Suggestions Desperately Needed! | Clare Henney

As a friend of mine once said on Twitter:

My happiness largely depends on the happiness of the people I love.

If you know me personally, you’d know that I can be generous to a fault, especially when it comes to people that I love. I may not literally give the shirt off my back for others, but you can bet there would be no more new shirts if it means I can give more to my loved ones. My friends often tell me that I need to take care of myself first to take care of others but sue me – I almost always tend to do it the other way around. Case in point: my closet. Most of my clothes have been gifts to me. I very rarely shop for my own clothes because there are always some things and people who I believe should come first. Since I got on my “life-is-short” trip, my closet is the first thing that I have targeted for an overhaul. Believe me when I say that it is in desperate need of one.

Taking a cue from most style experts, I took out all the clothes I haven’t worn in the last six months (because it’s more than likely I’d never wear them again). I also took out the clothes that need to be retired. I need to explain that last statement: I’m the type of person who is VERY low-maintenance. I wear flip flops/sandals/flats on most days and go out in a shirt and jeans on days when I’m not at work. At home, I wear the oldest clothes imaginable. I find them so comfortable and I always tell my family that the more tattered, the better for me. It used to drive my father crazy when he was alive – he used to talk to my sisters about finding ways to burn my tattered clothes so that I’d stop wearing them.

After completing the cleaning out of my closet, I decided to move on to the next thing I needed to do: buy new clothes. It hasn’t been easy. In fact, I have to be honest – I have not bought a single thing after two days of being a mall rat. Maybe it’s because I haven’t shopped for myself in a while, but I just couldn’t find anything I liked! What’s with all the polka-dotted and horizontally striped clothes? They just don’t flatter my already curvy (?!) body and I refuse to wear any of that! I know I probably need to be more adventurous but I’m just not comfortable in anything that is not my typical style. Hmmm, I think I need a shopping buddy to help me sort things out. It doesn’t help that my selection is limited here in the province…stocks in the stores are limited and sometimes they just don’t have my size anymore. While I am thankful that my body isn’t in the plus-size area yet, I’m still frustrated when I can’t find clothes that fit just right.  I’m very picky that way.

I need suggestions about where to shop. Preferably stores that carry L or XL sizes (my size depends on the brand, as I have recently discovered). Can anyone out there help me?