Tomboy

Pretty Girl Project: The Herstory of Me - Part 1 of 3

I'm the youngest of two and a virtual middle child (I'll explain later). My brother, is 3 years my senior & my hero. Everything he did and everywhere he went, I wanted to be just like him. Of course, for him at times, having a little sister as his shadow cramped his style but it seems he was ok with it most of the time.

I didn't play much with dolls: Rainbow Brite & all of her friends, Barbie, She-Ra, every My Little Pony and Care Bear you name it, I had them all but I much preferred my brother's toys. I wanted to skateboard, play Atari and Nintendo and I'd rather act out war scenes with G.I. Joe and He-Man than play house and tea party with the Cabbage Patch Kids. As we got older, my mother put me in ballet and my brother in baseball. Ballet didn't last long for me and after while, I was off playing tackle football with my brother and his friends.

I never cared if boys liked me and wanted to be "boyfriend and girlfriend" or not because to me, they were my best friends--I was one of the "boys". A pretty "boy" with green eyes but a "boy" all the same. That continued all the way until two months before my 15th birthday when I started my cycle.

It wasn't until then that I started realizing that "Hey, I'm a girl and I care about the things that other girls care about...just not as much." I still had no interest in boys entering high school, I played sports, was VP of the Drama Club and I couldn't be caught dead in a dress or skirt, ruffles or anything else considered ultra feminine. But at 16, there were a few things about me that were certain: my hair stayed whipped, my skin was clearer than that of my peers and my toes were always polished in bright, cheerful colors. I'd even wear heels every now and again even if I thought of myself as an awkward giraffe.  The only times I wore a dress was once at prom and then once again at my graduation.

To be perfectly honest--and this may sound a bit weird but I'm like that at times so let's roll with it--I never really felt like a woman's woman until I gave birth. (After 16, I was always girlish...just not girly.) To me, being with child was the best thing in life. It is a gift that only a woman could give to the world. I even remember saying to Chief after our son was born, "Wow! I'm all grown up now!"

He gave me a questioning look but mostly because although he's caught glimpses of her when we first met and has made comments about me being a tomboy, he's never truly known the rough & tumble girl I once was.

And as the tomboy in me falls away bit by bit (but I'll always be the football loving guy's girl at heart), I've been aiming to change my streamlined & conservative attire (read: muted colors, slacks etc.) to incorporate in my wardrobe more girly-ness. This is a change in myself I've noticed since last summer and I even caught myself the other day eyeballing a sweater with ru-ru-*ahem*ruffles.

Plus, I have a future husband that I aim to impress and look great/sexy for at all times.

I love when I get compliments on my hair and shoes and clothes from him. And though he loves the subtle girlishness that is me, I always want to be visually, mentally, physically and emotionally pleasing to him. So this fall, I'll aim to pick up more dresses--which I'd also done a great job of during the summer--more items with ruffles, pencil skirts and the like. I'll show you my progress as I go from being simply girlish to girly.

We'll call this Project: Pretty Girl!

I'll post pictures to show you what I'm doing and I'd like it if you'd tell me HOW I'm doing.

The rules are as follows:

- No black dresses allowed (When I wear a dress I always end up with black)

- Keep completely dark ensembles/colors to a minimum

- No tennis shoes/ sneakers allowed unless exercising or running out to the store

Reader Rules:

N. Nicole of TLP:  Wear make-up
                              More Accessories

Are there any other rules I should throw in there?







So the above pics are examples of how I usually dress as of my mid-20s.  (Years ago, it was far more boyish.)  In the pic with the red shirt, I had on a pair of dress jeans and boots--I ALWAYS wear pants--never a dress or skirt and I'm working to change that.  Wish me luck!

...Continue to Discovering My Femininity