Photo via Pinterest
For a while now, my friend Lacy and I have been chatting on the topic of “happiness”. What is it? Where does it come from? How do we get more of it? What makes us really happy? What makes one person a “happy person” and another not? The questions are endless, but the research, it turns out, is fun! We have in no way become experts, but have learned one thing: Happiness is, among other things, a practice. So like anything else we want to do better, we must make it a habit.
Lacy has been ‘practicing’ for a long time now, and I feel she has a lot to share on the topic. So when I decided to start this blog, I asked her if she would do regular guest-posts to talk about it. I plan to make a habit of reading them. xoxo, Leigh
Dress for Happy.
Hi all! Lacy here!
The great musical Annie said “It’s what you wear from ear-to-ear and not from head-to-toe that ma-ha-ha-tters!” I’m going to politely say it totally matters what you wear from head-to-toe. The way you dress can be completely happy-making!
I was recently sharing a beer with a stranger in an airport. I love airport drinking, love it. I feel so grown up sitting there with myself on a journey drinking a beer or having a glass of wine! We were in the security line together and then ended up seated next to each other at the airport watering hole so naturally we struck up conversation. I was dressed in bright purple leggings, ruffled mini dress, bulky gray sweater and half booties. I admittedly looked a little over the top but was totally comfy and proud of myself for being so bold with color. She looked comfy, sophisticated and put together in her jeans and sporty Adidas top and diamond stud earrings. She said that looking at me in line she wondered what I did for a living and complimented me on my fun clothes. …Said I looked like someone with a story. Well, it just so happens that I have lots of them and so does she!
As we sat and talked she shared how she started off in corporate America where she had to dress in complete suits each day. Not separates. Suits! She looked at me and said, “I owned a brief case!” with this tone and look on her face of utter disbelief that I will remember for a long time. She was dressing for the job and every fiber of that tasteful suit was strangling her. I commiserated about my time spent in the cubicle and talked about how I ached for a life where I could wear stretchy pants everyday if I wanted to. Enter my yoga studio days where I did just that. Though for all those years I kept a pair of slacks (that were too tight and added to the misery of their place in my closet), a suit (that was too big), several sensible button downs + closed toed shoes ‘just in case.’ The day that I finally let go of those clothes I was free.
Now each day I dress myself in clothes that make me happy. Some days I look preppy, some days I look like a hipster, some days a bit like an orphan but always I’m comfortable and dressing for myself, for my life and for my happiness. I believe that clothes define stages in our life. They symbolize how we spend our days, our money, who we lend our time to and who we are.
What are your clothes saying about you? Are you proud in them? Comfy? Happy?
Could buying a pair of jeans that actually fit right here, right now save you some sanity + heartache?
Is there anything taking up space in your closet that you can let go of?
Clearing space brings literal + emotional room for more!
More happiness + more clothes that feel like this version of you.
To your happiness + to jeans that make your ass look amazing (we all deserve a pair or two of those)!
xo, Lacy
Lacy Young is a professional happy person ©. You can find out more about her on her website.
