Image: Zimbio
Hi friends,
You’ve probably heard this before about “nailing down your style” and that some blogger is going to tell you just how to do that… not me. Part of why I wanted to start this blog was journaling and documenting the process of finding my personal style and what tools and resources I’ve been using.
Enter: Allison Bornstein.
I have been on the Allison Bornstein bandwagon so hard lately! I love her content and the way she talks about fashion and getting dressed. As someone who doesn’t always have the most confidence in what I’m putting together, it can often be incredibly frustrating to see so many lovely things across the internet but feel like they don’t work for me or my life.
I’ll be the first to admit that body image issues have kept me from exploring too much— I don’t feel the most confident in mini skirts (although if you follow me on Instagram, you know I’ve been loving a mini skirt sweater set this season), 100% cotton denim doesn’t stretch enough for my muscular legs, etc. We all have things like this that keep us in a place that we may not feel is fully serving us or unlocking our true potential, and that’s where Allison’s 3-Word Method has proven to be infinitely beneficial for me.
I watched all of Allison’s videos on YouTube (multiple times), and after reading through the first half of her book ‘Wear It Well‘ I felt like I should have had these revolutionary, world-changing three words to utilize when I was shopping and putting outfits together; however, as I started to write this post, I realized that’s just not the case. My words, while they may have more description involved post-Allison’s intervention, I don’t think they’re wholly different from the words I was already using to describe my style: simple, feminine, functional.
I’ve had these words on my mind since I started this blog— they were tangentially used in the blog layout I’d originally picked, and I felt like they accurately described how I dressed every day. There was something in me that desperately wanted “cool” words in my mix, like “French,” “austere,” or “classic,” and while some of those words I use to describe my three words, they alone might not encapsulate what I’m looking for.
Let me explain…
My first word is simple: A typical day for me is going to involve jeans and a top (be it a tank in the summer or a sweater in the fall/winter) and a pair of flats or boots. I don’t really look for much more than that, maybe a coat, a cardigan layer, or a cute bag, but nothing more complicated than that. This describes what I’m already wearing on a day-to-day basis.
My second word is feminine: While my clothes might be simple silhouettes, I like them to have a touch of femininity, be it a tiny bit of lace, a swatch of bold lipstick, or even curling my hair (which I’ve been doing for the last week and feeling really good about). Allison calls this the “aspirational” word, and I think that’s pretty accurate— it’s not that I don’t
My third word is functional: My day job is working from home in a legal/corporate setting, but it’s casual; therefore, most of the time, I’m in jeans and a comfortable top or sweater. In the winter, I even will give into the comfort of a sweater/lounge set. This may not bode perfectly well with my aspirational style of a French denim-and-coat look, but I don’t even need shoes when I’m working inside!
Here are some examples of what I pin for outfits that I love, I wear (or aspire to wear), and I always come back to (all images via my Pinterest board; credit to original owners):
If you’re having a hard time nailing down your personal style, even while doing all of the Pinterest mood boards and things like that, maybe try going through your closet and utilizing the 3-word Method. It’s a great starting point! Even for some of us who are really into fashion, it can help narrow down what we actually like and want to wear versus getting caught up in all of the influencer-y styles that float around the internet— one person’s style is definitely not another’s, so I think the 3-word Method can help people see their style in a more siloed way without outside influences.
