Have You Ever Had Your Style(s) Change Dramatically?
Disorienting, isn’t it?
Lately, I’ve been reflecting about how change has been sneaking up on me over the past few years. One of the more innocuous of these changes was an expansion of my aesthetic tastes.
I’ve always liked a certain dark, vintage, minimalist style — think Sherlock Holmes’ house on Baker Street, with the dark wallpaper and ebony bookshelves. I guess now it’s called ‘Dark Academia.’ I applied this style mostly to my surroundings and my journals. It aligned with how I saw my personality — serious, sober, and out-of-place in modern life. I related to characters in media who had that aesthetic.
As I expanded my use of my journals to more purposes, I found that the dark, serious look suited some applications, like diaries and writing practice, but didn’t suit others, like planners and idea notebooks. Reaching for some of the optimism I desperately need when tackling my schedule, I tried pastels and florals for a couple of digital planners.
At first I found the brighter notebooks oddly embarrassing. I’d stopped liking pink and bright colors some time in elementary school. I guess it…