October 17th is what I refer to as my favorite date of the year because October is my favorite month and seventeen is my lucky number. In reality, it’s not really my true favorite day of the year because I also really love Halloween, my birthday, and my anniversary with Joe. But in terms of aesthetics and quirkiness I really do love October 17th.

Anyway! Regardless of my feelings on today’s date, it is also Wear Something Gaudy Day! What a fabulous unusual holiday. Gaudy jewelry, clothing, accessories, decorations, and lifestyle are all right up my alley. Gaudy is technically just anything “extravagantly” bright/showy, but it’s generally regarded to be in a tasteless way. I’d like to remind you, though, that taste is the most subjective thing ever!

Wear Something Gaudy Day | Uncustomary

When you say to someone, “Wow! You have great taste!”, you are essentially saying “You like similar things as me!” therefore you like good things because I regard the things I like as “good” as well.

So basically if someone thinks something you like or wear is gaudy, that just means they think you’re being overly extravagant they just can’t imagine partying as hard as you do.


So on another note, I’ve spent the past year trying to provide good content on my blog. There’s been such a push in the blogging world to always provide long-form content that’s super duper useful and basically like a mini e-book on a topic. So when I post I try to make sure there’s something that can provide insight, advice, a new spin on things, or an actionable step you can take on something you’re working on.

If there’s something I don’t feel I can speak about knowledgeably or substantially, I haven’t been posting it on my blog. It’s gotten to the point where I actually feel guilty taking up space on Wednesdays for “Weekly Happiness” posts. So, I’ll post the “unsubstantial” things on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook as a social media update. However, by doing that, I feel like I’m saying (to myself at least), “This thing doesn’t matter as much as the rest of the things you post, this isn’t worthy of blog space”. I know that’s trite and generally unimportant, but I’ve gotten so much in this mind-frame of making money, building my business, and making sure shit is on brand that I’m forgetting to have fun, too.

Wear Something Gaudy Day | Uncustomary

I started this for the fun of it, and I’m so grateful it’s turned into my job. I know it’s incredibly lucky and awesome to most that I don’t have to clock in at an office, but it’s definitely turned into more work than I was ever doing before. Running something from the ground up by yourself is fucking difficult, time-consuming, and draining the same way it can be to feel over-worked when you’re not your own boss. So I need to take time to celebrate things that make me happy, and remember that Uncustomary is as much my space as it is yours.

Uncustomary has grown from the tag I’d put on yarnbombs on the side of the street to the name of my site and business, to a community for babes and a general tone and lifestyle I want to emulate and spread. It’s become the best part of myself that I aspire to on bad days. It’s become the optimistic space I know I can come to when shit gets dark. I want to keep things real with you, and that goes further than just being open about my weight, mental illness, and lifestyle. I want you to feel like you know who is signing off on these blog posts, and if you identify with me then you might find this space even more useful and/or fun.

So yeah! I wanted to share that with you. I’m still planning on posting every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at least. I’m still planning on sharing fun photos, silly holidays, and lists of ideas with you. I just wanted to let you know I’m gonna be letting down my hair a little bit and being more open to how I utilize this space and what Uncustomary.org really means. And what better than my favorite day of the year/Gaudy Day to do so!