oh boy! - a tomboy wardrobe

"she (jane birkin) reminded me that you can dress tough without

 compromising your femininity. thank you, jane birkin, for providing me 

with infinite outfit ideas and the confidence to dress like a boy but act like a girl." 

-alexa chung 

how i changed my life (sounds a bit dramatic but let's go with it): discovered alexa chung on tumblr, rid myself of strange, sparkly jeans with faux diamond encrusted butt pockets (i have now realized that they hurt to sit on), bought a pair of brown oxfords, googled jane birkin for the first time and decided to dress like a boy but act like a girl. 

 the coolest, most feminine, megababe women ever to walk the earth (i.e. jane birkin, francoise hardy and alexa chung) are the ones that act like a girl and dress like a boy. i've decided to rip off these women and weird 1970s, fur coat bob dylan in getting dressed every morning and attempt to recreate j.w anderson and margaret howell looks at the gap until my last day on earth. i like to dress like a boy but act like a girl. 

so you're going to dress like a boy...

(i lifted this title from "so you're going to wear the kilt", a 

strange, yet very appealing book i found in the scottish history

section of a second-hand bookstore.)

tomboy basics and ways to style them from the queen of tomboy cool, alexa chung.

  

the basics 
1. a slightly oversized and chunky sweater
2. a navy, black or even tweed blazer
3. a classic coat
4. the loafer
5. an oxford
6. a white button down
7. a 70s, floppy hat

the basics styled by alexa chung 

1. the oversized sweater 
the first essential element to a tomboy wardrobe
is an oversized sweater, preferably in navy or grey. you can
wear it with a pair of skinny jeans and hide in it on a cold day.
you can add much needed warmth, comfort and a dose of
effortless, boyish cool to girly dresses or a fitted skirt.

2. the blazer 
like an oversized sweater, a blazer takes some of the
frilly, girlishness of a printed or gingham dress away, but in a
more polished way. i like to buy very overtly girly dress, the
lacy, ruffled and flowery ones, and put a fitted, but not too
fitted blazer over it. 

3. a classic coat
a peacoat, toggle coat, double breasted coat, trench coat or
 duffle coat- any will suffice in building your tomboy wardrobe. find
the one that makes you feel the most like paddington bear or a little
1940s school boy.  

4. a loafer 
tasseled or penny. they look excellent with a skirt or dress-
even a floor length gown. they're the first piece of footwear
to be bought when constructing your tomboy wardrobe. 

5. an oxford 
like, the loafer, an oxford pairs perfectly with a dress (as
shown on queen chung),shorts, jeans, dress pants. a short, frilly dress, black tights, and a shiny black brogue is my dream outfit. 

6. a white button up 
besides a neutral, oversized sweater, one of the first things
you should buy in building you tomboy wardrobe should be
a white button up. you could go with a classic white oxford
like jane birkin or one with a little bit of a ruffle like alexa's
tommy hilfiger shirt. 

7. a wide brimmed, 70s style hat
a wide brimmed, felt or wool hat- the icing
on the tomboy layer cake. finish off your skinny jeaned,
large grey fisherman's sweater under a duffle coat and shinny
black loafered look with a black or even maroon floppy, felt hat.

-gracie