Style blocks are barriers that are holding you back from style confidence and they are universal - we all have them but most of us have absolutely no idea what they are and the ways in which they are holding us hostage.
The majority of my clients can tell me:
1. What they like
2. How they want to dress
3. What resonates with them aesthetically
...yet they feel a huge disconnect between knowing these things intellectually and executing them in real life. The key to true style is bridging this gap but this is impossible until the block is identified, here are the most common style blocks I encounter:
Knowledge - you have no clue how to create outfits that suit you, what is trending and what goes with what. Quite simply you do not have the info you need to build outfits that reflect who you are, this can be easily fixed with some research, help from a stylist or through an online course (like Outfit Elevation or Style Masterclass!)
Location - you feel like a fish out of water and your vibe does not match the place you live, the weather, the culture and the lifestyle. I suggest travelling often to a place you feel most yourself, if that is someone cosmopolitan and you live more regional, try to get to the city for a weekend to reignite that sense of self and style inspiration or if you feel best rugged up in the country, try to get out and explore new hidden rural areas, whatever resonates with you style wise is where you need to be immersed as often as possible to keep yourself creatively inspired.
Relationships - you do not feel embraced and free to be yourself in your friendships, family and relationships. This is a HUGE factor that often goes ignored, it is impossible to feel stylish and confident if you are not being celebrated for the wonderful person you are by those around you. Work on building a circle that lifts you up, identify who you feel good around and which people drain your energy, start paying attention to the feeling you have in the company of various people in your life, all of this plays into your style confidence.
Body Image - you do not feel confident with your body, you are insecure and try to hide behind your clothing. Learning to accept and love the body you are in can be a lifelong process, it is a very personal journey and cannot possibly be summarised in a few short sentences. We live in a world that is constantly force feeding images of "perfection" to us and telling us we are not ok as we are. I always encourage my clients to be very mindful of the content they consume, the social media accounts they follow, the magazines they read, the television they watch. One of the most powerful tools in combatting this messaging is to change it up on your own end, seek out accounts that embrace body positivity, explore the movers and shakers switching up the air brushed imagery with realness. We cannot possibly embrace who we are if we are looking at endless photos and videos of all that we are not, and in no way do I mean that in a lacking sense, I mean that in a "we cannot be what we cannot see" sense, we cannot feel right if what we are looking at is telling us we are wrong.
Time - you are short on time and do not have the minutes and hours in a day required to put together the looks that you want to achieve, getting dressed is a rush job. This is fixed with a curated, capsule wardrobe filled with easy, timeless pieces that can all be mixed and matched. Being time poor does not have to equal being style poor! You can do this yourself, or approach a stylist for a styling session to get this right and you will take all of the time and chaos out of getting dressed each day.
Money - you do not have the budget to purchase clothing that you like and lack the confidence to in shopping thrift or discount. There are so many ways you can achieve great style without having a lot of spare $. Op-shop, E-Bay, Depop, discount shopping, careful budgeting and planning are all available options for you to get the most for your spend.
Upbringing - you have been taught limiting concepts around clothing, creativity, femininity, and masculinity, what is and is not acceptable, how you should present yourself, what you can and cannot show off to the world etc. This is a very tricky hurdle to overcome, this stuff is deep rooted. By going back and analysing the messaging you received growing up, you will be able to gain clarity on how that has impacted you right up to the present day. Some of these values will still align but some you will have outgrown or realised they never really fit. Ask yourself, what do I believe now? What are my values? What feels most comfortable for me? What would my family or friends or former self think of my outfit today and do those judgments align with my own? It is time to free yourself and drop this excess baggage off.
Once you can identify what is holding you back from your most authentic, confident, true self, you will be on the road to style recovery and you will begin to start dressing for you, showing up as the person you want to be and the person you truly are. Some of us have all of the above, some only one or two. It is impossible to be truly stylish if you are being held back, do you know what your style blocks are? Do you want to work through them? Let's do it!
Get in touch for a style consultation now!