← Her Style Podcast | Shopping, Color Palettes, Fashion, Wardrobe, Outfits, Clothing
Her Style Podcast | Shopping, Color Palettes, Fashion, Wardrobe, Outfits, Clothing
322 | Your Style Is Changing — Here's How to Update Your Wardrobe Without Starting Over
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If you've been a longtime listener, maybe you've noticed that her Style podcast has felt a little bit different lately. I found myself wanting to zoom out a bit and focus less on the really specific questions like which shoes go with which pants, and more on the bigger challenges and questions you're likely dealing with every day. Because I see a lot of the same struggles coming up over and over in our community, and I've gotten really curious about digging into the why behind these common frustrations. Questions like what? Why do I get tired of new clothes so quickly? How do I know if something is a good investment? And how do I update my wardrobe without starting over? I'm kind of on a mission to normalize these experiences and get to the root of what's really going on, because when you understand that, the solutions become so much simpler than you might think. And this doesn't mean we're never going to talk about the more detailed parts of styling. We absolutely will. But my hope is that these bigger conversations give you those real aha moments that actually change the way you shop and get dressed you when long term. Today we're going to tackle another situation that I see over and over. Women waking up one day and realizing they've completely outgrown their wardrobes. If you've ever looked at your closet and thought this used to work for me, but it doesn't anymore, then I'm talking to you today, friend. If you've been feeling that disconnect lately, I want to walk you through how to update your wardrobe without throwing everything away, without starting from scratch, and without that overwhelming feeling of I need a whole new closet. Because you don't. You just need a better strategy. And I'm going to walk you through exactly what that looks like in today's episode of Her Style Podcast. Welcome to Her Style Podcast where we're all about empowering you to show up and get dressed every day with confidence. I'm your host, Heather Riggs, a 15 year and counting certified image consultant and color specialist, ready to build a wardrobe and a personal style you love. Let's get started. As I mentioned in the intro, I'm on like a new mission lately just to really understand why so many women in her style community, whether it's through the live free events that we host, like our recent Shop your Closet Challenge back in January or Inside her style collective, my 90 day group coaching program 6. So many of us and myself included, deal with the same frustrations all the time. And I'm like, there has to be a deeper reason or meaning behind a lot of this. So I've kind of been on this fun mission this year, the last few months, for sure, of unpacking some of this and getting to the why and going a little bit deeper so that we can really understand not only the art and science of style, but the psychology behind why we do the things that we do and end up very often in the same circumstances, the same frustrating kind of scenarios. And a part of that that's been really fun for me is connecting it to other things in our lives that are very similar. Last week on the podcast, we talked about why we can get tired of new clothes so quickly and they feel really exciting until they don't. And I didn't share this in that episode, but as I was coming up with an email to send out to my newsletter subscribers at the end of the week, an analogy came to me of the fact that my son really is very similar in his toys and little tchotchkes that he picks up from class parties and birthday parties and all those kinds of things. Like, he gets so excited when he gets a new toy or trinket or sticker or whatever it is. He gets so excited about that thing, and then he brings it home and literally never uses it. It just sits collecting dust on our kitchen counter. If my husband asks him whether we can get rid of that thing, it's an immediate no, I love it. I need to have it. But then he still doesn't play with it. And I realized we can be the same way with our wardrobe. We get really excited about new possibilities, new clothing pieces, new shoes, accessories, and then we might wear them a couple times, and then they just become another one of those pieces taking up space and collecting dust or creating clutter in our closets. And so something that's really been a new revelation for me is that a lot of the habits that we form with shopping and getting dressed in our wardrobes are things that we do in other areas of our life as well. And so with today's podcast topic of wanting to rebuild your wardrobe in a way that feels slow and strategic and not overwhelming, and having that very real frustration of waking up one day and realizing, wow, my closet just does not work for me anymore like it used to, I was trying to think of, okay, where else does this happen in our lives? And as you might know, I've been an entrepreneur since 2007. I've taken a lot of business courses during those years. And not only was I a serial shopper, but I'm also a Serial learner. I love to take programs and work with different coaches. And one of the things that I've learned and have been trying to better manage for myself, especially with one on one clients, is something called scope creep. I don't know if you've ever heard of this term. If you've ever worked on a project, whether you have your own company or you work for an organization, you're probably familiar with this concept. And it's basically where you start out with a clear plan, or maybe you have a contract in place of what you're supposed to do for this project, like here's what I'm going to deliver, here's the timeframe for it. And then very gradually little things start to get added in here or there. If you're a people pleaser like myself, you also genuinely want to make your clients or your co workers happy, the other people that you're teaming up with. So sometimes you're willing to do one extra little thing and then maybe another thing. And those small changes or additions don't feel like a big deal in the moment. But before you know it, the project snowballs into something completely different than you originally set out or agreed to do. And that is called scope creep. It's just a very slow build from what you had initially agreed to to something very different. And I see the same kind of thing happen in women's closets all the time. You don't just wake up one day and decide to build a wardrobe that doesn't feel like you or that doesn't work for you. It's not an intentional decision. It's something that happens very gradually and in a well meaning way over time. I think you make the best decisions for yourself in the moment. And maybe you bought a few things for a different season of your life and that time has just evolved for you. Or maybe you've held onto pieces that used to work, but they really don't anymore. Maybe you grabbed a couple of trendy items that never really integrated fully with what you have. Maybe your lifestyle shifted, but your wardrobe stayed the same. We talk about that a lot here. And all of a sudden getting dressed just feels a lot harder than it used to. That is very similar to the scope creep concept. And we could almost call it like a style drift. You just slowly start to drift away from the things that used to work for you. And this is what happens when your wardrobe gradually stops matching your life or your personal taste. But you don't really notice it at first until getting dressed starts to become extra frustrating. And just like with Scope Creep, it kind of sneaks up on you. It's not anything that you're doing intentionally. It's just little decisions that slowly take you off track over time. Even well meaning choices, again, that might serve you in the moment. Like the last minute dress that you picked up for an event because you had to have something, or the T shirt that didn't fit perfectly, but you honestly just didn't feel like going to the trouble of returning it. We've all been there. All of these harmless little choices that eventually add up to a wardrobe that's not exactly where you want it to be. And even though you might wake up one day and realize things aren't working for you anymore, that doesn't mean that you also need to make drastic changes overnight. It can feel like a really sudden attack on your closet, but it doesn't need to be an immediate response either. I don't want you to make drastic changes. I don't want you to feel like you have to throw everything out and start over. We've gotta be more practical and realize it took a while to get to this point. It's going to take a little time, energy, and intentionality to move you away from that. So today I want to walk you through some very simple, doable steps to get your closet back on track, to realign it with who you are now and how you want to show up in this moment of your life. Because it might be different than where you were even just a few short months ago. So the first step that I encourage you to take today is to identify what's evolving, not what's wrong with your wardrobe. And that might feel different from how you've approached things in the past. And instead of pulling everything out of your closet and asking, why doesn't this work for me? I want you to ask, what's changing for me right now? I think that we are very quick to criticize ourselves and our clothing choices, and it's easy to do that knowing what you know now. But if you remember that something about those items served you at the time, it can allow you to have a lot of grace and understanding for yourself. There is a reason that you bought those items. Even if it wasn't the best one, it did serve you for some purpose. And so instead of tearing down what you've built, I want you to focus on gaining clarity about who you're becoming or who you've already become. And think about what feels outdated for you now. What are you craving more of in your outfits? Do you want more ease, more elegance, more fun, more simplicity, more creativity. You've got to pinpoint where you want things to go, and I want you to think about where. Does your wardrobe still work really well? You might be frustrated overall, but I'm sure that there are a few things that are still working for you, even if it might be time to upgrade or update them. We're going to talk about that in just a minute. But I want you to look for those silver linings so that you can do more of what is working and also learn from the, let's not even call them mistakes. Let's say the things that are maybe not as optimal as we what they used to be. Maybe your basics are really great, or your casual outfits feel good, but your workwear doesn't. Maybe you love some of your tops, but you know, your bottoms really need attention. So start just honing in on what's shifting for you, what's feeling the most out of alignment, and notice those patterns without judgment as best you can. What this does is it's gonna give you some direction without making you feel like you have to start all over from scratch. Just like your wardrobe became gradually misaligned, you can take time, rebuild into something of your dreams. So the second step, after you really identify what's working and what's not working, is to edit your wardrobe with intention, not urgency. Once you have a clearer picture of where you want things to go, you can start to slow down, because I know the temptation. I know you might have this realization that your wardrobe isn't quite working. And so suddenly you wanna pull everything out and get rid of half of your closet in one afternoon. And I know that that can feel productive in the moment, but it's usually not the most helpful approach. So instead, I want you to edit it slowly, gradually, and most importantly, with intention. And as you get clearer on what you want your style to look like now, it will become more obvious with what no longer fits. And when you do let things go, it won't have to feel so dramatic or overwhelming or like, wait, now I have nothing to wear. It's just gonna feel like a natural next step. So you're not gonna get rid of good clothes. You're just gonna make some space for better aligned pieces. You're editing for who you are becoming, and you don't have to do this in one pass. I really want you to take your time, edit your wardrobe and phases. Start with the things that are very obviously not serving you anymore. Without question, the damaged pieces, the things that definitely don't fit, and you don't foresee yourself fitting into in the next couple of months or that you almost can't even stand to look at the things that you are so sick of or that really don't feel like they're aligned with where you want your style to be right now. The obvious nos. Go ahead and get rid of those, but hold on to the gray area pieces for now, because as you begin rebuilding, you're going to get more and more clarity about what you want and what you're ready to let go of. So remember, slow and steady is the way to go here. I want you to start editing your closet so that you can get rid of some of the serious clutter, but don't feel like you have to do it all in one pass. All right, so the next thing, step three is to add your bridge pieces. Sometimes we think we only have two options. We either have to keep wearing what we have and just feel a little bit stuck or dissatisfied with that, or try to make peace with it, or we've got to replace everything and start over. But I know that neither of those is what you really want. So once you've pinpointed in the first step where you want your wardrobe to go and in step two, you've eliminated some of the clutter, that's definitely not aligned with that vision. Now it's time to figure out which bridge pieces are going to get you closer to the dream closet. These items are going to help your current wardrobe feel more aligned with your next level style without needing a full overhaul. So, for example, it could look like a structured blazer or jacket. Maybe it's a more elevated, everyday shoe or a versatile handbag that pulls your outfits together. These are not random purchases. We're not just going to go out and buy new things because that feels good in the moment. I want you to make some strategic decisions about which pieces are going to shift the overall feel of your outfits in the direction that you want it to go. So answer that question. What could I add right now that is going to move my style closer to my dream vision? Now, inside her style collective, this is actually something that we go really deeply into. There's an entire module called Designing youg Dream Capsule where we help you figure out exactly what those bridge pieces are for you. What's gonna close that gap a little? Not based on trends. It's not based on what someone else is wearing. But we really line that up with your signature style, the foundational work that we do together. And of course, what's already in your closet because your bridge pieces are going to look different than anyone else's bridge pieces. So I can't say, here are the checklist things that you must have in your wardrobe. We've got to really take a personalized approach and look at how we can intentionally bridge the gap from where your wardrobe is today to where you want it to go. And just as a quick note, this is why I'm constantly suggesting that you reevaluate your wardrobe and your personal style at the start of each season. Because the narrower you can keep that divide, the easier it is to maintain and optimize your wardrobe. If you let things go for a long time, you don't think about your wardrobe for months or even years, and you just kind of start running on autopilot. That's when it's more likely that you're going to wake up one day and realize you don't like anything in your closet anymore. It's much easier when you can keep that gap really small and you can refine things in a more incremental way each season, just making slow tweaks and adjustments from one season to the next. Like with the scope creep analogy I gave you, this is going to help you keep tabs on what's happening in your wardrobe and not let that misalignment sneak in over time. So now you've thought about a few strategic items that are currently missing from your closet that will help take it to the next level. And step four is to focus on upgrades and updates. And the good news is that even if you're frustrated with what you have, you probably don't need a whole new wardrobe. You just need a few thoughtful upgrades. And so in this step, we're not focusing as much on what's missing, but on how you can upgrade or refine what you already have. So first, maybe make a list and start to think about what in your wardrobe could stand to be upgraded. So this is where you're going to keep the same category of clothing, but you're going to improve the quality, the fit, or the feel of it. To give you some examples, maybe you're going to upgrade your shoes so that your outfits feel more elevated, or you're going to invest in some better basics that fit you beautifully, or you're going to choose higher quality fabrics in your best colors. And then the next thing to focus on is what needs to be updated. And this is for those pieces that technically still work, but they just don't feel like you anymore. Like, on paper, there's nothing wrong. They're a great color. The fit is fine. You just don't love wearing them anymore. And so maybe you want to swap some of those long tunic tops that you bought two decades ago for a more current cut, or replace some of your outdated jeans or retire your stuffy suits for separates that better represent your personal style. When we talk about elevating your wardrobe, this isn't about just buying new things randomly. There are really three ways to do this. And so right now, I think it's smart to kind of touch on all three in a small way. So you can add missing pieces or those bridge pieces. You can upgrade your items for quality or fit, or you can update your items to things that feel more current or aligned with your personal style. So, again, adding pieces is where those bridge items come in. That kind of take you from where you are to where you want to be. These are the new items that help connect the two points together and bridge that gap. Upgrading is taking something that you already wear and just making it better. Better fit, better quality, better overall feel. And then updating is when something technically still works, but it just doesn't feel like you anymore. So you're going to swap it for a more current version, either from a trend or a taste perspective. And when you start thinking this way, it's going to become a lot easier to make smart decisions without feeling like you have to start all over. So I would love for you to maybe just pick one thing to start with in each of these categories. So maybe you're gonna pick one key item to add into your wardrobe this season, one key piece to upgrade, and maybe one key piece or category to update. So just think about all of those, see what feels like it would be the biggest impact for you, and then go from there. Step five is to build for your current season. And this is where we bring everything together. Because, as I always say, your wardrobe should reflect your real life, not your fantasy life. Not a past version of you, not the version of you that you think you should be or that other people are telling you you should be, but your actual life. So think about your days. What are you actually doing? Are you running errands? Are you working from home? Are you meeting with clients? Are you going out with friends? Are you dating, traveling? Are you at home with your kids? A lot? Your wardrobe needs to support all of those very specific moments. And one simple way to do this is to think about your life in those different categories. So think about kind of the overarching themes or activities that you do in a typical week. And ask yourself, what would I ideally want to wear for all of those things? What do I want to wear when I have to have an errand day or a day of appointments and doctor's visits and things like that that would make me feel cute and put together, but still comfortable for all of those things? Or what do I want to wear for work? What do I want to wear for social events? How do I want to look and feel when I'm relaxing at home? And then ask yourself if you have outfits that make those parts of your life feel easy and effortless. Because when your wardrobe aligns with your life, everything becomes simpler. And I don't just mean your season of life, although that's important. But I want you to focus on the season of the year that's right in front of you as well. If you are feeling overwhelmed that you have to redo your whole closet, take it one small season at a time. If you're moving into spring and the weather's warming up, then think about what you're going to need to look and feel your best just in the next 60 to 90 days. If you take this a few months at a time, and then you just keep going from there, you will realize you don't have to build out your entire wardrobe or design a complete capsule for yourself right away. You can just make this, this season, feel even a few baby steps better because you want to keep a pulse on things and make smarter and more strategic decisions over time. So, yes, this is a little bit of a process. Again, it's not something that I want you to take on overnight. This is the way to make sure that you don't significantly outgrow your wardrobe. You want to revisit your style and what's working and not working every single season. So it's not something that you figure out once and then you're done. It's something that you will continue to refine over time. As your life changes, your style is inevitably going to change with it. And the goal is to dress for who you are and what serves you right now. So I will tell you, you don't need a whole new closet. You just need a clearer direction and to make a few strategic choices to move your wardrobe in that direction. And when you come back to this process regularly, whether that's every season or a couple of times a year, the gap between your current wardrobe and your next level style and will get narrower and narrower and never feel too wide or far apart. So you've just got to stay connected to your personal style, what you need for your real life. And instead of feeling like you have to start over every time something shifts, you know that you're keeping a pulse on what you actually need. Friend. If you're listening to this and you're thinking, okay, this is exactly where I am, I feel like I'm in this awkward in between of what was working for me at one time and where I want to go next. And I don't even know where to start with this. Number one, follow the steps that I gave you today. Start thinking about what you can add in, what you might be able to update or upgrade over time. Just a couple key things will really go a long way. And I will tell you, this is exactly what we walk through together inside her style collective, my 90 day group coaching program. I know you might be in the messy middle right now, but you don't have to stay there. So I would love to work together to take this entire process step by step. Step. We will define your signature style. We'll figure out what actually flatters you. Right now, we're going to design your dream wardrobe, including those bridge pieces that we talked about. So you'll be really clear where to invest first, what to focus on to get you where you want to go. And we're going to do it in a way that is completely personalized to you, to your budget, your lifestyle, your personal preferences, all of those great things so that you're not guessing, wasting money, or buying things that really just don't work. You're gonna build a wardrobe that actually supports your life and feels like you, and you will have support the whole way through so you're not trying to figure it out on your own. If you've been feeling like your style is changing and you wake up one day and realize what you have is no longer working for you, I actually want you to take that as a good sign. It means that you're growing and you're evolving, and now your wardrobe just gets to catch up and evolve with you. You don't have to burn it all down and you definitely don't have to start from scratch. We've just gotta realign everything and figure out what your top priorities are. When you getting dressed will start to feel easy again and it'll be fun for you to do every day. Most importantly, it's going to start to feel like you. So if that sounds good, if you're ready to take the next step, you can head over to herstylellc.com collective to join us inside the full program where I can personally support you with all of these pieces. If you're not ready for that yet, don't worry. There's more goodness coming to the podcast every single Tuesday to help you DIY the wardrobe of your dream. So either way, I will meet you right back here for another episode next week. Talk soon friend. Thank you for listening to today's episode. If you want to stop copying everyone else's style and start dialing in your own swoon worthy signature look, head over to take my free 5 minute personal style quiz which you can find at the link in the show notes. If you've enjoyed our time together, please be sure to rate, review and subscribe to her style podcast so you never miss an episode. Finally, I invite you to make this a two way conversation and send me a DM over on Instagram eatherriggstyle to let me know how I can best support you on your style journey. I'm always here for you in style and service. Until next.