School is cool (?)

As I'm nearing graduation the prospect of going into the 'real world' and getting a 'real job' is becoming a very real and scary thing. Yet what's got me most concerned is what I'm going to wear every day without the school uniform. You see, from the ages of about 5 to 14 I absolutely hated the concept of a school uniform, I hated how you couldn't express yourself, I hated how it fit, I hated everything. But then I had a realisation; school uniform enables one to express themselves in a far safer environment then anywhere else I'll go. I mean this in the sense that, you can experiment with makeup at school in readiness for a party on the weekend, you can break in black shoes that you want to wear out but don't have time to break in, you can experiment with different variations of the uniform. And really, you're surrounded by people you've known for ages so who's going to care. I know most schools probably aren't as lenient as mine when it comes to uniform, but school has really allowed me to test out how I want to be perceived. 

One day I can be Blair Waldorf and wear my hair and uniform in a more sophisticated manner.

The next day I can be more of a Serena Van Der Woodsen and be casual and relaxed.

Or if I'm feeling really adventurous I can go for a Jenny Humphrey inspired look, but I'm still yet to try that.

And I think now, 13 years after starting school I've really become aware of the convenience of school uniform and all the possibilities it holds. The other day I went to my friend's really glamourous 18th birthday breakfast at the Glass Brasserie (definitely go there, I would thoroughly recommend) and was the only one in uniform as I had an exam. I dressed for the occasion and wore a ribbon tied around my hair, a high necked jumper and the rest of my uniform as is. It probably didn't seem like much but I didn't even feel as though I was wearing uniform and people told me I looked like I was just wearing a cute outfit.

Cute outfit and school uniform??? I never thought I'd see the day.

But that's the thing, people are so confined in their belief that school uniforms are stupid and boring that they wait for the weekend to express themselves through fashion. They make use of only 2/7 of the days (or 28.47% of the time) to really reveal who they are, and to me that's a waste of the remaining 5 days or 72.63% of the time. I know to some they don't have a choice when it comes to uniform, but even just wearing funky socks, different school shoes or even in stationary or school bags - one can really make a name for themselves in how they wear the uniform. Of course that's not to say I make a special effort in my uniform every day because let's be real here there are days where I put my hair up and wear no makeup whatsoever and don't really give a remote interest in my uniform (which are becoming more frequent as school becomes less fun.) But I like having the freedom to manipulate the uniform in a way that suits me and it scares me that next year I'm 100% going to run out of clothes to wear and so my aimed image for uni (it's the hot indie fashionista if anyone's wondering) might not come into fruition. Despite all the negatives of uniform, the convenience and ease is something I'll honestly miss.

So when you're sitting at home in January of 2014 and crying about having to wear a uniform for the next 4 terms, just think of all the possibilities and start saving so that you can have enough clothes to fulfil your uni image dreams of hot indie fashionista. 

Liv xo