ADVICE I’M GLAD I DIDN’T TAKE

Through my 23 years, I have confided in friends and family when I needed advice on school, work, fashion and everything else in between. There certainly were plenty of times where I took the advice given to me but there were also other times where I chose to smile and nod before ignoring everything they had just said. However, even though sometimes I definitely should have listened to what they were saying, there is quite a lot of advice I’m glad I didn’t take.

DON’T GET TATTOOS

This is a biggen. Pretty much the majority of adults in my family told me not to get any tattoos because it would just be a phase and I would be sorry when tattoos are no longer ‘in fashion’. My 18-year-old self was determined to get tattoos and I was adamant that I wouldn’t regret it and you know what, I was right. Sure, the deathly hallows symbol on the back of my neck might not have been the greatest of choices but it reminds me of a certain time in my life where I felt rebellious and free. One thing I will never understand, is why people think that tattoos are just a trend when they have literally been around for centuries??? (Sorry mum) I also don’t understand it when people say you will regret having a tattoo when you are old because when I am 80 years old, you better believe I will be showing off the bee tattoo on my leg that I am ever so proud of, no matter how wrinkly I am.

CREATIVE JOBS ARE UNREALISTIC

Again, this is a biggen. All through secondary school I was really interested in art, film and media. I desperately wanted a job in that industry but I was always told by peers or older relatives that they were ‘unrealistic’ and I should go for a ‘safer’ job. I believed this for so long but I didn’t care, I decided to go for it anyway and GUESS WHAT —– now I work as a bloody writer in the media industry. I know SO many people who are working in fashion, graphic design, film or are running their own company. It absolutely is realistic, the creative industries are thriving right now and are growing all of the time. If you work hard enough, have talent and love what you are doing, you will most likely get to where you want to be.

YOUNG LOVE WON’T LAST

When I left university and me and my boyfriend of four months became a long distance relationship, I was told left right and centre by colleagues or relatives to put my career first because that is what will last. Yes, I have focused on my career but I have also put just as much focus on my relationship and I am glad I did because nearly three and half years down the line, we are still going strong. There are so many stereotypes of what makes a relationship work but that doesn’t mean that they will apply to you because each relationship is different. I’m so happy that I didn’t listen to this advice because people assumed we weren’t serious about each other because we were young.

LESS IS MORE

This is something I still get told when it comes to fashion. I am often told that I need to tone it down a bit and either go for one pop of colour or just one pattern but yano what, that just isn’t me. I have always experimented with my clothes and I love colourful and bold outfits. This is something that will never change, despite what some people might think but funnily enough, my loudest outfits are usually the ones that get the most compliments. When it comes to fashion, I like to just trust my gut instincts… even if my outfits aren’t everybody’s cup of tea. Which is exactly what I have done with this babe of an outfit. This multi-coloured tartan dress is bold enough so I don’t need any loud accessories right? WRONG. In my opinion, it can never be ‘too much’, so why not stick in some bright red heeled boots, red lipstick and a lightning bolt bag??? I don’t think you could possibly fit more colour into this outfit, which is exactly what I love about it.

DRESS – URBAN OUTFITTERS, SHOES – BOOHOO, BAG – PAUL’S BOUTIQUE, SUNGLASSES- PRIMARK

FOLLOW FASHION RULES

So, there are some fashion rules I like to follow such as not mixing gold and silver jewellery together but most of the time, I tend to ignore them. Things like, blue and green should never be seen,  don’t wear leopard print and zebra print together, don’t wear horizontal stripes if you’re curvy, don’t pair socks with open-toe shoes. I don’t really listen to these at all. They were what I was told growing up from people around me and reading it in magazines or hearing it on TV but to be honest, I’m not sure many people do follow these ‘rules’ anymore as I think they are now quite outdated. I think you can put beautiful outfits together that on paper, shouldn’t really work but somehow do. By following these rules, I think you tend to limit yourself as like I said above, some of my weirdest outfits have been my favourites.

Is there any advice you were given that you decided to ignore? I’m sure there are more than you think. A lot of the time, I have found trusting my own instincts have been the right move.

This blog post was inspired by this piece written by In The Frow.