Living the Unfancy Life
You know when you stumble across something at just the right time, and though you didn't know exactly what it was you needed, when you find it, you just know? That happened to me yesterday.
Despite the long weekend, I found myself in front of the computer with a day of design work, and as is usually the case depending on the nature of what I'm working on, I was binging on podcasts. My current podcast du jour is The Lively Show (don't worry, I do have a podcast roundup coming!), which is all about taking Jess's values-based, intention-focused approach to life, and often feature a guest interview designed to uplift, inspire, or help you add a little extra intention to your everyday. It's pretty wonderful.
Though I've loved many of the episodes I've listened to so far, there was one that I listened to yesterday, with Caroline Rector of fashion blog Unfancy, that especially resonated with me.
Unfancy is not your typical fashion blog. Whereas most have you jonesing for a shopping spree or clicking through to purchase whatever item they're wearing now, Unfancy documents Caroline's journey to live with a capsule wardrobe of 37 pieces and redefines what it means to curate a wardrobe you truly love.
It's minimalistic fashion at its best, and a challenge that really intrigues me. Not only is it an inspiring take on finding and cultivating your own signature style, complete with the requisite daily outfit shots, but Caroline's writing is simple and refreshing, and the blog is really about this journey she's embarked on and an overall mindset shift.
It's so much more than a fashion blog. It's not about creating the "perfect" wardrobe. It's about learning something about yourself, about making conscious decisions that invite positivity into your life, and about living life with intention and doing more meaningful things with your time and energy.
The episode that I listened to was actually the second time Caroline was on TLS, and since the concept of her capsule wardrobe and the premise of Unfancy had already been covered on the first episode (which I have yet to listen to), this one was all about her recent move to Seattle and her decision to take a six month break from her blog, which feeds into the podcast title, Walking Away from "Success", and is discussed in her final few blog posts.
So not only did I discover this new fashion blog with a radically different, simplistic approach to style, but I was also hit by a specific line in the podcast that feels really relevant to me right now: Look around your life and enjoy it as it is now.
Since closing the shop, I've been trying to redefine my new reality, really hone in on what it is I want my life to look like, and what my next adventure is going to be. So between Jess's encouragement to live life with intention and focus on your own values, and Caroline's inspiring journey of leading a more simple life through her journey of personal style and then her decision to walk away from what seems like a really good thing, it gave me a lot to think about.
There's a lot of power in a good story, that's for sure, and you never quite know when or how inspiration may hit.