More Better with Stephanie & Melissa“What if I Only Feel Good in Pajamas?” | Finding Your Authentic Style
Figuring out who you are is tough enough — learning how to infuse that identity into your personal style is a whole different ~journey~. This week Stephanie and Melissa are joined by their shared stylist Ariel Tunnell to discuss their respective style journeys, swap shopping and dressing room tips and discuss Steph and Mel’s thoughts on the return of Y2K style. Can you guess who’s more of a “jeans and t-shirt” kinda girlie and who’s the Trend Queen?
If you try something on and you don't fit in it, she'll go like, too bad for that dress, that's too bad for that.
More Better, More, a little bit more better, More.
Welcome to More Better, a podcast where we stop pretending to have it all together and embrace the journey of becoming a little more better every day. I mean, we're trying, we're trying to do it. That is most of a marrow, and that is Stephanie Beatrice. And here we are.
Welcome back. We're not maybe this is the first one you've ever listened to.
Welcome, Welcome, Hey man, how are you? Hey, dude, I'm good. How are you a man?
I'm surviving, not thriving exactly. Guess what I'm doing? All right? Have you done anything that's a little more better lately? You know what I'm be honest, not much, not much. We're just we're we're just trying to keep a baseline over here or okay, a baseline of okay, I get it, and then we will attempt to do some more better things. How about you? Have you done anything lately more better?
You know?
I've been trying this thing where when I go my I do have a walking closet.
Yeah, you do, like you got right dream about your closet.
But when I go in the walking closet, I need to put something that's on the floor back on a hangar.
I'm a notorious like does this work?
Does this work?
Does this work? And then I leave it all on the floor.
So consequently there's a huge pile of clean clothes on the floor in the closet. They don't stay clean for long though, because they're on the floor. So what I'm trying to do is every time I go in the closet, no matter what, for I try to take something up off the floor and put it away or back on a shelf or like back in the drawer or back on the hanger.
That's a good, more better thing.
It's going okay.
It's like it has to be one thing before I leave the closet, yeah, because otherwise it just gets really overwhelming. And then I'm like, I hate my life. And I don't hate my life. I just know I don't have a good habit of cleaning up after myself. So and if you just say one thing, then you're more likely to just do the one. Keep the practice. The bare minimum, babe, The bare minimum just established the baseline. Oh my god, we're doing fine. We're doing fine, more better, speaking of closets, Speaking of closets, this is an exciting episode because we have a guest. Yeah. Man, we don't always have guests, but we have a guest today. Yeah, we do, and I'm really excited about it.
Today's discussion is about finding your authentic style. And we have a guest because we're not experts at this, but we know somebody who is. It's our mutual stylist on our guest, Oriol Tunnel.
Yeah.
YEAHI hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, Iol.
Thanks for having me. Oh my god.
We're so happy that you're here.
Oriel is a Los Angeles space stylist and costume designer who originally hails from Oklahoma, Oklahoma.
Oklahoma, Right, Oklahoma.
But then you went to school for television and film and then you sort of like transitioned into being in.
Costumes and then in the styling industry.
Right.
Yeah.
I definitely have dabbled in a lot of things I do, like stage design and dancers and costumes for tours and pop stars, but also doing TV with kids and Christmas costumes to doing what I do more of now, which is red carpet and celebrity and you lovely ladies are part of that. And yeah, I found that I kind of really have hit it off in this category of hilarious a full talented, amazing, creative women.
Oh my god, that's so nice.
Yeah, I love it. I love all of you guys. It's so fun.
It is really fun. I do. I enjoy styling sessions. I enjoy getting dressed.
Listen, because you guys are listening to this, just know that I haven't washed my hair in like five days. I'm wearing like a vintage crappy T shirt jeans.
It definitely don't fit.
Some glasses that I popped the lenses out of. They were sunglasses. I popped the lenses out and I had my doctor put in real lenses. They look wild, They're bright pink. I've got to say.
She's under selling how cute she looks. But I'm not doing it on the daily. I'm a mess. I'm a hot mess right now. But I really love fashion, Thank you. I love fashion. It's so fun and I love our styling sessions. I love when we get to like play dress up and stuff. It's sometimes stressful, and I think I want to talk about that too.
I mean, it's it's definitely a job. It's definitely work, you know. I think that's a big misconceptionist. People think it's like just so glamorous and fun and like it's just playing dress up and it's not really a career. But there's a lot that goes into it, and it is a lot of work.
Yeah, yeah, it is a lot of work. And just for contexts, I wanted to add, since Stephanie does love fashion and she's like this fashionista and she's like so good at it. I'm the type of person I walk into the fitting and if the first thing I put on it feels like pajamas, I'm like, so we're good.
We're very different, very different clients.
I do love fashion and I appreciate it, but Melissa approaches it from a very practical point of view. Yes, Sevani is like, how much more can we try on? Because look at all these beautiful.
Clothes, you know, the fantasy?
Yeah.
Yeah, And those fittings are fun. You make those fittings very fun, that's right.
Nice.
The other thing about is like fashion it really has to be personal, right, Like it is personal to me.
It's like personal expression of self.
Yes, And then I would also say that this stuff filing relationship is so intimate because you're unpacking your insecurities, your body issues, how you see yourself in the mirror when you're naked in front of strangers or not strangers, but you know people that are not your intimate partner. I'm super lucky like you, the two of you guys, we've become good friends and like, I love our working relationship, but they're also professional relationships. Yeah, it's a business, you know, so I do think that, Yeah, like it's not always going to be a home run with everybody. Not everyone's gonna jive with everyone's flavor and style of working. But so far, I've been very lucky to find very cool, chill people that kind of all have a similar approach, which is like this can be fun and like to make each other feel good in the process.
Yes, And like you were saying, like you have to be so vulnerable in those fittings with someone, I've definitely, unfortunately been in a couple of fittings were just like girl not jising and things are getting pushed on you and like very strongly, like oh you should wear this, and I'm like cool, I can't breathe, and I'm not that girl.
And I do think that, like you know, in the world of fashion, there are always going to be kinds to take a risk, and like I may push for that at a certain event, at a certain moment, a certain brand, you know, loans, but for the most part, like you know yourself best. I only want to enhance that. I don't want to change that.
And that's why we love you.
It is It's true.
I love you.
I've had the experience that it's like we're so frustrated with you because you don't fit in anything. We pulled right like with other with other people in the industry, and I think that that's one of the things that I really appreciate so much about ariol is that, like, and I told Melissa this actually, when when Melissa was looking around for silas, I was like, oh, Ariel, this is this great thing where like if you try something on and you don't fit in it, she'll go like, too.
Bad for that dress.
That's too bad.
And so it's like it makes you feel like that.
Was what sold me because you feel like, oh, it is too bad for that dress.
Because like I'm too bad for that dress.
I'm going to go on a like carpet, I'm going to go to a fancy party, and that dress just doesn't get the chance to go with me.
Sorry, dress, now, that dress got ruled out right away.
It's like, it's such a nice feeling to feel, like I take that with me into dressing rooms now. Like if I try on a pair of pants that I think is supposed to be my size, it doesn't fit, and I'm like, that's.
Too bad for that pair of pants. Too bad, I'm not going to buy you.
Oh well, that's very nice that you that. I hope I've instilled a little wisdom, a little takeaway. But I also think that, like, and we talk about this in every fitting, and I've talked about it with every client and every friend I have too, the sizes on the clothes mean nothing.
Like they mean nothing nothing.
Man, It does not matter. It does not matter if you think you are a SI six and a size four fits you. It does not matter if you are a size twelve and you have to wear that sixteen in that dress, Like, it doesn't matter. Because the way that fashion and these brands and fast fashion and sustainability and the business models, like all of it is kind of all kind of mixed up and broken, where like there is no size, like there's no size consistency across the board, not all and even I feel like denim used to be fairly straightforward because it's like a measured number now, but now it's just as bad as everything else you as the wild West is it truly is. So. I just think that, like dressing rooms are hard to especially like if you're left to your own defenses and you're going and you're like looking for something, or you're in a pinch and you need something for an event, and you keep thinking, you keep grabbing things based on the labels that you're seeing, and nothing's working. It's really it's not good for your brain.
It's bad. It's really bad for your brain.
And accepting that, Like I love the idea that it's not about the size, it's about how it fits.
Yeah, it's so it's very freeing.
It's because sometimes it's like a small and then sometimes it's a large, depending on the way I want it to fit, and sometimes it's an excel mens because I want it to look like this, you know.
And I think, like I think, if we are all honest with ourselves and like, look in our closets, we probably have a huge range of actual sizes of clothing based on brands, what we've liked over the years, and vintage clothes, clothes from different decades that have completely different sizes than we have now. So European sizes like it just goes on and on and on. There's no consistency. So I think the best clothes are just the ones you feel good in and it doesn't matter what the sizes.
One hundred percent. I'm going to be holding on to that.
What if I only feel good in pajamas.
Then you are allowed to wear pajamas.
I have been wearing pajamas out a lot lately. Yeah, I've been doing.
It and call it a day.
You know, I wore a striped pajama pant with a different colored stripe. Pop.
I got a lot of compliments that day.
It was great, very cute.
More, Okay, let me ask you a twofold question. What is the most fun you've ever had dressing me for an event?
Like?
What was like one standout that you were like either like the experience or the dress or the suit or whatever it was that I was in.
Can I have to.
Yes, okay.
Number two would be the Encanto premiere. Oh yeah, yeah, because it was just so much fun. We spoke, you know, weeks and months ahead of time about the importance of representing Colombian culture in those press looks, and how we represented smaller designers and getting brands from South America to send so that we could kind of use this platform in this moment to shed light on these amazing craftsmen. They don't really get a place in the American fashion marketplace, right, yeah, yeah, and so I really felt challenged by that, but I also felt super satisfied by it because we did so much homework and it was super fun and I found all these designers and then of course you got to wear that beautiful butterfly embroidered Kiko Vargas dress that was so beautiful and like so spot on for the moment, Yes, totally, which leads me to number one. I know what this is the Oscars.
Yeah, the Oscars.
When you got to wear that beautiful door that was just such a dream come true.
It was so special and beautiful.
It was just like a perfect moment it Yeah, and I'm very proud of it. Yeah.
I loved that performance dress.
Yeah, that's cool. That was I mean again, not only did you get to go to the Oscars, but you ended up presenting and performing at the Oscars super casual fun.
Was there ever something that was really tough or hard with either of us to dress or figure out?
Mmmm?
Well not for you, Melissa, because you're always like cool, I'm easy, that's good.
Oh my god, that is so good. Oh my god, that's so funny. No, Melissa, You're just like multiple times where Ariel is like, maybe we should just try on like a couple more and I'm like, all right.
Maybe that's the tough thing that sometimes she's like, I'm good.
No, I think that. No, Melissa, I mean you're just so dreamy in the sense of like you know yourself and you're very confident in your decision. It's not that like you don't want to make the decision or you don't want to try on more things. It's more to me that you see it and you're good with it and you don't need more because you feel good.
Thanks, that's I'm gonna I'm gonna, I'm gonna let that in.
Yeah.
I see it as a very positive sign that like you really know yourself and you know what works and you know what you like on your body. That is, yes, that's true. I guess I'm decisive in the yeah, yeah, yeah, you're decisive and you stick to your decisions right right. And so speaking to that, what are your like top tips for finding your style, because like, this is something I've been kind of thinking about lately because i feel like I've always just been very jeans and T shirt kind of girl comfort, which I will always be. Well, that's why you're a girl after my own heart, because I'm a jeans and T shirt girl at heart too. I mean, every day of my life I wear a great T shirt. It's fine, it's who I am.
It's yeah, exactly. I'm not trying to change.
I've learned who I am.
I am trying to like be like step it up a little bit. Like I've been like dressing up for dinners out, you know, like Elliot's such a casual town, but like I've just been, yeah, like trying to make a little more of an effort. But I'm still trying to not just be like put a blazer on jeans and T shirt, you.
Know, put a blazer on it, put a blazer on it.
But like if that's who you are, then that's great. How would you find your own style?
You know?
I mean I think it's hard to just say, like, oh, change your style overnight because that's not authentic, right, Like that's not real life and that doesn't speak to like who you are and like what's going to actually work in your life. I think it's kind of like the same way. This is a weird analogy, but it's like if you organize a drawer and like every time you turn around it's a mess. It's like you didn't organize it right.
Oh my god, the read how do you?
But it's like a system that doesn't work right, like real time. And I think kind of style can be a similar approach in that, like if you're always kind of like finding friction against what you want your style to be or how you look or how you see yourself, Like sometimes simpler is easier, because like you should be more true to yourself, not always looking for the risks or the crazy fun new thing, because that's not who you are. It might be fun to buy it, and you might like it in your closet, and you might wear it once and then you might put it on a lot and then you change before you walk out the door.
Mm hmm.
Yeah.
Oh, I've definitely been guilty of that. I'm thinking particularly about a pair of bright pink pants.
See you don't wear them.
I have not worn them yet, but I've put them on a bunch of times.
Like you wear that, I can't do it.
And then I'm in that example. Just like treat them like jeans. Just wear them, like, don't let them win in the sense of like, don't let them intimidate you. Just like put them into your wardrobe as it already exists. So like, just wear them with your white T shirt, wear them with your blazer. You don't have to like rethink your whole thing just because these pants are bright pink. Just like, let them be bright pink pants that you wear the same as you wear your jeans.
I'm so invested in these briping pants.
Now, are they like are they like built like a slack, like a slack?
Oh my god, I'm sure.
You're like wide leg, wide leg? Are they like pull on?
Are they zipper?
They're zipper. They're wide with.
A bell tight loose, No kind of loose, really really wide leg like or kind of stiffer.
No, like a thicker, stiffer kind of.
I'm already excited.
But okay, this is funny because you and I have done hot paint pants.
I know when you.
Did Blockbuster Press, you wore this head to toe super hot paint, the hot monochrome.
I loved that. I think that's what made me buy these pants. And then in my real life, why either you need to have sweter.
To wear with it, or just like we just wear it with neutrals, wear it with white, wear it with black where it was gray, and just like try not to be intimidated by them or make it too complicated.
I like that, just like keep it simple. Yeah, just like.
Keep your same formula of like jeans and a T shirt and a blazer and like who you are, just like swap out the pant.
Oh my god, I love this. Yeah, I love it. I love that.
I would say the same formula, but just swap out the pant for like that one that you're like, how do I.
Make this work? I love it?
But how do I make it work?
Yeah?
And then I think another way of like updating your style without feeling like you have to like throw away everything you own and start over is like shoes, accessories, jewelry. Those are simple ways that you can kind of update things or try on maybe what's happening in the world without feeling like you're having an identity crisis.
Yes, I just bought a pair of fifty dollars jellies because I wanted to try this jelly trend.
Oh you're in it, girl, is a trend.
Like I was looking at some of these prices, Girl, eight hundred and sixty dollars for the row jellies.
I was like, get, who are paying?
Like, don't you remember what your feet felt like? Don't you remember the sweat bubbles and sweat like pile disgusting, I'm wearing jelly. How could you even consider it?
These are Matt They're Matt Jellies, Jeffery Cable.
This is not a ad.
They're very cute. Okay, Okay, I'm not.
I'm not gonna wear them to hike. It's simply too and from.
A pool situation like having a summer dress, very tangible like tactile memory of like being a kid and my feet being so sweaty in those jellies.
I'm gonna try it. We're going to see how they do.
Also, like I don't have good memories may baby.
Honestly, I feel like I've blocked them out. Now that you guys are saying this, I feel some kind of.
Regret it's coming.
I do feel like it is maybe not the best choice. However, I've already worn them, so we'll see what happens. I do think trends are cyclical, which is really terrifying as someone who has been through the first round of the wide pant.
Oh yeah, the wide pant.
Is back, baby, It's all coming hard man.
I'm kind of into it.
I mean, I'm not wearing Timberlands, but I'm basically just dressing how I did in high school, and I'm okay with it.
I could wear Timberlands. They're back.
Are you wearing cargo pants?
I have recently bought a pair of cargo pants, and I was I cannot believe you bought a pair of cargo pants. You know what, bro, they are so comfortable, Stephanie.
You just bought jellies. I think we're all even here.
Yeah, I mean, really, you're gonna judge my cargo pants and you just bought jellies with your sweaty feet and your jellies, you.
Know, what I bought that I'm gonna wear with my jellies.
I bought the Dowan what Gap collaboration, wide leg with the wide leg jean with the with the the pleats that look like Z Cavalry cheese.
But yeah, man, I bought them.
And yeah, I tried on much bigger sizes than I normally am and I bought like three sizes bigger because I wanted that big, baggy look, so I did it.
And that's another thing about sizes. Even the yes, the sizes that fit your body don't matter, but also sometimes you have to size up or size down to get the fit right because everything the look on the models is not the same. Like there's so much to think about.
More more that actually makes me think of the thing that I want to ask you about, which is like that is a good shopping tip, right, like think about sizing up or down so that you can get a fit that you think, what are some more like styling tip because like obviously like not everybody is going to have a moment where they have a personal stylus help them, right, So you be that for people right now, Like be the personal stilast that you wish that you could be for everybody.
Okay. I think a dressing room tip is like, always take more than one size, take two or three sizes, because you're always gonna wonder what if, Like what about the size smaller? What about the size bigger? Would it feel better? Would it look better? Should I get it? Hemmed? Like? You know, those are some things that I think in the moment, you're sometimes pressured and be like I think these are right, but like did you sit down in them? Because like, let's be real, you should sit down in your pants before you get them.
Oh my god, that one is so real.
And that's something I think we do all of my fittings is I'm like, but can you sit down?
We do that a lot.
Yeah, and more so pants dresses.
Yeah, can you sit down?
Sometimes address dramatically changes when you sit.
Down, and sometimes you give everyone a show you did not mean to give.
That you did not mean is out? Yeah.
Sometimes you just got to be careful, boy, Yeah, you got to be real careful. I think another thing too, is like it's great to know what brands work for you, but also be open to other brands and like, well, we live in a very lucky world in this well our world is terrible. Let's be fair. But we live in a lucky time in the sense that we have access to so many brands and we can buy things from all over the world with the click of a button. But that doesn't always mean that we're thinking about what's going to suit us and new brands and things that you know make the most sense. So I think, like, you know, if you're going to like Nordstrum, like take a lap around the whole floor, like be open minded, Like, don't just go to the two racks of clothes that you know fit you because you're in Yes, that's great if you're in a pinch, but you might be missing something that's really wonderful.
Yeah, I like the junior section of Nordstrum's because it's usually cheaper. And yeah, some of the big sizes fit me in the T shirts and ship hot and accessories are cute.
Yeah, and sometimes it doesn't always work that way, but like sometimes like men's pants can be really cute depending on the fit and stuff. You know, Like you can be open minded about if you're a smaller frame, you could look in the like the bigger size of the kid section. No shame in that if you you know, with plus size, you can maybe look at you know, both extended sizes and women. But like what happens when you go over to the men's jackets, Like are there some jackets that maybe have a bigger shoulder measurement that maybe the women's sizes don't go up to. There's just creative ways of thinking about it because things are gendered and targeted. I think in this world it's a reminder that you can look outside of that and just kind of see what speaks to you and there's no right or wrong.
I love, love love that more.
How mare, how do you feel about styling as we.
Get older or.
Become parents or Yeah, earlier you asked about like what was hard or what was easy about each of you, And I wouldn't say it was hard, but like dressing Stephanie through your pregnancy was very a charalonge. It wasn't a challenge. It was just there were a lot of changes because we went from the beginning of pregnancy and like all the way through postpartum, all the waste, you know, delivery or like like so we kind of did the whole life cycle.
Yes, it was like the peaks the booms are getting bigger, but the booms are bigger. But like the stomach is like doing something but I think fitting in the butt, but the butt is flat. It was very it was like a thing was like.
A expanding and contracting depending on the week.
Everything was slipping all over the place.
Real, real, real, real, real is what it's like.
Remember that, like, oh, this is a hot tip for pregnancy, or like just I had that one.
It was like almost like a unitard uh huh bumps under Yeah, it was like, oh, the bumpsuit. The bump suit was che what the bumps.
It's a brand of like lycra jersey like full support garments that are basically unitarts but they come in like short sleeve, long sleeve, so they're like full body stockings but they have the right kind of compression and support for pregnancy and postpartum. And now they are making dresses and all kinds of things. They've really expanded. But it's called Pumpsuit and it's really wonderful.
Yeah, highly recommend, highly recommend.
But I would say though that like your pregnancy was just eye opening because it's a very real scenario with what we're all dealing with as we get older, which is like, our bodies just change. Our bodies change.
They just change now your permission, my ribs think, and I'll never be that small again.
You know things, Gravity happens, Circumferences change.
Like yeah, shade changes like just weight distribution changes. Yep, yes, that's what I mean.
So, and like, hormones are real and life is hard.
To continue to mode for the rest of the hormones are but change. It's true.
That's something about working with you guys, but also working with a lot of the women that I work with. I think we're all just kind of real when it comes to those conversations and talking about our bodies and talking about how we're feeling. Like, I get it. You might not want to ever show your upper arms. Cool, we won't show them, Okay. You might only want to show that your ankles, that's the only part of your life you want to show. We'll make it work. Some people don't want to wear shape wear at all because it's uncomfortable and it makes them feel panicky because they can't breathe. Great, we'll figure out a way to work around. Other people are like, synch me in as tight as you can because I want to be snatched and I don't care because it's only for a couple hours, and like, I just want to look good, So.
I'm other people, you guys, it's me. It's definie. I love rule, not to the gods.
But not always because the other days we're like, we're all like I don't want close touching.
You can't do it, you know.
So I think it's also just like you know, I think for everybody it's important and okay to listen to your body. Some days you may want tighter clothes, some days you may want looser clothes, some days you may don't. You may not want to put on a waistband at all, and you want soft pants, and like all of that is just like normal. I think that's all normal.
I love that you're kind of giving us permission too, because like, I don't think a lot of us think of it that way. Like I think a lot of us think to myself, where the heck where they got to wear the tread or like yeah, I'm going to this, I have to wear this, which is like do you or could you do something that is you know, okay for the situation and still feels like how you want to feel.
Listen. I think fashions wonderful. I think fashion is so fun. I can't walk in heels like I can't. I cannot do it. So like I need to be realistic, both with myself and with just like the fact that like why would I force somebody else to do something that I'm not willing to do?
So what do you do when you have like a wedding? Like what what shoe do you wear? I can a wedding, like I.
Can wear like a platform or like something with a thicker heel. I just can't do stowetos at all.
I love I love it.
I know that about myself, and I've learned how I can kind of work around it. And that's fine. But I think that like there's something to be said about like just realistic style and aspirational style. I think it's really cool to seize and daya looking incredible. I don't think any of us are going to look like that anytime soon, you know, Like I just don't like that's just not it's amazing. She looks incredible in everything she wears.
But I think I loved watching too.
But I think it's unhealthy to hold women as a whole up to those booty standards because like we've already lived through it, through the nineties and the supermodels and the two thousands and the tabloid culture, Like don't we kind of know better a little bit, but like let's all take care of ourselves. Yeah. Yeah, And it's great to have style icons. It's great to look for influences in celebrities and fashion and high fashion, but I also think that, like the best style you can have is the one that's right for you.
I love that.
I just think it's like more realistic, and I think it's also more sustainable. Yeah, and it's healthy. Yeah.
And that was one of the things, yeah, that I loved and connected with you when I first met you was just this like, well, it doesn't really matter what's on trend or what you think you should wear. It's about what showing up to this work thing feeling really good and feeling really confident and like having your outfit. Yeah, Because I.
Think confidence is the best style, right, Like that's how you feel. Like that's the best tool that I can give anybody is confidence, not the label on their clothes. If the label's great, it's super fun, sure, but how you feel is always going to be more important. To me.
Speaking of labels, do you have, like what are your favorite non labeling labels, meaning like what are your best budget friendly places to shop? And I will share one of mine, which is Gap. I am really loving the resurgence over a Gap. I'm loving the I love all the linen collection. I really like it. I'm like down for it.
I got a pair of stutchy linen pants, I got a linen shirt. Super cute stuff for like reasonable prices.
That's awesome. I've always been a fan of Zara just because I think like there's a range of both like trendy or cooler things, but also like age appropriate more like mature and or just classic tailoring. But I also, you know, think that fast fashion is not always going to be the answer because it's bad for our environment. And of course we're all going to pull the trigger on cheaper products sometimes because like it's instant gratification and sometimes that's okay.
Also if you have kids, it's really hard, of course.
But I also think that it's important to be mindful about, you know, if the budget doesn't always mean disposable, you know, like so like Vintage is a great place to like maybe you know, thrift stores and vintage and you're like garage sales even sometimes when people are getting rid of things, like I have found beautiful things out of state sales and thrift stores and vintage, So like that's a creative way that you can, you know, budget shop and not follow the same thing that everybody else is doing.
Yeah, I would love to shop at vintage stores and thrift stores more often I find myself getting really overwhelmed and like over stimulated when I go into them. Do you have like a like a hack or like a tip for just going in and just trying to find yes, just making the experience easier.
Yes, I think there's two tips I can give one and this actually applies to all shopping, not just thrift and vintage. But they're two good shopping takeaways. One, get like a fabric tape measure and put it in your purse and just keep it there. And then when you're out at like a flea market and you see a great pair of Levi's vintage Levi's, and like, I wonder if these will fit me, just take the measurements. It will take so much stress off of your mind, especially like if you know your bust, if you know your waist. If you know your hip, like, you can rule things out so quickly with ever going to the dressing room.
Oh my god, this is amazing that. That is an amazing tip.
And it's just one of those little hacks where like it can just take some of the pressure off.
Yeah.
And like you know, if your hips are a thirty four, let's say, and that dress has a thirty two, don't bother. Just don't bother. Don't don't bother because you'll only feel bad.
Yeah.
Oh and so that's one thing. And then the other shopping tip that I would have, especially for vintage or big shopping in any way, is like pick a garment you're looking for and just stick to that. Like, are you looking for vintage teas cool? Just go and focus on the T shirts. Are you looking for a cool vintage dress, Just go look at the dresses. Don't waste your time and energy on like grubby old shoes when you have no interest in the shoes. Yeah. So I think that there's something about kind of having a little bit of a mindset and some blinders up about what you're looking for and how to focus that in versus. I think that's where I've messed up, getting distracted. Yeah, I want to shop more sustainably, and you spend two hours looking through the racks and you're like, what am I even looking at?
And then I'm exhausted and I don't buy anything.
And you don't want to try on anything because now you've smelled like moth balls for two hours and you're like, I'm over this. Yees.
Yes.
You literally described every time, almost every time I've gone.
Into like I are so different. I could spend hours you.
Guys, you guys, I know it. I know it all.
Oh my gosh, I so different.
Love them.
I go to my local thrift shop literally almost every time that I go down that street to get a copy or go to pulates.
But there's all of it.
But that's another tip too, is like the frequency, Like then you don't have to dive as deeply every time you go, because you're already familiar with the stower. You can kind of just browse it. So I think that's also something like in the spots that maybe already speak to you, and then you can just kind of go on a rather regular rhythm and browse, versus feeling like you have to look at every single piece in the store the second you walk in.
Yes, agreed, agreed.
The frequency that is brilliant of the frequency more better, My gosh, I loved this so much, Ariol, thank you so much.
For it was amazing. That was amazing, And.
Thank you guys for having me. I'm very honored. You guys are the best. Thank you for all this trustee and letting me have fun with you.
Guys.
Clothes don't have to be hard.
They don't. They don't, they don't.
I think that was honestly, my main takeaway was like they don't have to be hard, and also the feeling of like, what do I want to feel like today?
Because Ariol's right.
Like sometimes I want to be like snatched to the gods, and other times I'm like, I really want to be comfortable all day long. I'm gonna have to get down on my knees with a toddler a lot, I'm gonna be running errands. I still want to feel fantastic. What can I do to make that happen?
Yes? Yeah, I think all of those things are just like realistic ways to check in with yourself and then you don't end up feeling frustrated or uncomfortable like that feeling when you like walk in the door and you just want to rip your clothes off because you like hated them all day. We don't need that. We don't need that.
We don't need that, we don't need that.
Yeah, And I think also like I'm I'm digesting to have like more fun too and be a little more open to other things outside of my jeans and T shirts, but also jeans and T shirts, pink pants, pink pants, I can also swap in some hot pink pants in there.
Yeah, I was just gonna say, I'm gonna need I'm gonna need a photo follow up with some with some pink pants. Yes, I'm gonna need an update.
We're gonna do it. We're gonna do it. Yeah, it's done. Well. That was amazing. Thank you so much for coming, Aril, Aril, Stephanie. Do you guys feel a little more better?
All right, I'll you go first.
I feel more better because I got to spend time with you guys, and you guys are the best and you made my day. But yeah, I feel more better because it's nice to talk about this kind of stuff.
It is.
I feel more better because I feel like very excited to do this tape measure trick that I never ever, even in a million years, would have thought of.
But it'll save me from.
Like, you know, having to take off my shoes and stand in my socks in a maybe not so hot so bentage store dressing room.
You know what I mean?
One hundred percent? And I feel more better because I feel so inspired to wear my hot ping pants, my god, the hot pink pants. I love you, lady.
I love you guys too.
Okay, everybody go shopping in your own closet now, Okay, bye bye.
Better.
Do you have something you'd like to be more better at that you want us to talk about in a future episode? Can you relate to our struggles or have you tried one of our tips and tricks? Shoot us your thoughts and ideas at Morebetter pod at gmail dot com and include a voice note if you want to be featured on the pod. Ooh, More Better with Stephanie Melissa is a production from w V Sound and iHeartMedia's Mike Utura podcast network, hosted by Me, Steffie Beatriz, and Melissa Fumero. More Better is produced by Isis Madrid, Leo Clem, and Sophie Spencer Zebos Our executive producers are Wilmer Valderrama and Leo Clem at w V Sound. This episode was edited by Isis Madrid and engineered by Sean Tracy and features original music by Madison.
Davenport and Hey Loo Boy.
Our cover art is by Vincent Remy's and photography by David Avalos. For more podcasts from iHeart, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. See you next week, suckers. Bye,
