What I Wore: January 2020

I knew going in that I wasn’t going to like January. I never do. Apologies to people born in January, winter enthusiasts, and people from the southern hemisphere. [Do people like January if it’s the middle of summer? Things to ponder.] Here, January is dark, cold, and dreary; it feels like an uphill battle to wake up in the morning. The early part of the month we got hit with a -40 Celsius cold blast – we were the coldest place on earth there for a while – which didn’t improve anyone’s mood. The last half of the month, my entire family got hit with various viruses and I spent almost a week at home, part of the time delirious with fever and pain from a sinus-double-ear-and-throat infection. And that’s on top of some personal stuff that I’ve been trying to get a handle on.

But you know what? We made it through. Whenever things get challenging, I always remind myself: the only way out is through. We are all more resilient than we give ourselves credit for.

Also? 4 more weeks until I go on vacation. Beach, here I come!

But, first, January outfits:

My original plan was to wear bright and colourful outfits as inoculation against the winter doldrums. I did end up wearing some colour, but not a lot. The truth is that monochrome (and black) is my comfort zone, and I decided not to fight it and just go with it. The Witcher inspiration was still strong, anyway, so I chose texture and interesting proportions over colour. I personally really enjoyed each of these outfits, but I did start to wonder/worry that they would become repetitive and boring for my “audience” on IG. Which is a silly thing to worry about given that I’m a regular person who happens to share her outfits on social media, and not an actual influencer. I’ve done my best to banish the thought and not let the medium dictate my message (or something to that effect), and I think I’ve made some progress in terms of having a healthier approach to my social media use.

I have no real outfit plans for February; I am not big into Valentine’s Day so no red-and-pink theme for me. As always, I will work to incorporate some of my recent thrift finds into new outfits, which this month will include not one but TWO ruffly waistcoats. Oops. Blame Jo March.