Indyx Style Workshop: Week 4

This week in the style workshop we are distilling our style inspiration down into just 3 words as a sort of “North Star” for your personal style. I liked this practical reasoning the most:

“It provides great guidance when styling an outfit. Say you have a pair of jeans, a tee shirt and some loafers that perfectly fit into your “classic”, “relaxed” style, and your third word is “edgy”, so you opt for a leather jacket over a blazer. It’s styling, made easy.”

After taking the style quiz the three words that resonated the most were clean, classic, and casual (alliteration intentional!).

My Three Words

Clean

Clean speaks to the simplicity and minimalism of pieces. I don’t like a lot of visual clutter nor do I like fussy clothes. Keeping simple always makes me feel more confident and comfortable through the day. Styles that come to mind when I think “clean” is Scandinavian sculptural or architectural style. Brands like COS and Arket come to mind.

Classic

I naturally gravitate toward more “classic” pieces. I noticed a lot of Americana references and timeless looking French girls in my inspiration images. It tracks because since my early twenties I have gravitated toward the lists of essential French wardrobe staples and classic capsule wardrobe lists. Brands like Buck Mason and J Crew exemplify this.

Casual

Casual is where my lifestyle comes into play. I am a toddler mom living in breezy LA working from home most days. Tons of tailored pieces, no matter how much I adore them, just won’t get the same level of use as the easier throw on pieces. Brands like Ozma California and AYR are the epitome of casual for me.

Indyx Style Workshop: Week 3

This week in the Indyx style workshop they walked us through”editing up” and “editing down.” This was the first time I look at my style inspiration boards and thought more deeply about similarities. Typically I would look at individual pieces I liked and could add to my wardrobe to complete a look. But this week I looked at it through the lens of what is it essence of the image that I liked, and what were the through lines and patterns between the group of images. It was interesting what I discovered.

Editing Down

A few things stood out in my inspiration board and most of them were unsurprising. I pinned a lot of denim looks and that makes so much sense considering what I reach for in my closet 90% of the time. I also noticed a lot of button ups, layers with jackets, knits on the top, and simple crossbody or basket bags. Somethings that surprised me were the number of skirts that I pinned. I don’t wear a lot of skirts, I think I only own 3 of them actually, and when I do story them out they feel a bit fussy. But a long, gathered cotton skirt is something I’d like to try this spring and summer to give my denim a rest now and then.

Another pattern I identified is a lot of white bottoms for spring and summer. Unfortunately for this phase of my life with a young toddler I don’t think that’s practical at all. There are just way too many sticky fingers and spill happening these days and I think light bottoms would just stress me out. I also noticed a lot of the inspo images are a little oversize and slightly disheveled in its styling. To get that casual effortless look I’ll need to be very intentional and polished in my styling. I love the slicked back buns and minimal jewelry. I also noticed that the open oversized button downs were almost always paired with a fitted tank or tee underneath. A lot of my tees are also relaxed so maybe this year I try out a couple of more fitted ones.

I’m starting to realize that ideal style is a bit of California coastal with a touch of minimalist city girl, and a splash of French countryside. If I infuse an element of that in every outfit I think I’ll find enough interest in each outfit and still feel like myself.

Editing Up

It was unsurprising that this exercise revealed my love of neutrals pretty blatantly. One thing I did not expect was to crave primary pops of color. In some images there was a deep cherry red, or a cobalt blue and I realized that’s severely lacking in my wardrobe. A fun scarf, shoe, or bag could easily inject more personality and give a somewhat basic outfit a lot more personality. A bit of pattern out side of my beloved mariner’s stripe could do the same.

The last part of the exercise was fun for me. I made a list of designers and brands that align with the style aesthetic I am cultivating. I won’t lie, I already have a list of brand I love lingering on my notes app. I use it to search for items preloved so I know which search terms to use. After this exercise I think the list has become more refined. They range from classic Americana heritage brands, to relaxed and organic Cali vibes, and timeless French and French inspired brands.

• Vintage J Crew, Ralph Lauren & Esprit

• Buck Mason

• Balzac Paris

• Apiece Apart

• Ozma California

• Sezane

• DISSH

• AYR

• Modern Citizen

• TIBI

• COS

Week 3 was fun, while it wasn’t a lot of action, there was tons of insight. I’ll see you back here for week 4!

If you want to join the Indyx app (it’s free!) use my referral code GINASTOVALL and we’ll both get $10 credit for styling services.

Style Workshop: Week 2

It’s week 2 of the Indyx Style Workshop and it’s all about collecting inspiration. You’re not gonna have to twist my arm to scroll Pinterest for inspiration! I already have a 2024 style inspo board going (you may have seen it if you’re subscribed to my newsletter), so I have been adding to that. One thing the workshop mentioned was to go brad and consider why I like each image I am pinning. Maybe it is a certain element or possibly just a vibe it gives off. That added thoughtfulness is something I hadn’t considered before and I think I am already gleaning more insight into why I like what I like. A few take aways so far:

• I like unfussy clothing and styling.

• The clothes need to be comfortable and made from high quality materials, even in the inspo pics.

• Layering adds so much dimension, but it isn’t somethign I’ve mastered in my personal style.

• Pops of saturated colors are so much fun!

• Accessories make the look, bags, baskets, scarves, and sunnies are what I am attracted to most.

• So much denim and pants overall. I love dresses but am very choosy it seems.

If you want to join the Indyx app (it’s free!) use my referral code GINASTOVALL and we’ll both get $10 credit for styling services.

Style Workshop: Week 1

I recently have become obsessed with the Indyx app. It’s a tool that helps you index your entire wardrobe, create outfits, and track how much you wear, all for free. It also has paid features that include a personal stylist and support for setting up the app (if you sign-up use my code GINASTOVALL and we’ll both get $10 credit for styling services).

Since I started using it about a month ago I have gotten so creative with my existing wardrobe. And that’s the whole point of the app… to show you what you own, and inspire you to get the most out of you wardrobe hopefully encouraging you to buy less and more intentionally.

Another free feature of the app is a multi-week style workshop. I started it last week and thought I’d share here as a sort of accountability measure and for posterity! Week 1 was all about setting intentions for the workshop, here are mine below…

Set your intentions

• I want to use more of my wardrobe.

• I want to have fun getting dressed each day.

• I need to eliminate clutter in my wardrobe, it just makes me anxious and makes it harder to see what I own.

• I want to (re)discover my personal style postpartum.

Set a commitment

I won’t fall for the the sunk cost fallacy and keep things in my wardrobe I don’t love and use.

Identify and release any negative or counterproductive beliefs or “rules” 

I am releasing the idea that a versatile and efficient wardrobe ias filled with basics and neutrals. I want to get comfortable injecting a bit of added interest through color, pattern, texture, and silohuette.

Unfollow accounts and unsubscribe from emails that don’t support this journey 

I recently unsubscribed from nearly all marketing emails and have been maintaining “inbox zero” for a few weeks. My next step is to audit the social media accounts I follow to make sure they align with the type of content I want to consume and aren’t just selling me on things I don’t want.