June 14, 2023
As I enter my 29th rotation around the sun, I have been reflecting on my own personal style journey. I often feel consumed with helping others find what clothing helps to connect them with their true authentic self.
In this, a part of me has felt like I have neglected myself along the way, thinking that the way I dress should be convenient; and the less effort I put into what I wear the more low maintenance that makes me.
But that just isn’t me.
I have always admired others and their want to make their closet accessible and minimal while showing a true reflection of their own personal sense of fashion/style.
Everyone is different, and that means that we all have specific needs or wants out of our clothing along with unique and special items we have found along the way that bring us joy.
What has always brought me the most joy is having the opportunity to express myself through my clothing even as a young child.
So, this year I have felt it necessary to remind myself of my roots, and of what first brought me this joy in an attempt to reclaim myself and my own fashion journey, while feeling seemingly lost in a world of helping others to find that for themselves instead. I have taken myself back to my earliest memories of fashion inspiration to see where I started and how far I’ve come since.
My grandmother was my first style icon, and the trailblazer that led to my career in this industry.
If only I had photos in colour of her from her youth! However, even in black and white, I have always admired how she would put outfits together.
My mother was born in the 1960’s, and thankfully her father (my grandfather) always had a camera in hand to capture our family memories.
Although first finding my love of fashion through my grandmother, truthfully it has been photos of my entire family that has always been a big source of inspiration that I can attribute to how my style has developed over time.
I have always loved looking back on both my mother and my grandmother through the decades, and in how I can pull from different trends of the past that my family loved to inspire how I dress today.
One of my earliest memories is me at the age of 2 wearing this denim dress with star sunglasses.
Thinking back, most memories I have from my childhood are connected directly to what I was wearing that day.
One of my earliest memories is me at the age of 2 wearing this denim dress with star sunglasses.
Thinking back, most memories I have from my childhood are connected directly to what I was wearing that day.
Playing dress-up was a big deal in my house throughout my childhood. Both my sister and I would constantly be dressing ourselves and each other in pieces that our mother and grandmother had kept from when they were young.
If I were able to go back in time and keep anything from my childhood, it would be the toy box that held the clothing previously loved by my family and that they had kept for my sister and I to continue to cherish.
My love for Sailor Moon started at a young age (even though I was never allowed to watch the show) and I have realized through this my talent in that I’ve always been able to draw inspiration from other creatives in the world around me even if facing various barriers or blockages.
I remember for my third birthday I had a Sailor Moon cake and on my first day of school I rocked a Sailor Moon backpack. The backpack being memorably one of my earliest forms of expressing myself, my likes and dislikes through my clothing, and my appreciation for having the freedom to do so.
My mother would always dress my sister and I in matching outfits that at the time we were not too fond of, but looking back it brings me so much joy to see how in sync my sister and I were and still are, ever since we were so young; and in picturing how much fun our parents must have had being able to help us both find our individual senses of style while still finding ways to showcase how close we were as a family and especially in being able to pass down to us so many special memories and photographs I know we will both cherish the older we continue to grow.
One of my personal favourites, I remember being so proud of this outfit I wore on Christmas when I was six years old.
A fuzzy pink vest on top of a turtleneck ... paired with RED tights AND a blue skirt...? iconic
Always a thrifty queen as I used to love (and quite frankly still do) receiving hand me downs.
I always adored going through all the different pieces and seeing how others would dress themselves. A lot of the time finding myself wondering why they were passing on such treasures.
This photo is from one of my favourite hauls of all time.
I was so excited about those perfect purple platforms that I would clunk around the house in every day (even though they were way too big for me) and that sweet, sweet green terry cloth sweater quickly found itself among one of my favourite gems.
I wish I still had both today but it brings me comfort to know they have been passed on to someone new who I know has loved them just as much, helping to continue the cycle I strive for.
High school was definitely the part of my life I struggled the most with both mentally and physically.
I had always been bullied for how I had looked or how I had dressed but I think what hurt me the most though was how I let it affect how I saw myself in the long run.
I spent so much time trying to blend in so people wouldn’t notice me that by the end of highschool I had no idea who I was or who I wanted to be.
Realizing all that shaped me was the opinion of others who I could not care less about and have not seen since the day I graduated.
After I finished college I made it a personal goal to start finding myself and dressing in a way that made me feel good.
Thanks to Jonah @jonahsnooks together we started a personal photo project where each month I would force myself to be in front of the camera despite how anxious it made me feel at the time.
And so began vilegloom as a blog and personal photo diary just for myself that no one but me could see and reflect on.
As I have become more confident, I have made my blog accessible to anyone and everyone and through it found my love for styling others so that they can see themselves in a whole new light, just as I had. It has taken me years, but now I know I love being on both sides of the camera.
The older I get the less I care about what others think, and looking back I wish I had embraced my style more earlier on, but when I look at these photos it helps remind me that it was there all along.
In my thirties I will be unapologetically myself.
I never thought I would be so excited for the future and I may not know what is in store for me, but I know that whatever lies ahead is going to be full of growth and self acceptance.
For however long you have been following my journey, thank you for listening and for all your support over the years.
all my love,
Taylor
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