Ok so here's a little fact about me that you may or may not be aware of- Around a year or so ago I moved back in with my mum to save for a house which in turn meant all my worldly possessions moved back with me. And when I say worldly possessions, I basically mean clothes. I'm ashamed to admit this but my collection of clothes has mounted up to a slightly sicken state of affairs and my dinky little room at my mum's house could now easily be mistaken for a well used, fit to burst yet impressively sized storage closet. Wondered why you never really see my room on my social media? Yeh well now you know! It's not for the faint hearted which leads me nicely into yesterday's incident... I call it "rail-gate".

There is one long rail in my room which is barely recognisable due to it being unmercifully drowned in clothes and yesterday after I ever so gently lifted a dress from it, said rail decided enough was enough. Its stand snapped and with it came an explosion of clothes which showered my entire room. As if this wasn't soul destroying enough I feel I should mention that the multi-storey building block of shoe boxes precariously balanced on the all important, recently deceased rail, also came crashing down and after the clothes/shoe avalanche was completely over I was left standing in the middle of it all, in utter dismay looking on at the destruction caused. I, Sophia Rosemary have too much stuff. I'd created a monster and things had now got out of control.

In my very weak defence clothes have always been my first and last love. Where some people like to buy slap up meals, snazzy holidays or fancy furniture, my spending priorities have always been directed at clothes. I guess this love comes from working in fashion and being surrounded by it all day long. And when you add blogging and social media into the mix- well then you've got a clothes hoarder on your hands. Not to get too deep on you guys but social media has a funny way of making us all feel like we need more and as a blogger you honestly do feel compelled to be constantly wearing new, fresh outfits. After all you're job is largely based on influencing others and so you're constantly looking out for the next inspiring, oh so dreamy pieces. It's a slippery slope and a very vicious cycle. This is no excuse and as we hear the word "sustainability" crop up more and more we can't deny that this also includes the amount of clothes we're buying. We have to reach a limit! How many clothes is too many clothes? Well ladies and gentleman the answer is in my mum's spare room. Needless to say I've reached my limited and have firmly landed rock bottom on a pile of clothing.

Way before yesterday's clothes catastrophe I decided I wanted to make a conscious effort to enjoy the clothes I already own more!... However on a side note, you'll also be pleased to hear that the vast majority of items adorning/weighing down my rail went straight into bin bags and were swiftly taken to my local charity shop. If I don't have enough days in the year to wear ever piece then something has to give. I need to learn that what I've got is in fact enough and make the effort to actually get my wear out of pieces. One wear per item is a very poor economy and to say I adore every piece in my wardrobe, I'm clearly not showing them enough love. The sad truth is that my style hasn't really changed in the last ten years and so, many of the pieces I own are still very relevant and although possibly unworn for a while, they are never forgotten and always treasured. I guess one of the big perks to loving vintage fashion is that inevitably the sixties and seventies isn't going anywhere. Both decade's have a sense of style which is at a stand still in time and will never change therefore each vintage find I own is as suited to my taste now as when I first purchased it and every piece has such a special place in my heart.

My summer wardrobe is a great example of how set in my ways I truly am in terms of style! I generally stick to a capsule collection of timeless pieces I pull out years after year. The outfit I am wearing in this post is actually made up of pieces I've had in my possession for over five years if not more! And not to blow my own trumpet here guys but it's a pretty current and perfectly acceptable outfit if I do say so myself. I've always adored baby doll dress for summer and this gingham, smocked detail dress is no exception to the rules! I bought this particular smock dress from Topshop Boutique when I was around twenty three and it's been worn to death every summer since! The basket bag I've teamed it with was one I managed to find vintage shopping a few years back and as we see woven bags become one of the biggest trend of this summer it's hard to deny this bag was a perfect investment. And lastly the sandals! This pair of sandals are the oldest item of my whole look. My dear friend Rachael picked them up for my at an Office sample sale SEVEN years ago! They're well worn and well loved. I've got a real thing for ugly/beautiful sandals that board on ever so slightly geeky. They look so sweet worn with virtually every summer dress I own and where my mum might think they're questionable, I think they're adorable. 

This outfit is a staple look for me not just this summer but EVERY summer and as it's made up of pieces purchased five or more years ago it's a huge eye opener to how money spent on clothes isn't necessarily money well spent. Buying key items you know will last is so important. It's about looking out for those classic pieces you know will stand the test of time and by "classic" I don't mean simple, I mean classic to YOUR taste. A gingham dress might have been right on trend last year but for me personally it'll never grow old in my wardrobe because it's so in keeping with my style. Learning to be lead by your own personal style rather than fleeting trends can be difficult but my aim is to simply be happy with what I've got! I'm making that extra special effort to want less and appreciate the clothes I already own more. I'm officially showing my wardrobe the love it deserves! So what if I repeat a look on my blog or my social media? When it's made up of such great pieces, who can blame me... Plus I reckon my rail will thank me for it!

Sophia x