Dressing for nostalgia
Someone in the group mentioned recently the high they get from buying new things, and how once they've owned something for a while they just can't recreate that feeling. It's such a relatable thing to say, because that dopamine hit from something new and shiny is well documented, it's basically what the entire fast fashion industry is built on.
But what happens once that feeling wears off? What happens when the thing that felt exciting in the parcel becomes just another item hanging in your wardrobe?
Well, I have a little mind trick that genuinely helps me get a buzz from my older clothes, and I think it actually makes me love them more over time, not less. It's the art of dressing for nostalgia and it starts with having pieces you truly love.
This is actually one of the reasons the Joyfully Dressed method matters so much to me. When you know your colours, your shape and your real style, you stop buying things that are fine and start buying things that are genuinely, deeply yours. And it's only when you have pieces like that, pieces you reach for with actual excitement that you can start building a real history with your wardrobe.
Because here's what I've noticed: I never get bored of the things I truly love, that truly feel like me. My silver boots, a pink and red top, my purple jacket (the list could go on) all items that makes me feel completely myself, I don't reach for those out of habit, I reach for them with the same genuine excitement every single time. They've earned their place. They're not just clothes, they're the clothes.
And once you have pieces like that, you can do something really lovely with them, you can wear them with intention.
I deliberately wear certain pieces for certain occasions because I want them to become linked to a feeling. My best example is my two tartan dresses from Joanie, a green one and a red one. Every Christmas I wear them constantly throughout the season, and now I get an almost giddy buzz from getting them out each year because putting them on means something, it means it's Christmas, mince pies, twinkly lights and all of it.
I have a dress I wear every Mother's Day when we go out for a meal, I bought it five years ago, loved it - it’s dressier than a normal day to day dress, so it comes out for that special occasion, and then occassonaly when I want to carry that feeling at other times of the year.
I have a denim jumpsuit that I wear all the time, but I also LOVE to wear it on a proper nights out.
The wearing of them has become its own kind of ritual, and there is honeslty such a joy that comes with that!
Your whole wardrobe doesn't need to feel like this, and it won't, and that's fine (mine doesn’t)
But having even a handful of pieces you've built a real history with changes your relationship with getting dressed in a quietly wonderful way. It makes you less likely to chase the next new thing, because you already have something better: clothes with a story that you really love.
So I'd love to know, do you have pieces like this? A coat that only comes out for something special, a dress that belongs to one day a year, something you love so much it never gets old? Come and share them in the group, I'd genuinely love to hear about them.
Let's get Joyfully Dressed.
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