Finding Your Personal Style
4/17/2025
Finding a style that is unique to you is a long journey, and one that will notably change as your interests pique or as you age. However, fashion is more than just clothes, it’s an identity. It’s time to find that identity.
Take my good friend Sadie for example: She has a style that is so unique to her, my other friends and I can walk into any store and pick out pieces that scream SADIE. She’s never been much of a trend follower, she’s just always been Sadie. Funky, colorful & niche. Just the way we like her.
For me, it was never easy — because I had no idea where to start. My entire life through college, I was always trying to follow trends, yet I was still somehow behind. For example, leather pants were once in, and I wanted a pair once I saw everyone at my university wearing them. So, I went to Zara first thing and bought a pair that were ill-fitting, wore them once, and then never wore them again. The definition of buying something, not unique to me, just because it was a trend.
This can also be applicable to fur coats (even though I love them), certain sneakers, bags, sunglasses, anything. I wanted to stop always looking to others for my entire wardrobe selection, so I decided to change up the process. And this is where the fun part begins.
I started looking on Pinterest for fashion inspiration (sounds counterintuitive — I know) and started saving pins that felt like me. What I like, what I find attractive, color schemes, fabrics, anything. From there, I started to look for patterns. Patterns within what I already loved the look of, to create my fashion identity.
For me, it was clear that I loved pearls, silk, skirts of all lengths, leather, lace, big jackets, beaded purses, fun shoes, etc. I also felt extremely inspired by European fashion styles, so I decided to incorporate that into my daily life. Hence, The Silk Notebook.
I wear pearls in my ears every single day, and a small one around my neck. I only wear gold and love adding silk into my closet. I like to match mini skirts with big leather jackets and throw on a boot or a kitten heel. It may even sound generic, but to me, I started to actually feel like me when I was getting dressed.
While trends will always play a small part in what we wear, it’s important to cherry-pick what you like currently and add it to your foundation. I encourage you all to figure out what represents you best, and start implementing it into your wardrobe, instead of always just buying the next best thing.
That way, your friends can go into a store, see a piece, and think, “Wow that is so her.”