1.18.2018

The Art of Living (& Dressing) Luxuriously

 
What is it about luxury that makes it so elusive?  Surely, we can identify it once we see it.  But to achieve the look ourselves, to embody it in our own way tends to be a feat.  Magazines, television, department stores, they're all virtually prodding us endlessly to try to achieve this "look of luxury" by buying a product.  As if it comes in physical form.  And after sampling whats offered, for most of us, whatever we buy never quite pulls it off.  And if it does, you better maintain it by buying more!  

Yes, luxury, it seems, is for those who can afford it...  
Naaah, I don't buy it.
Maybe luxury is so elusive because its active ingredient is a feeling exuded.  Not a look.  
And true luxury is not to be confused with glamour.
No - today, I'm discussing "Luxury"!  
What is it made up of fundamentally?  
How can you make it apart of your daily lifestyle?
Ok, so take away the Gucci bags, the expensive shades, the Louboutin heels, etc - I've seen women in jeans and a tee, without a stitch of makeup looking gloriously luxurious.  What gives?

What do they possess that everyone else is trying to copy?  
I've studied this concept of luxury probably longer than I've been aware.  And then I'm reminded of my upbringing:  My parents!

My parents always had champagne tastes and an incredible work ethic to buy that champagne.  But it's not about the money.  I realize they never did much traveling or extravagant vacations.  They decided to spend their energy and interests at home in their daily lifestyle.

My friends would always say my parents were so fancy.  But really... they just took more pride in the quality of their daily life, their personal time, and their daily leisure.  

And that right there embodies true luxury.
So going forward with this theory, let us do some dissecting, shall we?  Luxury is simply the art of maintaining:

QUALITY  -  TIME  -  LEISURE

These 3 components actually umbrella many aspects of life.  

  • Quality of the things you buy and the clothes you wear.  The life you lead and the friends you surround yourself with.
  • Time management for yourself to exercise, therapize, and learn new things.  Time to dedicate to others.  
  • Leisure to chill the fuck out.  Grab a coffee, go to the beach, have a 3-hour brunch with friends.  Because life is hectic and work can be intrusive of our space.
So basically, luxury is just a more mindful, self-possessed life?  
Ok, that's cool.  Wah wah.  Buuuuut since this like, a personal style blog, let's talk about how this relates to our closets!  
My theory as to how luxury pertains to personal style is this:

The key to looking and dressing luxuriously is simply mixing comfort with taste.
I guess that explains why you can't really buy it.

But knowing that just might make you a better shopper.  After lots of thought and fun research on this theory, I narrowed down looking like a million bucks to 5 Keys:

5 Essential Keys to Making Your Closet 
Look Like a Million Bucks:

1. Wear well-fitting clothes
Wear quality, well-made clothing.  Get it altered to fit you perfectly.  Fit is everything.

2.  Never Show Effort
Anything that looks hard to wear or time consuming probably is.  This includes makeup.  Effort is the baine of luxury!

3.  Be Comfortable Always
Why shouldn't you?  And when you're uncomfortable, it shows! And makes others around feel uncomfortable for you.  Comfort is luxury.  Never wear anything that makes you feel otherwise.

4.  Avoid Unecessary Layering
Layers can easily look bulky and messy.  And that is burdensome.  Avoid wearing more than 3 articles of clothing at a time.  Dress in the spirit of how you'd look stepping off a yacht.

5.  Dress Timeless  
Your outfit shouldn't have more than one trendy item.  A timeless style sets you apart from the trend chasers and makes you look self-possessed and confident.
Dressing and feeling like luxury is one of my goals for this year.  I just don't believe that luxury and leisure is for the weekend or worse, a couple times a year!

I didn't take much time off last year.  I did close out the first year of my business in 2017 so that would explain my lack of free time.  But when I did go on vacation, I was miserable the entire time.  Who wants to go on vacation only to feel stressed with work-separation anxiety?

You gotta learn to be leisure in your daily life - so that it's not completely foreign and shocking when you do engage in leisure, quality time.  I'm dedicating working on this for 2018.  And I've started with my wardrobe.  Because for me, clothing sets the tone.  My wardrobe, my Tiny Closet inspires my direction and mood.  And my direction is pampering!  And my mood is... you guessed it, luxury.

Thanks so much for visiting and reading!
Come back next Thursday for an all-new look and more ideas on living a better life in your clothes. 

5 comments:

  1. such a class act. I love your minimalistic style. I need to take notes

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  2. This! This! This! I'm a proud introvert and would much rather invest luxuriously in my everyday life than spend luxuriously on a fancy trip. My space is my sanctuary, so investing in it is far more important to me than going somewhere else for a short time.

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  3. Wow! You really made me think on this one. There is room for improvement in my closet for sure. Thank you so much for your thoughts and sharing!

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  4. This post completely hit home with me. Your timing is impeccable!
    Wonderful, wonderful post!

    ReplyDelete

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