Suits.

We say to girls,

"You can have ambition

But not too much

You should aim to be successful

But not too successful..." 

- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Before I begin, I just want to say, I am by no means the girliest girl on the planet.

Yes, I like sparkly things and high heeled shoes, and the mere thought of doing football in PE at school was enough to send me into a state of absolute panic, but I am nobody's barbie doll.

Yet despite this, my inner girly side was set a challenge today, a challenge which was presented due to my looming new job start date...

I needed to buy a suit.

Nothing flash, just a jacket and trouser combo that can be worn day to day, but also for meetings and whatnot with businessy-type posh people.

I must have read a zillion articles about "power dressing" in magazines long before I ever had any real need to pay attention... So I didn't really know where to start!

Suits always remind me of times when my Dad would go away on business when I was a kid. He'd disappear for a few days in his pinstriped suit, with his briefcase and laptop and all the kids in my street thought he was a spy.

Maybe he was... 

All I ever cared about was whether he'd bring me back some sweets.

So the Mother and I set off to the shops to buy MY first suit.

Something I never thought I would do.

"I don't want to look like a man" was my only specification.

But as it turns out, there is actually quite a nice selection of women's business wear on the high street!

My only real issue turned out to be sizing.

I'm the first to admit, I'm not in great shape at the moment. I'm definitely on the wrong side of curvaceous-bordering-squishy, but jeeeeeeeesus!

How is it possible to be 3 different dress sizes in 1 shop?!

My poor Mother got the full force of my pouty tantrum when the third pair of trousers didn't fit.

Bless her, she tried her best to make me feel less like a walrus in a catsuit...

"It's just the shaping", "the sizes are always tiny here", "maybe it's just the material"... 

But I was a woman possessed!

We ended up leaving Outfit empty handed, and instead spent an obscene amount of money in Next, where clothes actually fit properly.

What are parents for eh?!

So I'm now suited ready for my new job starting on the 24th, I just need to find the shoes to match.

Let's hope all the aggro turns out to be worth it!

L x