Just Right- Why I Won't Dress For My Body Type

My baby girl just turned 3 in February. She is both exactly like me, and uniquely her own! If I'm not headed to or from church, you would be hard pressed to find me in a skirt. Baby girl usually thinks no outfit is complete without one...yes, that does include pajamas! She has all my sass and spunk- for better or for worse. She's as motherly as they come, and I'm still not sure I'm doing 85% of this mama hood stuff right. She has my eyes, fingers and unruly hair. And I love that we are alike in so many ways and profoundly different in others! But seeing our similarities, also makes me want to protect her from roads I went down that claim so many. Road of insecurity, and self consciousness. Roads that often lead, as mine did, to unhealthy choices and ways of thinking.

Baby girl has started asking all sorts of questions as she tries to understand her world. She is often comparing herself to her older brother, her daddy or me. One day she wanted to know if since she's littler than her brother, is she too little? Or maybe he is too big? I hadn't thought too much about these types of questions before then since they never really came up with her brother. He just wants to be "strong like a superhero!" I started to answer that she's little and he's big, but I hesitated long enough for precisely what I wanted to convey to reach my lips. "You're just right. And so is your brother." She went on to ask about daddy to which I responded, "He's just right too!" Her next words struck me hard. "Oh, so you're just right too mama!" 

I'm just right. Why was that simple phrase that I would use without hesitation for them, so hard to apply to me? But she was right. I'm just right. And the more times this conversation has come up, the easier that is to hear and to say. I'm just right. I just wish I had figured that out sooner. 

I was born with the shoulders of a linebacker (couldn't you have just given me your killer calf muscles or olive skin so I don't turn into a lobster after a day in the sun instead dad?!), "wild thing" hair, and lets just say if I were to grow a few inches I wouldn't be heartbroken. But WHO CARES? 

According to all the articles on dressing for my body type, I should avoid pencil skirts, almost every type of short sleeve, flat shoes, printed tops, light colored tops, skinny jeans, anything yellow, green, brown or pastel, and chocolate on the third Saturday in July. Yep, it's that ridiculous. Oh and don't even get me started on all the hairstyles I "shouldn't attempt" with my broad shoulders. Are you kidding me with this stuff?!?

But you know what? I'm just right.

Not to mention, not every day is a photoshoot. How often does every proportion detail even matter all that much? Fashion is meant to be fun!!!

So instead of limiting everything I wear to what some Fashion Editor in her fancy office says makes the list of acceptable styles for my "body type" I've chosen to take a page from my 3 year old's book and wear whatever I please! Yes, some days I take the tips into consideration and rock an outfit that probably suits my unique body characteristics a little better than others. But I also have days like yesterday when I'm out shopping (in skinny jeans and a printed top) and I find a pencil skirt on sale that would be a crime to leave on the rack. It's now safely where it belongs- in my closet waiting patiently for me to go to church since that's basically it's only time to shine. Because broad shoulders,  and short legs covered in purple splotches (did I mention I bruise like a peach?)  don't mean I'm sentenced to a life of full skirts, tights, long sleeves and stilettos 24/7. I mean, what could be more fun than that? A root canal perhaps?

So the next time you read a wonderful article outlining everything you shouldn't wear because it's not appropriate for your body type, your age, or has just been declared "so last season" take what you want and leave the rest. You're just right. Style is about loving what you're wearing, feeling good about yourself and having fun!!! It's not about structuring your life around someone else's arbitrary rules. 

And the next time you step into your closet or into a dressing room, remember what my 3 year old always says "We're just right!" Because I promise, you really are.