Issue 57. What I won't be buying this spring

De-influencing, together

Spring, *insert sounds of birds chirping,* a beautiful season that usually tempts me to throw caution to the wind and buy the colorful, shiny items, with little regard for their utility or fit in my life. Which, sometimes works out fine! This year, I’m ready to take a different tact. Below, the items I won’t be buying this spring, because I know they won’t serve me well.

As always, if any of these items are staples for you, then keep doing your thing!!

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Colorful, printed dresses

These are so fun to buy but rarely work in my wardrobe. I used to think, 'Oh, I’ll love how easy it is to throw this on and go,' but when the time came, I felt disappointed—they always felt the same no matter how I styled them. I think it's because they stand out from the rest of my closet, drawing attention and feeling too memorable. But for you, those same reasons might make them perfect! None of this is a universal rule—just an invitation to reflect: Is there anything I feel this way about?

WHAT I WEAR INSTEAD: subtly-printed dresses and jumpsuits, linen separates

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The color red

I’ll admit that I’m very tempted to finally buy into the red trend, since I’m still seeing red online everywhere. But, this trend doesn’t feel authentic to me. My style leans more Minimal / Scandi / Coastal, and pops of red just feel too Americana on me. If I were to introduce more color this summer, I would be open to also “trending” petal pink, mauve or even a marigold yellow (spoiler - I did order these). Pink or yellow would be really nice against the navy, white and light denim I frequently wear, but I suspect red would feel too brash for my personal style.

WHAT I WEAR INSTEAD: white, navy, blue, brown, pale pink, mauve, gray

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Mini dresses

This is very specifically the mini utility dress by the brand Noble. Maureen circa 2015 would have LOVED this dress and would have worn it with tights, boots and a raincoat to art school in Seattle. And while I’m drawn to it now, I suspect I’ll feel far too young if I tried to wear it today, not because a person my age shouldn’t wear it, but because I associate it with an earlier version of my style.

WHAT I WEAR INSTEAD: subtly-printed dresses and jumpsuits, full-length pants

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Super strappy sandals

I genuinely wish I was this girl, but I’m not. And in the past, this is the exact fun thing I want to buy this time of year. However, wearing a thin-strapped sandal just never feels right. Even on a warm-weather trip, when I think “oh I’ll wear a fun strappy sandal to dinner,” inevitably, my feet are swollen from the day’s adventures and the idea of putting on a flimsy sandal just feels wrong.

WHAT I WEAR INSTEAD: Teva mid-form sandals, leather slingback sandals, or ballet flats

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Cropped, barrel-leg jeans

As I’ve shared before, once full-length jeans started to become available in stores after a lOOOOng drought (the ‘ankle-length’ trend and all), I just couldn’t bring myself to buy cropped jeans again. If I’m honest with myself, I never even liked the experience of wearing cropped pants. I remember always thinking “my ankles are cold.” Anyway, I’m going to bask in the availability of full-length pants, and remind myself when I see someone looking adorable in barrel leg jeans IRL, that I’ve tried them and they’re not for me.

WHAT I WEAR INSTEAD: full-length denim and linen pants

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Anything viscose

Please let me know if you’ve had a different experience, but years ago I bought a lovely viscose Madewell blouse and it was RUINED by the first machine wash (and you know it was pricy!) Anytime I see something in viscose now, I know to steer clear: I do not realistically dry clean. Anyway, this means that many more items I *could* buy are off-limits, and I love that for me.

WHAT I WEAR INSTEAD: linen, cotton, wool, nylon, merino wool, lycra, cashmere and alpaca

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Let me know in the comments, what are you not buying this spring?

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Thank you for reading Intuitive Style. Your readership, likes, shares and comments mean so much to me. You can shop my *highly curated* recs here, and listen to the Intuitive Style podcast on Substack here or on Spotify here. If you choose to upgrade to a paid membership, a portion of your payment will go directly to the Stop Child Labor Coalition.

xx, M