Style for the Reluctant Mom is a series of posts written by a reluctant mom, for reluctant moms.
I struggled with fashion most my life. Into adulthood, when I was wading deep in messy motherhood I started to escape with fashion and beauty blogs. Trying different styles and fashions became something simple I could do for myself when I was at home with babies.
Ten minutes here and there to put myself together became therapy. I wouldn’t spend the day feeling resentful at the hard circumstances I was in. I would feel like I had some time to take care of myself and now I could take care of the ones that needed all of me.
If you are a busy mom and feeling reluctant, or overwhelmed, or lost by fashion – then I wrote this series for you. Because girl, I feel ya!
This is a continuation of the insights we had in the #moms30for30 challenge, where we wore 30 items of clothes for 30 days. This challenge was a way for us… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS In this episode, we are recapping the moms30for30 capsule wardrobe challenge. I will be sharing the insights I have learned and the ones shared by the ladies who joined in… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS In order to do my capsule wardrobe challenge (#moms30for30) I decided to do a big closet declutter. I’m sharing my takeaways and tips to help you do that big clothes… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS The 30for30 is a popular closet remix challenge. This February 1st I will be hosting a #moms30for30, which is a challenge we have been doing since 2014, where we wear… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Do you struggle in your relationship to getting dressed each day? Do you feel guilty for it, or lack confidence in it? Jaime McLaughlin is a hair and make-up artist… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS How should a 30 something-year-old dress? I have asked this question for some years as I decluttered my closet and focussed on creating a closet of clothes I love to… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS I’m a recovering frivolous shopper. Since I’m trying to empty my home of needless items that I’ve acquired over the years I have swirling flashbacks of the hours I spent shopping for… We wore 30 items of clothes for 30 days! That is what the #moms30for30 is all about. Picking 30 items in your closet and spending a month putting them together,… In an effort to pursue more simple living as a family we’ve been purging ‘the excess’ our house. After all, I’m certain we don’t need all 43 forks, seven pairs… It all started about six years ago. LUSH was having a Christmas BOGO sale. Since I was up nursing a baby all through the night I knew I could jump… Hello Simple on Purpose Friends! I am trying something new to give us a chance to interact with one another on Instagram (find me on Instagram). I’m hosting the #MayOnPurpose… How to ‘create space’ when you are a mom with side hustle, decluttering kids’ stuff, how to start family meetings, how to be more creative without it feeling like a… Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Fashion was something I wasn’t ‘good’ at. I wore what was convenient, on sale, and whatever the simplest trend was. I didn’t feel like I was telling the world who… Do you ever look at your closet and want to burn it all down and start over? That was me a few years ago. Since then I’ve worked on things… It was about eight years ago my little sister had a fashion intervention with me. I was interviewing for a job promotion and she was helping me pick out outfits…. If you’ve read my Style for the Reluctant Mom series you know that style is something I am new to. It was never something I was good at, but… I wore 30 items for 30 days and had a good reminder in using and appreciating what I DO have instead of the feeling like I always need more and new. A couple times a year I co-host a challenge with Raj from Pink Chai Living. It is called the #moms30for30 and the challenge is to wear 30 items of… Hey there fine reader! Big announcement! Starting April 1st Raj from Pink Chai Living, and I, are hosting another month of the 30for30 challenge. That is, wearing 30 items of clothes… This post was inspired by a lady friend who listens to my mom woes, bad jokes, sends me cupcakes when I’m PMSing and cohorts over at A Little Light with… You know how you can see a cute fashion trend you like… and then another…..and then another. Then you look down at your sweat-pant legs and just say, ‘meh, this… I got dressed for 30 days in a row! Yes, I’ll accept my award now and display it next to my trophy for Canada’s Okayest Stay at Home Mom, 2012!… It’s been three weeks of getting dressed every morning for the #moms30for30. That’s right, I spend my precious mornings tracing in eyeliner and trying on outfits in front of my… We are just almost halfway through the #moms30for30 and I’ve been really enjoying this one. Aside from some heckling from some darling friends and family that I’m actually getting dressed… There are lots of reasons I have shopped for clothes. Usually, these reasons are centered around it being a form of entertainment. Or maybe to prepare for a special event. Or… I got dressed every day this week!! No, I don’t think it is practical, or even necessary, to get dressed up each day. Motherhood sometimes means staying at home, wiping… This month I’ve been doing the #moms30for30, summer closet remix. I’m pretty excited because I got dressed every day this week!! As I said before, no, I don’t think it… Hey everyone! In one week I’m gonna do another #moms30for30. Yup! Loads of graceless selfies of me in my stay at home mom clothes. If you weren’t part of the collective eye… Fashion has always been something that is difficult for me. Maybe because my style foundations were built with thrift store bag sales and leaning on my awkward personality rather than… After November’s 30for30 challenge I felt like I finally had the chance to objectively look at my (non-maternity) winter wardrobe. I treated the challenge like an ‘interview’ for my clothes… Well, week four! Here it is in all it’s timer cam glory! Today’s #moms30for30 to crash a friend’s for brunch. Cohosts: @SalmaDinani @pinkchai @taslimjaffer @west_coastmama pic.twitter.com/cFmG1d5KMm — Shawna (@shawnadovetail) November… Welcome to week three of #moms30for30 where we wear 30 items of clothes for 30 days in 30(ish) ways. So I had a little challenge epiphany.When I did this challenge… Trying out a capsule wardrobe with #moms30for30 So I made it through week two with only one and a half Pajama days. I know it’s not progress compared to my… I hope I’m not standing alone fighting off a Pinterest shit storm when I say I want all of the things. Sure do! I want the shoes, that kitchen, the… Trying a Capsule Wardrobe, Stay at Home Mom Style! Seven days into the #moms30for30. There has been one PJ day, some mutterings of ‘why am I doing this with a… I started cleaning out my closet for the #moms30for30 No YOU have a cardigan problem! Yeah, so maybe there is a librarian on Pinterest with a picture of my sweater… Last February myself and some other ladies held a 30for30 Closet Remix Challenge. We wore 30 items of clothing for 30 days in 30 different ways (more on the… Here is the mash-up between my mental narration (in a female Scottish accent of course) and the dressing room text messages between my sister and I (she was watching my… I’m not breaking any news here, moms don’t always get a daily hair washing in. So, yes I am proud of it! I have officially weaned my hair off of… Last month the hilarious and poignant Brooke from Miss Teen USSR nominated myself and seven other bloggers for a Sunshine Award. The sweet and classy Salma from The Write Balancehad… A few weeks have past since I finished the 30 for 30 closet remix challenge (see all posts here). In that time I’ve grown a little more (I’m now 20… Welcome WEEK FOUR of the 30 for 30 challenge (see all posts here).You could say I technically failed the 30 for 30 challenge. I took two weeks off to eat… Welcome WEEK ‘THREE’ of the 30 for 30 challenge (see all posts here).It is true, I’m very behind. I can blame it on doing something productive though, like growing a… Welcome WEEK TWO of the 30 for 30 challenge (see all posts here).I won’t write much this week as I have to divy up this nap time between some high… So it’s been just over a week doing the 30 for 30 challenge (see all posts here).Here are somethings I am learning so far:1. I will admit that around the house… If you read my insta-confession you know it was a struggle for me to pick my 30 items. And by struggle I mean watched netflix all week and avoided it… Previous Post: What is a 30 for 30 & Why YOU Should Do It Have you ever stood in front of your closet, a closet full of clothes, and thought,… What is it? The idea behind the 30 for 30 is simple. All you do is pick 30 items of clothing you already own and wear them for 30 days,… In PART ONE we basically speed dated my fashion history and all its embarrassing traits. Moving from frump to enjoying fashion has been a slow process. And one that also came… Something happened today, and so here I am sharing my intimate thoughts on fashion and beauty. Which we all know is about so much more than ‘just fashion’. How… I had a pimple on my chin, turn out this lines up with me being a walking tidal wave of hormones lately. So, of course, I googled it…. and that… This post is dedicated to wing night and mom friends who still socialize with me after I tell them I’m trying to wean off shampoo and may or may not… Last month I got to go shopping out of town for the day. Without kids. So I wore white. Last week I went to the grocery store for an hour…. In my first pregnancy I tracked my growing preggo belly with an iPhone pic every few weeks. Thought I would do something a little more memorable the second time around and involve my son… I routinely dye my clothes – well not dye them, tint them. There is a difference. Dyeing will change the colour, tinting will deepen the current colour. I haven’t found… –> So number two is on the way! It has been interesting to me the ways in which the pregnancy experience can shift so much from the first to the…
160. Getting dressed can be a keystone habit, creating an easy wardrobe / INSIGHTS from the 30for30 closet remix
159. Wearing your fave clothes, mindful shopping, trends and style, and pride vs vanity in moms getting dressed each day / INSIGHTS from the capsule wardrobe challenge
152. How to declutter the closet to make a capsule wardrobe (that works with your life)
151. Capsule wardrobe closet remix challenge, the #moms30for30
128. Getting dressed every day, with less guilt & more confidence (with Jaime McLaughlin)
104. Dress like you are 30
Five Ways We Justify Needless Shopping
5 Insights from the Summer Closet Remix (#moms30for30)
6 Unexpected Ways That Having Less Clothes Has Made My Life Easier
I Stopped Washing My Face {Oil Cleansing}
#MayOnPurpose May 2019 Photo a Day Instagram Challenge
20. Q+A (Creating Space, Capsule Wardrobe, Decluttering with Kids, Family Meetings, Being Creative)
Simple Style Tips for Moms
How to Shop Your Closet for Great Holiday Outfits
On Fashion, Affluence and Self-Expression + a month of outfits #moms30for30
Rethink the Capsule Wardrobe + Week Three Outfits
Closet Contentment + Week Two Outfits
My Style Challenge Goal for the #moms30for30 + Week One Outfits
Why You Should Try a #moms30for30 Style Challenge
25 Practical Tips for Making Your Clothes Last Longer
Finding Your Personal Style (Why & How)
I Got Dressed All Month {#moms30for30 RECAP}
Mom of two toddlers and a baby gets dressed, every morning!
Half way through #moms30for30
Shopping Tips for Better Style
Week One of #moms30for30 (Summer Closet Remix)
Why You Should Practice Getting Dressed
The Summer Closet Remix (#moms30for30)
What is a Capsule Wardrobe and How to Start One
Tips for the Simple Closet {Capsule Wardrobe}
Week Four of #moms30for30
Week Three #moms30for30 {Interview with a closet}
Week Two of #moms30for30
Do I Need More Clothes?
Week One of #moms30for30 {Stay at Home Mom Style}
My #moms30for30 picks {Fall Closet Remix}
November Closet Remix! {#moms30for30}
What Really Happens While Maternity Clothes Shopping
A Girlfriend’s Guide to Dirty Hair, Don’t Care
the Sunshine Award {AKA Me Answering Brooke’s & Salma’s Questions About Me}
#moms30for30 Recap Post {It was about more than just clothes}
#moms30for30 {Week Four}
#moms30for30 {Week Three-ish}
#moms30for30 {Week Two}
#moms30for30 {Week One}
My 30 Picks {30 for 30}
Tips on Choosing Your 30 for 30 {Closet Remix Challenge for Moms}
Seven reasons to try a 30for30 (Shop Your Closet)
on fashion and feeling like you are ‘too much’
Moving From Frump to Fashion
What Your Face is Telling You? {Facial Mapping}
A Girlfriend’s Guide to No ‘Poo….As In No Shampoo {Weird Things I’ve Been Googling}
That Time I Wore White {Oh Wait, I’m a Mom}
Tracking the Pregnancy Belly Bump {Round Two}
Tinting Faded Clothes {Frugal Fashion}
Pregnant with Number Two {How Things Seem Different}