Identifying Self: Clothing Style

I have struggled for a while with my appearance. The deepest part of this struggle is that I have not felt confident in my appearance/myself. It took a while for me to finally put the pieces together, but I figured out that I needed to embrace "my style". I have also figured out that just because I think something is cute, it may not be my style, and it may not work for me, I may not be comfortable in it.

New clothes add up quickly. This may have been one of my biggest obstacles in taking the leap. But through a gracious alignment of the stars, I was afforded a small REI shopping spree.

Yes. REI. For years I have walked through REI loving almost all of the clothes I would see, but feeling intimidated by them. Instead I just stuck with the familiar, the same old. It seemed easier not to change. But no matter what other clothes I got, I just kept looking at those REI clothes with a sense of longing. Not just longing for clothes I didn't think I could afford. I think the real longing was for the sense of "fitting in" in my own clothes. Longing for the expression of self that happens when a persons style matches their personality. Longing for the ability to actually embrace my inner me.

Some of my favorite new clothes include...
This Skirt:

This Shirt:

and These Pants:

So there you have it, "my style". And the best part of having these new clothes... looking in the mirror and feeling like I'm looking at me, and walking in a room and feeling like I'm actually representing me.