Dressing Up Every Day for a Week: How It Affected My Confidence

An interesting thought popped into my head the other day. I don't remember what I was doing or when this thought popped into my head, but it did in fact pop into my head. I guess it was more of a question, and that was, what would it feel like if I looked my best all the time? Now, let me define what looking my best is to me. I'm not talking about changing what is here already, but rather using clothes and makeup and hair styling and jewelry and accessories to like always look my best. I think this is interesting to me in particular because I look like this 80% of my life. I work from home every day and so this is kind of what I look like every day.

During the week, you know, when I go out, I'm usually running an errand or like going to a workout class. And I don't need to look good for that. I don't necessarily like look bad when I go run errands or when I go to my workout classes, but I'm wearing clothes usually for like comfort and convenience. I'm not dressed up. There's no vibe usually. And I'm not sure if this is a toxic idea. This might fully be a toxic idea because this is how I'm most comfortable. Like I'm really comfortable right now. This feels really good. And so this might be a fully toxic idea, but I actually don't think it is because this idea didn't pop into my head because I feel bad about myself. It more so popped into my head just kind of

out of curiosity. Like what would that feel like? I don't know. I just I don't know how that would impact me psychologically, but I kind of want to try it sort of as an experiment. Let's discuss the pros and cons of this concept. Starting with the pros, I think number one, I'm doing this for me. I'm not trying to impress anyone. I'm not trying to like fit in. I'm not trying to impress a boy. Like, this is for me. I do think it's going to boost confidence. If I'm always in a cool outfit and my hair looks good and I have a little bit of makeup on, that has to boost my confidence to an extent, right? It's also nice that if I'm always kind of

dressed up, then I'm going to get to utilize more of the clothes in my wardrobe, which I think is great. I'm also going to get to utilize my makeup before its expiration date, although that's never stopped me from using it. Yeah, I get to utilize my stuff more. I think it might be fun. Fashion is arguably a hobby of mine. Like, I think it'll just be fun. It also might improve my skills. Let me elaborate. You know, the more outfits you put together, the better you get at putting together outfits. Same thing goes for makeup and hair. So, I might improve my skills. Okay, let's move on to the cons. I fear this might make me too self-centered, which might not be a bad thing. It might

boost confidence, but it also has the potential to just make me more vain in a way that's potentially negative. Is selfcenteredness a word? I don't know. It also might be exhausting, honestly. Could be fun. Could also just make me tired. You know, it could also be a waste of time. I don't have anything to be dressed up for. A lot of times I'm just on my computer looking like this. It is unnecessary for me to dress up more than I do now. It's not like I show up to dinner with friends like this. I'm never dressed up inappropriately for an occasion. So, technically, this experiment is completely unnecessary and

it might just be a waste of time. It might also make me feel sort of fake. By that, I mean, I'm somebody who loves to be comfortable. I don't mind this outfit. You know, you can call this an outfit. It's really just my robe. I've always been this way. Somebody who chooses to be ultra casual, who chooses to be the most comfortable whenever possible. Unless I have to be dressed up, I'm not going to dress up. And it's weird because I am somebody who loves fashion and loves to get dressed up. But if I'm dolled up all the time, am I then erasing the part of myself that is ultra casual? And is that going to make me feel fake and ingenuine? Am I not going to feel like myself anymore because

there's a part of me that's missing? Or is this not even a part of me? And again, it's just going to be fun and boost my confidence and it's not that deep and I'm not erasing anything. I'm just expressing one certain part of myself more. Uh, I don't know. I also think it might make me feel trapped. There is something sort of freeing about having a version of yourself that you exist in frequently that is the most stripped down version of yourself. This is one of my defaults. So, what happens if I remove that default? Every moment is kind of chic. Do I then feel the pressure to upkeep this sort of identity? like she's got a cute outfit on all the time. Even when she's sleeping, even when she's at the grocery

store, like she always like, is that going to trap me? I don't know. I don't know what's going to happen because I really do think it has the potential to genuinely be a really fun shift in my lifestyle, but I also could see it being kind of dark. I guess we just have to try it. Now, let me walk you through an average day of outfits. A lot of it looks like this. Okay, underneath. I'll show you what I'm wearing underneath. It's not cute. Well, it's not terrible, but it's fine. But I wouldn't say I feel cute

right now. Definitely not. This is what I look like when I go to my workout class. cross body bag, sweatpants, sweatshirt. Under this, I'm just wearing a black sports bra and black shorts. That's it, which I don't really feel like I need to change. But my outfit to going to the workout is this. And it again, I don't feel cute in it. And a lot of times after my workout classes, that's when I go and run errands. So, I run errands in this all the time. Now, a lot of times when I get home, I get back into something pretty comfortable. Oftent times, like this. This is so comfortable. I've never been more comfortable in my life, but it's not cute. The one thing about me, though, is

that usually I'm going to be wearing a matching outfit. Like, to me, this all matches. I'll give myself credit there. But just because it matches doesn't mean it's cute, right? I am going to a workout class soon. I actually already know what I think I want to wear. So, I have this really cozy knit sweatpant sweatshirt set and it's kind of the perfect elevated workout outfit. Let's try. I mean, this already feels cuter. I always wear a headband like this, which is kind of cute. So, that'll stay the same. Put on some big glasses, hood up, elevate the cross body bag a little bit. And then I feel like I can still wear my old slippers, but maybe I'll wear her with a black sock. There we go. This

feels chic. And then maybe I could put on a little bit of tinted lip balm. Although, something really weird is happening to my tinted lip balm, and I don't know what happened. Did it melt or something? I don't know. I normally don't use my finger, but something really bad happened to my lip balm. I had to pack my shower bag. So, I ended up bringing this like cute black tote. I usually use the same tote bag every day. Like, I don't pick out a bag that like matches my outfit. And then I also put in little hoops because when I get dressed up, I usually wear large silver hoops, but when I work out, I usually take them out because they're too big.

But I really wanted to feel cute. I don't know. I feel ready for the day in a way because I'm in a cute outfit and I have a little bit of tinted lip balm on, you know? Um, yeah. And now it's kind of time to start my workday. And I don't know what to wear. I feel like I should put on a normal outfit. I mean, like, I'm not going to put on a pair of jeans. Or maybe I will. I don't know. Like, it feels wrong. There's my lip, in case you were wondering where it was. I can't help but feel like I'm kind of getting dalled up for nothing. Why am I doing my makeup? We'll see. It might make me feel good throughout the day. Like when I look in the mirror, maybe I'll be like, "Ooh, cutie. Who's that?

I don't know what to wear." Yeah. What am What do I wear? These green work pants. Like, I don't need to be dressed to the nines. Okay, that's not the point of this. What if I just wore a t-shirt? Perhaps a black t-shirt. I mean, this is definitely cuter than what I usually wear. Let's see how my workday progresses. Let's see if it like gets in the way or distracts me or annoys me or my clothes in my wardrobe, which I'm also getting to utilize my makeup. Okay, so it's pajama time. And here's the problem. I don't have any cute pajamas. Um, okay. Let me think. Well, I usually prefer to wear shorts to bed, but I could wear these cute navy blue lounge

pants. They're very flattering. So, every time I walk past a mirror tonight and see my butt, I'll be thrilled. And then maybe like a simple white top. Maybe this one. Waffle knit one. And then maybe with that I could wear some thick socks, perhaps a pop of green. To be honest, I just need one cute pajama set. So, I'll go shopping for that tomorrow. But this will work for now. I don't feel that cute to be honest. It's definitely comfortable though. And I will wake up looking cuter than normal. Not that cute. It's okay though. When I was sitting on my computer, I didn't really feel cute or not cute. I was just focused on the task at hand. But I really liked having my makeup done

all day. Weirdly, even though no one saw me, it's kind of nice to feel like, oh, if somebody called me up right now and invited me to go to dinner, I could go right now. If all of a sudden I needed to run in errand, I could just get up and go. There's something really nice about that. I'm going to a workout class again. I might as well just wear the same thing I wore yesterday because it worked. An outfit repeating is allowed in this challenge. Okay, I believe in outfit repeating. Okay, I'm home from yoga and I have 8 minutes to get ready for my first Zoom meeting of the day. I like to take them on the treadmill. I like to walk and talk. I mean, like, I don't like usually

sweat that much, so it's not like I need to wear something sweat wicking, but like something semi athletic. I could wear these yoga pants. Maybe it's like a black long sleeve. Actually, what about these? Half athletic pants, half jeans. These are actually perfect. I'm going to wear these. These are a little bit more put together. These are very cute. Uh, I mean, this green is cute. That would be cute. Maybe I'll layer something on top of this. It's definitely unnecessary. Okay, I'm going to wear these. I'm putting on these comfy shoes. Okay, I am late to my call now. Here's my call outfit. Yay. Okay, I have to go now. And get to like lean into it and go full trend mode. Like that's fun. Um, so this everything about this has just been a dream.

I'm done with all of my meetings. So now I'm going to go run some errands. I'm putting in my big hoops now. Okay, the hoops are in. Let's see what the weather is. 75. H. Well, the first thing that caught my eye, these pants. Very cool. Maybe I could do I don't like this. This is not cute to me. Cute. Casual. This is definitely cuter than what I'd usually wear to go run errands. That's for sure. Definitely cuter. I'm very particular about pajamas. I can't sleep unless I'm kind of cold a little bit. So, long sleeves and long

pants are not ideal. I prefer short sleeves and shorts. But also, I really like simplicity, and a lot of pajamas are really busy and designheavy, and I like simple things. But also, I'm very particular about the way things feel on my body. If something feels slightly off, I notice it. And even more so if I'm sleeping in it. It's actually really a shame that I don't like wearing long sleeves and long pants because some of the cutest sets that I saw were long sleeves and long pants. And so I tried one on just to see if maybe the fabric made it more comfortable, specifically breathable for sleep. No. I tried on the long sleeve and long pant pair and immediately I started sweating. Big no.

No. But I did end up finding what I think might be almost the perfect set. So now I need to go to the grocery store and then I need to go home and I need to wash that because I'm not wearing it till I wash it. But I want to wear it tonight. So I need to wash it. Yeah. makes succolor peppers. That's great. Let's give it up for the new PJs. Yeah, they're cute. New PJ alert. I feel cute. I can't remember the last time I felt cute in my PJs, to be honest. It's been years. Do you like my new PJs?

I know. Really cute, right? I do think this experience is boosting my confidence. I know it's only been 2 days, but I do feel a confidence boost. So far, I don't feel like it's turning me into a narcissist, so that's good. But there are definitely moments where I feel like I'm just putting on a cute outfit to put on a cute outfit for the sake of this experiment. and it's like really unnecessary. Like for example, today when I was walking on my treadmill because I layered a tank top over the t-shirt, it kind of made me a little bit sweaty. And then I probably should have been wearing shorts instead of long pants, but I didn't have any shorts that I thought were cute enough. And so it

felt a little bit wrong. But I would say other than that, today was really positive. The experience was really positive. Like the pajamas I really like because I'm equally as comfortable, but I just feel cuter. Like I truly think I'm getting the maximum benefits from this when I'm not sacrificing comfort. And that's a lot more possible than I thought. Good morning. I'm going to a workout class. again. So, I guess I'll wear the same thing again. See, here's the thing. This is cashmere.

Cashmere doesn't get stinky. You can wear it a lot before you have to wash it. So, that's actually a plus about this outfit. Okay, I'm getting my hair done this afternoon. Like, that's all I'm doing today. Just sitting in a chair getting my hair done. So, I need to put something on that I don't care about because, as you can see, my hair is bleached. If I wear something that I like to this appointment, there's a chance it might get damaged by the bleach. So, I just need to wear something honestly hideous. I'm thinking white tank top, gray sweatpants. That's it.

This is it. This is my hair bleaching outfit. But here's the deal. I'm getting my hair done at home. So, it's it's fine if I wear slippers. It's fine if I wear slippers, right? Like, or maybe I'm just making excuses to weasle my way out of this challenge a little bit. Maybe. No, I actually don't think I am because I genuinely would look cuter than this. I just don't want to damage clothes that I care about. I'm being responsible. Yeah, this is responsible. So, it's night time now. My hair is done. It is short and it is bleached. The thing about having a hairstyle like this is that every five weeks I have to dedicate a day, an entire day to maintaining it, which is no problem

because it's worth it because I like it. So, it's totally fine. But I need to take this shirt off immediately because it is filled with hair. Like tiny little pieces of hair jabbing into my neck. So, I need to take this shirt off uh right now. I'm back in my PJs. Today sort of felt like a lapse. in the challenge. Technically, I could have gotten doled up and worn a cute outfit, but I couldn't justify it even for the sake of the challenge because it was too inconvenient. And it was also kind of irresponsible. I think this is actually symbolic of how some days you just can't look your best. Like, it just doesn't make sense to. But my PJs are cute. I think tomorrow there'll be more opportunity to get dalled up. Actually,

there's a lot of opportunity to get dalled up. I'm looking forward to making up for lost time. tomorrow. Okay, I have a Zoom call in 5 minutes and I have to be on camera. So, I need to put something on quickly. And then after that, I'm going to walk on my treadmill and get some work done. So, I need to wear a semi- athletic outfit that looks chic on the top half. Um maybe I'll wear these capries. I really don't have time to be messing around. Okay, white sock. White sock or a black turtleneck and then these. Okay, I have to just go. O, I have 1 minute. Don't judge my makeup form. Okay, I'm just getting it on. And then maybe I swap out my earrings. I'll put in some real big hoops. Okay.

I have to take this makeup off really quick. Guess where I'm going? You won't believe it. I'm going to my workout class. I know. I'm a creature of habit. But see, it's kind of inconvenient that I put on makeup for that Zoom call because now I'm like forced to remove it. Like, I didn't really need to put on makeup for that. I should have probably waited until after my workout class, but it's And you know what? I considered wearing something different to my workout class today. I thought about it and then I decided, nah, I'm just going to wear the same thing again because every single day I feel shaken it and it hasn't gotten old yet and it hasn't gotten dirty yet, I don't think.

So, I'm just going to wear it again. There's no reason to complicate things that don't need to be complicated. This is working. Oh my god, everything fell out. Okay, this is cute. So, I'm just going to run with it. Bye. It's like gorgeous and summery out and I think I want to wear like a cute summery outfit. Like I want to wear some shorts or maybe a skirt. Maybe this little gray skirt with like maybe with like a black tank top over this. That looks cute and comfy. I never wear skirts. This is very weird. I'm like craving a skirt and that never happens. Cute. and honestly comfy. I love this outfit. That was honestly easy.

I have to leave for my friend's birthday dinner in literally 10 15 minutes. It's actually going to be a bit chilly tonight, so I need to like wear a sweater and then I'll swap out the skirt for more of an evening time skirt. Can I brush my teeth today? I don't know. This gorgeous gray skirt. Why not? Honestly, with these That's cute. I mean, it's definitely very dramatic. This is like a big skirt, but it's cute. That was actually very easy. I'm feeling thrilled cuz usually when I need to get dressed quickly, that's when it takes me the longest to get dressed. So, that was really successful. So, I just need to like touch it up and add to it a little bit. Recover up the

zits. I actually really enjoyed wearing my cute little outfit while I was doing my nails and working today. Like, it really brought me joy and it got me to wear something that I don't wear very often. I don't wear that gray skirt very much. So, that did prove my theory that this lifestyle would get me to wear more of my clothes. I would get more use out of my clothes. I mean, I'm already wearing things that I normally don't wear. So, that's pretty cool. Um, I might regret this, but I'll smudge it out and we'll see. Okay, it's a little messy, but I can clean it up with a Q-tip, maybe. Okay, I look a little tired, but it's okay.

Ooh, that's fun. Oh, yeah. That's [__] fun. Making it a little spiky. And then I'll put my glasses back on. vibe. The nails do not match the vibe tonight. Actually, with a bit of imagination, they actually can. I Oh my god, it's 1:00 in the morning. Past my bedtime. Way past my bedtime. We ended up going out for my friend's birthday. I don't go out a lot. I am so tired. Oh, back in my PJs. I need to go to bed. Good night. It's the weekend. So, I'm going to go like hang out, go get some food, maybe do some window shopping, maybe go to a flea market. I don't really know what I'm going to do, but I want to be out

and about today. I do have to get dressed quickly because I'm being picked up by someone to go hang out and uh I don't have a lot of time. 15 minutes. Why does this always happen to me? I'm always late. Well, I'm actually not always late, but I'm always on the verge of being late. I'm usually pretty on time, actually. Um Okay. Wait. I need to visualize the outfit and then I can Hold on. I need to move fast. [__] Okay. Um, perhaps I could wear Oh my god. I don't know. I'm overwhelmed. Um, actually, honestly, I kind of want to rewear the outfit I wore yesterday. It was so cute. Is it bad if I wear the same outfit as

yesterday? I don't think it is. No one saw it except for you. So, I might as well wear it again. I love outfit repeating. Like, this stuff isn't dirty yet. Let me take it out for another spin. I don't feel bad about this. Okay, maybe a little bit, but not like it's fine. I'm so dedicated to this experiment that I'm doing my makeup in the car. I brought all my makeup. I usually would just not wear makeup. I am not going out on this Saturday afternoon. Not looking my best. Sorry. It's just not happening. Wait, we have an issue. We have an issue, which is that I didn't wash my cute PJs last night. And to be honest, like if I wear them again, it's not that gross because I don't want to get into

why it's not that gross. Like I was going to say like I wear underwear under so it's like not that gross. But like I need to get a little bit creative because I still want to look cute tonight. To be honest, I didn't like when I wore the sweatpants. So, I want to try something else. I was thinking I could style perhaps boxer shorts. So, these are cute. Maybe a tank top. Simple. Like just this plain white tank top. Wait, this is like the last outfit of this challenge. We have a lot to discuss tomorrow, but I'm going to bed. I really need to go to bed. It's over. I did it. I'm talking like I did something really challenging. It wasn't that challenging. Let's go back to our initial pros and cons list. Did I

do it for me? Yes, I did it for me. At no point did I feel like, oh wait, I am kind of doing this to impress other people. I am kind of doing this to fit in. No. Did it boost confidence? Yes. I just didn't think it mattered that majority of the time I was in comfy clothes and had scruffy hair and my makeup wasn't done. So, I was like it might make me feel better, but it might not be a significant enough change, but it did boost my confidence. Now, listen. Did it boost my confidence a lot? No. But enough to notice. And it's just overall improved my self-perception. Did I utilize more of my stuff? Yes. I think because I was getting dressed to just hang out at home, I was a bit more experimental. I

was gravitating towards things that I normally am not as inspired by when I go out. And so I did end up wearing stuff that I don't usually wear. Was it fun? Yes, it was fun. And did I improve skills? I can't say yet. It's too soon. Cons. Cause self-centeredness did not make me self-centered. I mean, it made me a bit more self-centered in the moments when I was getting dressed or doing my makeup, but it was pretty isolated to those moments. Once I was done getting dressed and done doing my makeup, I went back to being just as self-centered as I was before or not self-centered. Was it exhausting? Yes, at times it was exhausting. There were

moments when I felt a bit lazy and I was like, to be honest, like I don't want to do this right now. But I will say every time I put the effort in and pushed through my exhaustion, I never regretted it. waste of time. Again, there were moments when I felt like this is a little bit of a waste of time. Like, why am I sitting here doing my makeup right now when I could just be productive on things that actually have more significance? But again, I never regretted it. Did it make me feel fake and ingenuine? No. I think what I was worried about is sort of erasing a part of my identity, which was this sort of stripped down version of myself that's still there. And anytime I want

to see that girl, I can see that girl. And last but not least, do I feel trapped? The honest answer is no. If there's a day where I just really want to be cozy and comfy, I'm going to be cozy and comfy. If I want to not do my makeup and not do my hair, I'm going to not do my makeup and I'm not going to do my hair. Like, it's still ultimately up to me. And I am doing it for me. I don't feel trapped because why would I trap myself? If I don't want to do something, I'm just not going to do it. I know how good it makes me feel now to get dressed up, get dled up as often as I can. I think I'm going to try to do that just because now I know how good it makes me feel. And part of me feels bad about

that. Like, is that sort of shallow? Is that sort of surface level? Like, should I not feel good when I do this? But I don't think so. I think it feels good to put effort into yourself. Even if it's just for yourself. Actually, especially if it's just for yourself. I'm really glad I did this experiment. And perhaps you could say it changed my life forever.