Spring 10×10(x10)!

Hi Everyone! If you’ve ended up here on the blog from my Instagram account, you probably know what the 10×10 challenge is, but for those of you who may have stumbled upon me randomly (or if you’re my mom and you don’t have Instagram) here’s the breakdown:

• 10 items of clothing
• 10 outfits
• 10 days

If you want to know more, I urge you to head on over to the amazing blog of Lee Vosburgh, creator of the 10×10 challenge, pioneer influencer for the responsible fashion movement, and all around wonderful Canadian woman. Lee started an incredible community with her 10×10 challenge, and this time around she’s hosting the challenge with my favorite capsule wardrobe blogger, Caroline of Unfancy, and my favorite designer, Elizabeth Suzann. If you want to join in the fun (and let me tell you, it is VERY fun), just pick out your 10 items and hop on Instagram with the hashtag #spring10x10.

This time around, I’ve decided to add one more element to my 10×10 challenge; in addition to my 10 items of clothing for 10 days, I’ll also be posting 10 new posts on Goblin Shark, one for each day of the challenge. I’ll be talking about things like my personal style journey, my style mentors, why I wear leather even though I’m a vegetarian, and how my thoughts about spending money have changed since transitioning to a more intentional wardrobe. I hope you’ll check in with Goblin Shark and join the conversations.

Today’s post is a quick rundown of my 10 items and my goals for this challenge.

Items:

1. Cream silk blouse (Madewell, thrifted)
2. Black silk dress (Everlane, thrifted)
3. Black silk shirt (Everlane, thrifted)
4. Beige pullover sweater (H&M)
5. Linen blazer (vintage, thrifted)
6. Blue jeans (Gap)
7. Black cropped pants (Gap)
8. Flax linen skirt (Loft)
9. Sand mules (Nisolo)
10. Black heels (H&M, not pictured because I keep them at work)

For me, this shakes out to six casual outfits and four office outfits. These are pieces that I’ve been wearing on repeat lately anyway, so I’m comfortable mixing them, and I know I’ll be adding tights as needed for chillier days. I’m actually really glad that the spring 10×10 challenge is happening right now because the weather has been unseasonably cold, and this gives me a chance to have an interim, transitional capsule while I wait for actual spring weather to arrive. I’m also really excited to give these Nisolo Mariella Mules a real run for their money over the next ten days, and you can expect my full review of them on the blog after the conclusion of the 10×10. The last thing I’ll say is that I don’t like to support some of these fast-fashion brands anymore, but these items were purchased before I began my responsible style journey, and I think its more sustainable to continue to wear them than to throw them away and buy new products.

Goals:

I only have one goal for this 10×10 challenge:

Actually do it.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, this is my fourth 10×10 challenge, but what I didn’t tell you is that I’ve never really completed one in earnest. I’ve either swapped items out for other items partway through, stopped early, or taken several days off in between to wear other stuff. I think that the real “ah-ha” moments of this challenge come from doing the parts that are uncomfortable and unfamiliar, and I want to embrace that discomfort and see what I learn. Maybe nothing, but probably something, right?

My only concessions to the rules of the 10×10 will be that if it’s raining, my mules are going in a dust bag in my purse when I’m outdoors (and I’ll carry an emergency pair of TOMS with me), and if its cold in my office, I’m putting on a sweater. I’m not about to ruin a beautiful and expensive pair of shoes, and I just can’t get work done when I’m cold. I legitimately keep a hot water bottle at my desk to keep myself warm. Yes, it looks ridiculous. Yes, EVERYONE makes fun of me for it. (Yes, I stay warm.)

As always, you can keep up with my daily outfits on Instagram at @goblinshark_ .

Thanks for reading, and happy spring 10×10 to all who are participating! If you’re on the fence about it because it sounds hard – it is! But that’s why it’s fun 🙂

-gs