Seeking Inspirato with Chanda Stacker
A huge thank you to Chanda for being apart of the Seeking Inspirato series, and to Jess Webb of @WebbPhoto for the fantastic photography. Photo by Webb Photo.
THE BASICS
Name Chanda
Works as Founder of Stacked Together
Age 31
Style in 3 words Comfy, casual, and relatable
Feels best in Wide leg culottes, sneakers, and red lipstick.
Chanda [pronounced like Honda], is a self-proclaimed “food-loving fashionista” who lives and works in Oakland, California.
But that’s just her Instagram bio.
She’s a music lover who frequently attends festivals across the United States (she just attended her 5th ACL) and has a salivating Instagram presence filled with drool-worthy photography.
This all adds up considering her 9 - 5 is serving as the president of @StackedTogether, a digital marketing consulting company focused on serving food and beverage brands.
Photos by @PancakeStacker
It doesn’t take long scrolling through Chanda’s Instagram to notice another thing about her: the beaming smile paired with her contagious Clothing-Confidence.
In Chanda’s words, her personal clothing style is “comfy, casual, and relatable”.
Chanda is able to transition her clothing from Outside Lands Music Festival to client meetings, all within the same closet.
How is she able to maintain her personal style in both contexts?
We’ll get to her love of “power pants”, vintage men’s blazers, and sneakers–but first, let’s talk about the common thread that ties all of Chanda’s personal style together: everything she puts together feels “one-of-a-kind”
“I like things that are one-of-a-kind. That’s an ongoing theme, I really enjoy having things that no one else has. My biggest fear is showing up and someone else wearing the same thing as me. Thankfully, that’s never happened.”
Photos by @PancakeStacker
From a very young age, Chanda realized looking like others wasn’t going to work for her.
“I used to want to fit in, so I wore clothing that other people had.”
The result was that the clothing never felt like her. She realized it wasn’t working, and purposefully chose to go for comfort.
Finding comfort in your clothing
“This all started in elementary school when everyone had to look the same because we all wore uniforms. A lot of the girls had to wear skirts, and I hated wearing skirts so I begged my mom if I could wear pants. Once I got to middle school, I didn’t have to wear a uniform anymore, and because of that I wanted to wear everything and anything and I remember I would switch things up.”
Freedom at last!
At the time, petal pushers and crop tops were in - but Chanda wasn’t into them.
She’d find fun pins to put on her clothing, cool shoelaces that were different, all in effort to spice things up.
This quest for uniqueness continues today. Chanda searches for accessories that bring her joy. Her core looks typically consist of neutrals, so the accessories stand out, like her:
sunglasses, lipstick, or bag.
“I like a lot of graphic T’s, oversized T’s, sneakers, and making everything comfortable but still polished. I enjoy trends a lot, like the wide leg or an animal print, but I always mix it up because I don’t want to have a combination that someone else might wear.”
Don’t be hard on yourself
Chanda’s advice: When you’re getting dressed and the outfit isn’t working, blame it on the weather, or your mood, but don’t force something to work that isn’t. Focus on finding an outfit that’s comfortable.
“When I get dressed, I’ll usually have a couple of different outfits because nothing ever comes out right the first time. What I see in my head doesn’t always feel right when I put it on. I try not to be too hard on myself when I put something on and realize that it’s not working because the most important thing is to be comfortable.”
Even when the pressure is on to not appear comfortable, Chanda sticks to her guns.
“Let’s say I’m going to an event where people are going to be dressed up, I’ll put on a pair of heels because I’ll think I need to put them on, but when I get there I’m so uncomfortable the whole time.
Even if I thought I looked cute before, I don’t feel good anymore.
The first thing I always ask myself is ‘am I comfortable?’ because I know, if I’m uncomfortable then, I won’t be comfortable in two hours.”
Clothing that works for your agenda
What makes up Chanda’s power look? She calls them her “power-pants”. She purchased them a couple of years ago when she decided to leave the agency life and begin working for herself.
As she was making the transition, she noticed that a lot of her clothing was “comfy casual”, but nothing said “I am a businesswoman”.
Here’s an ode to the wide-leg culottes / “power-pants” Chanda eventually purchased:
Photo from Chanda.
“They’re this beautiful shade of navy blue.
They fit me perfectly.
They were the last pair.
& they were on sale.”
…Cosmic!
Photo from Chanda.
“So I put them on and I realized they were the pants I needed in my closet. I didn’t have anything like them, and when I put them on, I felt so good in them. Anytime I have to go to a meeting or an event, or if I’m pitching new business, they look so good no matter how I feel so I wear them all the time.”
Identity + context
Our appearance is apart of the first impression we make when we meet someone new. The clothing we wear communicates a little something about who we are, in addition to what we’re trying to accomplish.
Is there a way to fit the role you are striving for while remaining true to your personal style, your personal identity?
Chanda found the pants, and the suit top to match, but did it her way.
“I recently started getting into blazers and I thrifted all of them. They’re actually men’s blazers, so they’re oversized. All of them are pretty old, so the patterns are unique, which is something I look for in most of my clothing. Wide shoulders, interesting pattern. You can totally do it, just find what you like!”
This clothing helps Chanda feel professional, while also communicating her personal style and purpose. It’s completely possible to do both at the same time.
Granted, Chanda isn’t working in an atmosphere where it’s required to wear a skirt+blazer+pumps, but my sense is that these traditional workplace requirements are slowly beginning to melt away.
Chanda in her favorite blazer, styled two different ways
Photo from Chanda.
Photo from Chanda.
Purge & Organize
“If you can’t see it, you won’t know you have it. If you don’t know you have it, you can’t possibly wear it.”
I have never heard a more truthful statement when it comes to closet organization. #ChandaKnowsBest
“I purge my closet a lot because I think it’s important to be able to see what you have. Otherwise, if you don’t know and you can’t see then you can’t wear it and you’ll end up purchasing things you really don’t need. You’ll think “oh my God I have nothing to wear”.
Not only does Chanda purge once a quarter, but she also keeps her closet organized by color and type because the organization is key.
“But what if we don’t all have a walk-in closet?”
Neither does Chanda, any more that is. She recently moved into a new place and the closet is much smaller than what she is used to.
“I used to have a walk-in closet, which helped quite a bit to be able to see what I have. Now, I share a closet with my significant other and he has one side and I have the other. I went from having 2 sides to having 1 side.”
Giving up the space wasn’t easy, but Chanda is resourceful and not willing to let her strong clothing-organization-constitution go tarnished. She went to the Container Store and bought bins to help her organize.
“More often than not, we have more than we think.”
At the end of the day, it’s about how you see yourself
“Clothes are just clothes, they are important but what’s more important is how you feel. Sure, there are pieces that are important to me, but I think the reason why I feel good in what I wear is that I am happy with who I am.”
Clothing-Confidence is a reflection of your comfort with yourself.
