fancy cars, they have fancy shoes! In any case, it’s the perfect element to invest in if you have constant see-saw of weight fluctuations, or, are just not presently at the weight you wish to be.
2. Purses & Handbags
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Okay, so a close second to the New York City obsession with shoes is an obsession with high-end purses or handbags. This is definitely another status symbol in NYC. I adopted this philosophy into my own style. When you have ever-changing weight it’s a great style element and accessory to invest in to keep your style varied and relevant. You can invest in a variety of handbags or purses for different looks and different occasions.
3. Coats
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Coats are another great option to invest in when you have weight fluctuations. Coats can be a wonderful and stylish element in a wardrobe. You can invest in different coats for different seasons and buy different styles of coats for variation. There are peacoats, trenchcoats, winter coats, windbreakers – you name it. They also are very flattering to all figures.
For the most part, most of my coats fit me regardless of what size I am or how much I weigh. There may be some exceptions to this if the weight gain/loss is very extreme, but I know for me that if I’m up or down a few sizes I usually don’t have a problem wearing any of my coats.
4. Sweaters
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Another item to invest in (if season and weather permit) is sweaters. Sweaters can be beautiful and forgiving. They also can be worn whether I am up or down a few sizes.
5. Jewelry
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Jewelry is a great accessory to invest in no matter what size you are. The options for jewelry are endless – bracelets, necklaces, earrings, watches, etc. This is a great way to enhance and vary your look. It also gives a very polished look when adding the right jewelry to an outfit. For me personally, I love to add beautiful statement necklaces or dangly earrings. Just don’t overdo it! Usually, one piece of statement jewelry is enough or combine some smaller accessories together.
6. Scarves and Pashminas
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Another great accessory to invest in is scarves. They are so stylish! I spent a year studying and working abroad in Paris. Oh, la la! It was here that I developed my love for scarves. They can take a very plain outfit and transform it into something very stylish and sophisticated. Also, depending on how they are styled and worn can also be flattering by hiding flaws.
The same goes for the Pashmina scarves. They can really add something to an outfit and be very complimentary.
7. Flowy or Maxi dresses
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One of the staples of my wardrobes over the years has been dresses. I love dresses! I always have even as a kid. Maxi dresses are especially my favorite to invest in when taking into account my weight fluctuations. These dresses often are very flattering to my body type (and most body types) and have a lot of give so I can usually get away with wearing them regardless of my weight. For that reason, I don’t mind investing in this style of dress because I can usually wear them without a problem and they always look nice. I can also dress them up or dress them down.
Now don’t get me wrong you still have to have some basics in your wardrobe – like jeans, black pants, skirts, and tops – but these clothing items will, for the most part, depend on your size. My best advice for keeping it simple and cost-conscious when your weight fluctuates a lot is to buy just some basic items at the size you are and to mix and match. Couple them with all the items listed above for any size and you will have yourself lots of beautiful looks.
Implementing these different items can really add a lot of pizzazz to your wardrobe. It doesn’t mean that you have to break the bank and buy everything designer – you can do it on a budget if you want. Since these items can be so versatile and look great no matter what size you are, it can certainly be worth it though to invest money. They can add a lot of mix-and-match elements and create different looks. Give it a try!
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