One of my latest efforts at efficiency is to look at minimizing the time I spend trying to get ready in the mornings. My daily morning routine is already quite efficient. I can get out of bed and be out the door in 15 minutes. This includes grabbing a quick bite and drink, brushing my teeth, washing my face, making it moderately presentable, changing clothes and zooming out the door.
Recently though, I've found myself getting stuck at the "changing clothes" segment. The difference now is while I can wear shorts or three quarter pants and a T-shirt to the office most of the time, on the days when I have to attend events or meet clients, this is not possible. I need to wear something more presentable on those days.
I actually have a lot of clothes. I used to be really proud of the fact that I can wear something different every day for 3 months and wouldn't need to repeat any outfit. This is no longer true as I can't fit into half my wardrobe since having Zoey. My pretty dresses and nice fitted shirts make me look like a colourful dumpling at best. I've started weaning Zoey and hopefully by this time next year, I'll have slimmed back down so that my wardrobe is more accessible again.
Last year, I tried to solve this problem by buying 3 pairs of pants from Uniqlo to match with whatever top that still fits. This has including pairing the pants with maternity shirts and other flattering pieces in my wardrobe. However, I can never tell which pieces are flattering on any given day. My body has a way of changing its shape according to where I am in my menstrual cycle and I often have to pick different pieces out and try them before deciding on what to wear.
So last month I decided to try solving the problem again by buying a few new pieces to add to my wardrobe. While I shopping, I was reminded of an article I read about Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg ( http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2012/10/05/steve-jobs-always-dressed-exactly-the-same-heres-who-else-does/ ) on why they choose to wear the same thing every day. The underlying reason is so that they can save brain power on deciding what to wear and use this energy on better things. Apparently Einstein did that and President Obama does that now as well.
So while I'm not able to wear the same thing every day, I decided to buy the same dress in 3 colours and wear them every time I need to attend an event. I know exactly which accessories and shoes I am going to wear with each dress colour with the option to mix and match if I want. I found this dress at Cotton On ( http://cottonon.com/SG/p/cotton-on-women/kn-tabitha-70s-dress/2023667602934.html#start=49&sz=48 ) for just $19.95 and it's a flattering dress that is formal enough for me to wear to most occasions. The half sleeves cover my arms, the dress has enough stretch to allow for a bit of tummy and the flare skirt hides my fat thighs. The price is also hard to beat, considering I bought 3 dresses for just under $60. If this works out, I may end up buying more of each colour so I can wear this every day.
Do you have pieces in your wardrobe that you wear all the time and could you benefit from buying more of them?