The Mom Uniform: January 2011

Dressing For Your Confidence

If you didn't read my post over at Momma Go Round, you should. Otherwise you'll just be completely lost. Lost as in starting to watch LOST during the middle of season three, lost.

Just kidding. It's pretty self-explanatory.

Dressing For Your Body Type
Sad as it is, our bodies don't stay the way they were when we were 18. But really who can expect that with all the drastic changes we make throughout our lives? Seriously, if your body is the same when you're 80 as it was when you were a teenager, take a good long look at your life.

I remember the first time I had the realization that I needed to change the way I dressed. I was in my first year of marriage, and as you know, marriage comes with at least a few comfort pounds. I had been wearing tight jeans and shirts for a long time and then I realized I was sucking in my belly a little more frequently and looking, well...fat.

Source

But the weird thing was that I hadn't gained more than five pounds. It's like the entire composition of my body just changed. I could have had super powers for all I knew.

So I went shopping. But this time, I shopped in the LADIES area (I think this was a department store) instead of the MISSES area. I was totally embarrassed to be shopping with all the frumpy old ladies in there who wear pants up to their chest. But I actually found some clothes that didn't make me look like a teeny bopper. And then I went to Charlotte Russe and bought jeans that were in a bigger size. That made me sad, to be buying a bigger size. But I needed it. I just wasn't cutting it in the jeans I had.

The clothes were revolutionary for me. I realized that there was a whole world of clothes that I could wear that would make me look like a woman rather than a high school student whose love handles look like a Play Dough fat factory. I looked good in clothes again, and I gained back so much confidence that I'd lost. And I actually came to terms that maybe my body wasn't so much 'fat' as it was just a woman's body, rather than a girl's.

Kudos to you if you are skinny. Seriously, everyone loves to hate you for your body. :) But the majority of us have a few extra pounds that we would love to ditch but it just ain't happenin'. And it's really easy to get depressed about it. But guess what? Maybe you just aren't dressing for your current shape. And I don't just mean buying clothes that actually FIT (but that helps loads.) I mean dressing to flatter your lumps.

It's important to me, ladies. It's important to me that you all recognize the beauty that you have, obviously INSIDE of you, and that you can radiate that beauty outwardly as well. You may have forgotten how good you can feel about yourself when you actually feel beautiful. Looking good always makes me feel so much more confident, and I hope that I can inspire you to do the same.

Source

So without further ado, I bring you the new series "Dressing For Your Body Type." I will discuss the different body types there are, what these types need to emphasize and de-emphasize, and then find clothes for that body type. Get ready to assess.

I'm Visiting Nina Today...

Welcome to everyone visiting from

Momma Go Round!!

I'm not posting here today, but I'm visiting the sweet Nina at her fun blog Momma Go Round! I'm writing about Dressing For Your Body Type. Please go check it out and feel free to follow Nina's blog because she is pretty much awesome. She also has a great series on vamping up your blog, so if you need help, check her out!

I will be starting a series called "Dressing For Your Body Type" where I investigate all the different body types and find the best outfits for that type, as well as being in a good price range.

I'm so excited about all the survey results so far and I'm going to close up the survey really soon so get your answers in ASAP!!

Take the Survey

How to Wear Skinny Jeans

Top: F21, $14

Tank: Old Navy, $4

Jeans: Downeast, $15

Shoes: F21, $11 (Buy HERE)

Headband: F21, gift

This whole outfit cost me $44. (Not as impressive as yesterday, but still!)

How to Wear Skinny Jeans

Skinny Jeans have been around for awhile now. And it usually takes me a few years to adopt a new trend. I like to make sure that it's sticking around, long enough to make it worth my time to try it out.

"Skinny" is actually kind of a misnomer. I thought you had to be skinny to wear skinny jeans. And I'm not so much skinny anymore. But I read somewhere that the key to skinny jeans is wearing loose, flowy tops with skinny jeans. And that makes perfect sense! Because unless you are 14 or a supermodel, you really shouldn't be wearing all skin-tight clothes.

So go find some skinny jeans you like, find your size in the waist, try out a few pairs until you find one that fits you well. Then wear your looser, more flowy tops with them. For shoes, wear flats without socks, boots, or high heels. (Or flip flops, who cares?!)

Skinny jeans are a better way to show off your cute, cute shoes.

And these shoes are a great way to show how much you need a pedicure.

Wearing Red and Pink Together

I think one of the settings is off on my camera...my photos are coming out blurry. Any advice on that?

Shirt: Forever 21, $10

Skirt: Thrifted, Gap, $5

Shoes: Forever 21, $5

Belt: Thrifted, $2

Wow, this whole outfit was $22!

I'm linking up today in Elaine's Rule Breaking Monday:

I'm wearing pink and red together.

When I was growing up I HATED pink and red together. I thought anyone who wore them together had absolutely NO fashion sense. And now look at me. Would my 13-year-old self slap me in the face? I loved this outfit. And wanna know something seriously weird?

It was too cold today for it!

In the three years that I've lived in Arizona, the winters have all been super warm. I've never worn a winter coat here and usually can only wear sweaters and long sleeves for the month of December. But this is a serious winter here. I think it even snowed one night (didn't stick.)

Look for posts this week on:

My Survey Results!

Dressing for Your Body Type

Fabulous Finds for Less than $30

So make sure to come back and read!

Have a great week!

How to Wear a Bib Necklace

I got an email today from Downeast Basics, 50% off all their accessories (use the code BLING at checkout!)

So I checked them out.

And they had a bib necklace that I thought, "I could make that!"

So I sat down with all my jewelry makins' and got to work.

And I made a pretty decent bib necklace!

Next step, find something to wear with the bib necklace.

I was inspired by Elaine who always wears bib necklaces and wears them well.

I wanted a big flowy white shirt to wear with the black leggings but I didn't have that, so this is what I came up with. And I loved it!

Black Lumberjack Shirt: F21, $19 (Buy it HERE)
Cardigan: Honestly, no clue. I've had it forever and can't remember where I bought it!
Skinny Belt: F21 (came with the shirt)
Leggings: Charlotte Russe, $6
Shoes: Target, $4 (one of yesterday's bargain purchases)
Necklace: Didn't you just read? I made it!

P.S. I'm going to post a tutorial How To Make a Bib Necklace on my Honeybear Lane blog next week!

Cutest Shoes Ever

Cutest. Shoes. Ever.

The shoes were the cutest thing about this outfit today. I developed yet another illness (just a head cold) but it still leaves me uninspired.

Snap up white shirt: Thrifted for $6, Gap
Pink lace tank: Old Navy, $4
Brown layering tee: Downeast Basics, $10
Jeans: Gap, $30 (special sale)
Belt: I bought it in Chinatown in NYC...pretty sure it was super cheap.
Shoes: Forever 21, $23: Buy them HERE
Bracelet: I made it...Make yours HERE

I do like my feet.

I don't like my toenails, but if I get a pedicure they are do-able. One time in college this guy told my roommate that he thought I was cute but I had big feet.

What?!

I have average woman sized feet!

Anyway, despite that, I still like my feet.

And want to wear cute shoes on them.

Good thing, cuz I went to Target today and they were having a massive clearance on their shoes. I got four pairs for $15!

Serious score.

Okay I really need to stop buying stuff.

And if you haven't already, fill out this survey HERE!!!

I'll Give You Hugs For Filling Out This Survey!

Thank you SO much everyone who commented yesterday and introduced themselves! I really hope that this blog can be a place where we can help each other and most of all, be a place to inspire you to have the confidence to be the people you really are! Motherhood is a wonderful, wonderful thing, but we shouldn't lose ourselves and self-confidence in spite of it!

(PS I know you're not all mothers, but this blog is called "The Mom Uniform" so it's mostly geared towards mommas.)

Okay so the next step for me is to figure out what you are really like! I created a survey that I hope you'll take five seconds to fill out. Your answers will help me when I design the "What I Would Wear" look books so that I'm finding things that you would actually buy!

P.S. It is completely anonymous so don't worry about a thing!

I Want To Get To Know You.

Jennifer, a faithful commenter, told me that I could stop doing this blog because I've accomplished my goal. First of all, thank you! (giggle!)

I think I need to re-evaluate my purpose and goal of this blog, because like that one actor said on that "Social Network" movie, "Fashion is never finished."

I am a mom. Fashion is certainly not my first priority. But I'd have to say that feeling good about myself is up there.

And for me, looking good has a lot to do with feeling good about myself.

(Shallow? Hmm...maybe...don't care.)

Going along with figuring out my mommyhood is adjusting to a new body shape. My body will never again be the slender prepubescent body it once was (cuz I've always been a bit flat-chested.) I have give birth in two different ways to two baby boys. And I'm going to be doing it a few more times, if all goes according to plan.

You all know how that goes...get married, gain weight. Get pregnant, gain weight. Have a baby, lose a little bit of weight. But not that much. Spend the next year or two trying to lose weight. Get pregnant again, gain weight. And the cycle continues.

So we must figure out how to dress for our body type!!

It is crucial to our mommy fashion, to figure out the tricks of disguising our problem areas and emphasizing our other great body parts.

Don't you agree? We can't always be waiting for that magical day when we 'lose the baby weight.'

So my new goal for this blog is to inspire the other moms out there to figure out how to dress for their body type, within a reasonable budget.

(The majority of you are moms with a small clothes budget, right? Speak up, speak up!)

This community is important to me, and I value each and all of your comments. They have already helped me so much and it's only January.

So answer these questions:

What is your name/blog address?
What would you like to see on this blog?
What do you need help with?
What is your main fashion goal?

I'll go first:

My name is Heidi from themomuniform.blogspot.com.
I would like to see posts that are geared towards helping moms dress better for themselves and finding their own fashion sense again.
I need help with knowing what things look the best on my body type.
My main fashion goal is to dress in outfits that look good on me, make me feel good about myself, and don't cost very much money.

Now it's YOUR turn!

The Pediatrician.

If you've been reading my Honeybear Lane Facebook page, you'll know that my two-year-old has had a bad cough lately. Like barking seal bad. I finally took him to the pediatrician today.

I arrived late, at 10:10. My appointment was at 10.

Guess what time I left?

10:30.

White shirt: Walmart; Yellow dress top: Target; Jeans: Downeast; Scarf: Walmart; Boots: Old Navy; Headband: Forever 21

My pediatrician is super weird. He's this really big guy, like 6'5" and probably 250 pounds. He always wears super tight tapered jeans and a polo shirt tucked in. He has a big chin and nose like Leno and he kinda sounds like him too.

But he's not a jokester.

He's actually really intimidating. He talks very fast and loudly and always says, "Okay?!!?" after everything. The first time we visited him and I told him about my old doctor, he was disgusted at the things she'd prescribed.

"What an idiot!" he'd said.

So weird, I know.

So why do I go to him?

Like I said, I left after 20 minutes.

When you have two kids, quick doctors appointments are essential.

I didn't switch to him because of that, it was a blind switch. And I've often thought of leaving since he's kind of a jerk.

"Hey, the jerk store called...they're running out of you!"

But the appointments are so fast that I barely even remember we went to the doctor.

That's a win.

Picture yourself on a beautiful day.

Ahhh....Arizona in January.
Just look at that lush, green grass and the swaying palm trees.
Don't you all wish you were here?
It's the perfect time of year for jackets and boots rather than coats and...boots.

For some reason this time of year reminds me of fall.
The fall that I don't get here in 'zona.
I grew up in Utah which has the most gorgeous autumns.
Fall here in Arizona means a slight cool down.
Like as in going from 115 to 99.
Not ideal.

But right now the weather is in the 70's and the leaves that don't quite make it to the stage of falling OFF the tree are a pretty golden color.
I like to pretend that it's October.

Dress: Thrifted from Savers; Cardigan: Forever 21; Belt: Thrifted from Savers; Boots: Famous Footwear; Earrings: Made by me! Are you getting so sick of seeing these boots yet?? Don't worry, I bought some spring shoes online.

And my husband said 'don't post these!'
So shh, don't tell.
Because I'm 100% sure he doesn't read this blog.
So here is my handsome photographer.

He's hot.
I have a little crush on him.

So what do you think...enough with the belt already? I tend to love this now.

Now I See Why Van Gogh Cut Off His Ear.

Van Gogh was the king of self portraits, no?

Ashley taught us all how to do self-portraits. I've done them with a tripod and timer, but never in front of a mirror with camera in hand. It's kinda hard. No wait, it's easy--if you don't care how much of an idiot you look like.

I don't have too fancy of a camera. It's not a dSLR, it's a nicer point and shoot. Me and Hub decided to compromise to save some money...although I totally wish we'd sprung another couple hundred for an SLR. We both needed it a lot this year!

And one more thing before getting to the million pictures of me...I had more fun editing the photos than taking them! So get ready for some weird effects, courtesy of me and PS actions. They're just fun.

My outfit (tho you can't see it all, the bottom was just flared jeans from Charlotte Russe and I wore my boots under them.) Shirt is Forever 21, Belt is thrifted from Savers, and Necklace is something I WON from a giveaway by Camille's Closet.

This was the best I could do inside my apartment and without moving any furniture. Not too shabby, eh? And wow, my hair needs help.

By the way, I'm linking up this post to Ashley's Self-Portrait Linky Party!

The Thrift Shop.

Striped shirt: Gap; Cardigan: Forever 21; Belt: Forever 21; Jeans: Downeast; Boots: Famous Footwear

It's really bugging me that the picture on the left is more yellow than the one on the right. Hubcap got home pretty late and couldn't take good outdoor pictures today. I was sad because I liked this outfit and wanted to show it, so here are my self-portraits taken with a timer and a tri-pod. A tiny tri-pod. So that's why it looks like my two-year-old took these.

This was just for fun...playing with some Photoshop actions

Today was my first clothes-thrifting experience. I've been to thrift stores tons of times before, for Halloween costumes, old frames and furniture, refashioning, and clothes for my kids. But I never really shopped for myself. Aaaaand I didn't find much. But I still think I got some good items.

Pink Corduroy Skirt: Gap; White snap-down: Gap; Brown dress: Some random brand called Courtany; and two braided belts

Here's something funny: I've always wanted a pink corduroy skirt. Two years ago when I got back into sewing, that was one of the first things I tried to make. I still have the pieces to prove it. See, the patterns kind of lie about sizing and make you think that since it's labeled size 4,6,8 you could probably fit in it (since your normal dress size varies somewhere in there.) But no, patterns have their own sadistic sizing and I was about halfway through making it when I realized there was no way in HADES that skirt was gonna fit. And I stopped working on it.

But now I have that pink corduroy skirt. Yay!

Hooray for thrifting!

Standing in a Pile of Cat Turds

Top: Forever 21; Skinny Belt: Forever 21; Skirt: Forever 21; Leggings: Charlotte Russe; Boots: Famous Footwear

Yep. I'm writing about poo today.

I was ranting to my two-year-old today about apartments. (He's sometimes a good listener.) There are so many things I loathe about living in an apartment. And while this isn't my #1 complaint, per se, it's certainly up there.

Animal Feces EVERYWHERE. Seriously. EVERYWHERE.

I live in a very large apartment complex and it is surrounded by lakes and and beautiful landscaping...from afar. Up close you can see duck poo, dog poo, bird poo, and cat poo covering pretty much every square inch of grass and gravel.

The grass is where the dogs poop, the sidewalk is where the birds and ducks poop, and the gravel (aka giant litterbox) is where the cats poop.

Can you imagine this scenario?

W (my kid): I wanna go outside!
Me: Okay let's go for a walk!
Me: Don't walk in the rocks, there's poo! Don't walk on the grass, there's poo! Oh watch out right there and there for more poo!

These aren't great pictures. What do you expect...I was standing in a pile of poo.

Back on the Horse

I'm back, baby! It was a rough week, filled with lots of ups and downs of nausea and not-so-much. It was the flu that wouldn't die. And when I'm feeling queasy, the last thing in the world I want to do is get dressed. Even when I finally got my new clothes in the mail!

White shirt: Walmart; Pink Tank: Forever 21; Jeans: Gap; Boots: Famous Footwear; Necklace: Macys

Why has 2011 started off so badly? Seems like everywhere I turn something is going wrong with someone. So much sickness and misfortune. It's discouraging. But here's what I say:

It helps us be thankful for when things are normal.

And it shouldn't prevent us from accomplishing our New Year's Resolutions. I've been doing about 50% so far, which is pretty good! I have all year though right?

In other news, my baby (nearly 9 months now) is waking up 4 times a night and rejecting his second nap. I think I'm gonna try to move him to one nap a day. And as funny as this sounds, I'm looking forward to it. Because he's a happy baby and that way I can do stuff in the morning!

So Very Sick.

I really wanted to post pictures of my cute outfit yesterday. I really liked it. It was bright and yellowy but black and cozy. And I had the most adorable bee necklace to go with.

But then around 3:00 pm, I started feeling really sick. Nausea, back ache, chills. Then it rapidly went downhill. More body aches and a lot more nausea. It was gross. Then I had Subway for dinner...BIG mistake! I saw it in the toilet a few hours later.

I've thrown up a lot in the last several years. I've had two babies and both 1st trimesters involved a lot of that. But it never gets better. At least when I was pregnant I knew that I would feel better after throwing up, but this time I was worse. And I sat on my couch covered in blankets and crying cuz I was so miserable. And you really don't want to know how the rest of my night went.

Thank goodness for my husband. And thank goodness for friends to help out with my kids. Being sick as a mom is the WORST.

I promise I'll be back on top soon! I hate feeling defeated.

Therapy.

I've gone to therapy twice in my life. I loved it. The first time was in college when I was dating this total SHLUB who made me feel like crap and I was getting totally depressed. I visited my counselor Scott for six months until I felt like there were no more issues to discuss. This also coincided with meeting my beautiful husband who made me feel like a princess. (Awww...)

The second time was the first year I lived in Arizona. Lots of changes in my life warranted a visit to a therapist for two sessions. After the second session and a ton of answered questions, I decided I didn't need to go back.

Therapy is so freakin' awesome.

If you've ever considered going, you SHOULD. Even if you really don't think you have much to talk about, you would be surprised at what you can learn about yourself. Or others who might be giving you grief in your life. When I went I just talked. A lot. And my counselors mostly just asked me 'guided' questions

(Seriously: "...and how does that make you FEEL?")

Button up: Gap; Cardigan: Target; Pants: Downeast; Socks: Hubcaps!; Shoes: Old Navy; Belt-turned-Necklace: Wet Seal; Headband: Forever 21

Blogging is like my new therapy. I have always been a faithful journal writer, but there's something so great about writing to YOU. I love hearing your feedback and encouraging words. And you aren't afraid to tell me, 'hey yesterday's outfit was not the most flattering for you...' because I need to know that! I stare at myself in the mirror and am used to what I see.

But when I see myself in pictures it's much more REAL..."this is how the rest of the world sees me?!"

(And heaven knows my husband would never admit that I actually look fat in something. Thank you for that, hubcap.)

Magnum...it's so beautiful!

So keep up the honesty. Even though I have to to hold my breath and count to 10...cuz I'm overly sensitive...It's Good For ME.

What I Would Wear

1. Easy Peasy Blazer from Anthropologie

2. Flower Ring from Forever 21 (Couldn't find original link, this one's close)

3. Ruffle Bib Dress from Forever 21

4. Orange Tights from Forever 21

5. Kelly Green Shopper Bag from The Leather Store

6. Praise Slouch Boots from Forever 21

Sorry, looks like I've been a little heavy on Forever 21...I promise I'll shop around some more! :)

Kinda Fat.

Button up: The Limited; Tank: Kohls; Pants: Gap; Boots: Famous Footwear; Flower Clip: Love Stitched

I'm kinda chubby right now. I have an excuse...I had a baby 8 months ago

(that still counts, right??)

And now I'm doing the thing that probably 99.9% of you are going to do this January...

Lose weight.

I sufficiently crammed my body with chocolate and other assorted crap during Christmas.

So I'm good to go.

(Hopefully that will stave off cravings for a good three months...)

Wanna know my diet plan? {{Because diet is everything. You can exercise all you want but you probably won't lose much weight unless you're eating right too. Let's face it, we're not 16 anymore.}}

Eat under 1300 calories.

My Fitness Pal is my calorie nazi. I have their app so it's super easy to keep track of how many calories I consume. They recommend 1400 calories to lose weight, so I'm going to aim for 1300 knowing I'll probably go over a little.

Hubcap got me this awesome amazing cookbook for Christmas.

Buy it HERE

Do any of you have this? My mouth was salivating just flipping through. The recipes look AMAZING, and all of them are about 350 calories per serving! I think that's a great calorie amount for dinner, right?

Right?

Yes.

So that is my diet plan...1300 calories and cook out of this book. I have an exercise plan too, but that's for another post. {{And PS I made my first recipe from this book...awesome!}} Hopefully I can lose 20 pounds and look amazing in this:

What I Would Wear