necklace - vintage, great-grandmother's / pink striped sweater - H&M / gray v-neck - Target / wood & brass bangle - vintage, thrifted / jeans - UO / brogues - Primark
With this outfit I decided to challenge myself a little by highlighting something about my body I'm still working on really loving - my height. Or rather, my lack thereof. As a kid, I grew fast. I hit my current height at ten and was taller than everyone in my fifth grade class - and then, I just stayed there. At a little over 5'4" (I confess - my driver's license claims I'm 5'5"!), I'm certainly not unusually short, but I doubt anyone will be describing me as a 'tall drink of water' anytime soon. (Case in point: both these 'ankle' length jeans and my 3/4 sleeve sweater have to be seriously rolled up to fit that way!)
Since I'm not too likely to get another growth spurt, I've been working on getting more comfortable with my stature, and doing my best to resist the idea that looking taller (and/or thinner) should be my first priority when choosing what to wear. To that end, with this outfit I tried to break as many rules for shorties as I could - I've got horizontal stripes, a boxy top layer, a long shirt that cuts me off at the hips, cuffed jeans, and flat shoes. I even eschewed the lengthening effects of a long pendant in favor of a shorter vintage necklace. According to a million 'dress your figure' magazine articles, everything about this should be unflattering, but while I don't look tall, I do look like me.
(And for all my fellow arch nerds, that's Stephen Holl's Sponge Pavilion I'm standing - nay, trespassing - in front of. That's right, I will totally break the law for you guys.)
To learn more about Dress Your Best, and to find other bloggers who are participating, please check out this post at academichic.
