The W24 team has decided to start a series called #MyComfortZoneExit, where we'll do one thing that we've never been brave enough to do before the challenge. This time, in the spirit of doing something that is light years away from my comfort zone, I gravitated towards my love for suits.
Blake Lively is the first woman that I had true heart feelings for when I saw her in one of her godly ensembles, and since then I've been inspired by Lerato Kganyago's looks and I've been meaning to start a collection of my own powersuits to wear pretty much every single day, on every occasion. But one kind of suit trend that I've been wary of but curious to try is one that Lady Gaga's rocked with so much finesse and flair: a suit sans shirt underneath.
READ MORE: #MondayMotivation: The new power suit is your answer to spring's moody weather
The challenge
First of all - just to get this teeny bit of info out the way - I've got pretty small breasts, so I didn't think that I was the target market for this look. A majority of the women that I've seen pull this look off made it look all-the-more stunning because their chests allowed them to.
The dare to wear only a blazer triggered a nervousness in me that stemmed from the insecurities I have with my body and how I don't feel like I look good in certain things, including things like deep V tees and plunging necklines.
READ MORE: How to shop and pull off tailored summer suits like your fave celebs this party season
In addition to the challenge of being brave enough to embrace my body as is, and work with what I have (and don't have), I had to find a way to make one of my favourite blazers - which had no buttons - stay together with nothing but a figure belt that I was scared would come off and expose me more than I already felt exposed.
I can't count how many times I stood in front of the mirror and begged myself to reconsider, but I went ahead with it because momma didn't raise no chicken.
READ MORE: Blake Lively has worn a power suit for seven days in a row - and it's not by accident
The experience
My editor had suggested that the only thing that would make this a proper comfort zone exit is if I went to an event in the outfit I was praying wouldn't fail me; so coincidentally, I had already been invited to one. To say that wearing just a blazer out in public was nerve-wracking and scary would be a bit of an understatement.
I arrived at the academic event and the first thing I felt was that I was a slight bit overdressed in a shirtless blazer.
There's something about wearing a power blazer like that, as I'm sure Blake and Lady Gaga would tell you, that makes you feel like you're at the top of the top of the world. It just adds something extra to your look - the boldness of it is hard to ignore.
So, then, even though I started off feeling self-conscious and constantly fiddling with the blazer to ensure that it was still where it should've been, I eventually felt a bit more confident and so, so liberated.
Strangely enough, the moment I was starting to feel the look on me, my belt starting misbehaving, but luckily it didn't sabotage me completely, so the fashion malfunction I feared did not come to pass.
Would I do it again?
...
Well, maybe. Because if the only problem I had with it was the fact that my belt (which was the only thing saving me from an undignified mishap) was rather unreliable, then perhaps I would try it again with a better blazer. Otherwise, this is really a look that I see myself rocking again in future for the sake of my confidence and body positivity.
Shop
In case you want to try the look out too, here are three of my favourite picks.
Pinstripe blazer - R799, Superbalist
Asym crepe blazer dress - R879, Superbalist
Boyfriend blazer - R699, Cotton On
Keep your eyes on the site for our next #MyComfortZoneExit challenge!
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