The "comfy" look is very in-style right now: comfy pants, lazy hair do's, and big ole t-shirts. This has always been my go-to look, so it's no surprise that I'm more than happy about this new trend.
The jeans with a graphic tee ensemble is a regular of mine. This has been my most frequent fashion choice for many reasons. Being very involved in middle school and high school, I had a lot of different t-shirts. Certain things such as cheer and musicals required me to wear my t-shirt on certain days, but we got so many different shirts that it only made sense that I wore them frequently. I wasn't all that interested in current fashion, either, so t-shirts hid my fashion ignorance well. I'm not afraid to admit that a lot of the clothes I had that weren't t-shirts were used, and not necessarily in current style for people my age, so I felt that style-wise my t-shirts were a safe bet.
My t-shirts also served as a sort of security blanket for me. In middle school, I struggled a lot with low self esteem. I didn't feel that I was small or cute or stylish like all of my friends or the other girls at school, and I never felt like I fit in. Most days, it was easiest for me to throw on a t-shirt that was a size or two too big to hide my insecurities. If I couldn't fit in, I'd blend in, hoping no one would notice what I was all too aware of. Wearing anything else not only meant having to feel exposed, but also feeling like I had to worry about my hair and makeup as well. Some days that was just too much for my anxious 13-year-old self to bear, so I pulled on a t-shirt and went through the day with ease.
I'm happy to say those days of self-hate and anxiety are over. No, I still don't look as small or cute or stylish as some other girls around me, but I'm not supposed to look like them - I'm supposed to look like me. I no longer hide myself with my t-shirts. However, throughout the years those comfortable pieces of material worked they way into my heart, so I still wear them quite regularly. I've gotten a little more fashion savvy, rocking the occasional "fashionable" look every once in a while, but I still wear printed tees more often than not. The only difference now is that my t-shirts have gone from a shield to badge of honor. With a simple shirt, I can tell you anything about myself you want to know. I can tell you that I cheered in high school. I can tell you that I saw Aerosmith in concert. I can tell you that I went to Ocean City, Maryland on vacation and that I'm a student at ONU (or that I was almost one at Kent State). My collection tells the story of me - where I've been, where I am, and where I want to go. T-shirts have been a part of me for as long as I can remember. First they helped me to hide who I was, then helped me express who I am in the only way I know how: comfortably.
