I Didn't Realise How Invisible I'd Made Myself

"I didn't realise how invisible I'd made myself."

That's what the woman in this story says, quietly, in front of a fitting room mirror. She is almost laughing when she says it.

She's a composite of customers I've met over my years in the shop, so her name and details are changed. But the moment is one I recognise, and I suspect you might too.

First, a word about wardrobes.

Hardly anyone decides to stop wearing the things she loves. It happens slowly, for ordinary reasons.

You buy a navy cardigan because it goes with everything. Then a grey one, because the navy is in the wash. Black pants are easy. So are jeans and a plain top.

Before long, the wardrobe is full of clothes that are perfectly good. Nothing in there is wrong. It's just that when you open the door, nothing makes you smile.

Work was busy, or life was. Safe was quicker. Safe didn't need a second thought.

And then one day you can't remember the last time you bought something simply because you liked it.

I'm Olivia, and I started Daily Aussie in Melbourne in 2006. Let me tell you about a quiet Thursday afternoon.

Let's call her Helen. She came in around three o'clock in a grey cardigan, jeans and comfortable flat shoes. She was about 64. There's nothing wrong with that outfit. I've worn it myself plenty of times.

She wandered along the rail the way people do when they're not really shopping. Then she stopped at an olive jacket with flowers embroidered across the front.

She picked up the sleeve and turned it over. She ran her thumb along the stitching. She looked at the collar. She smiled.

Then she hung it back on the rail and straightened the hanger.

"Lovely," she said. "But I couldn't wear something like that."

I asked her why not.

"Oh, I used to wear brighter things. But you get to a point, don't you? It's all navy and grey now. It's just easier."

I didn't try to talk her into it. I said, "Would you like to try it on? Nobody's watching, and it costs nothing."

She laughed. "I suppose it doesn't."

She took off her cardigan and slipped the jacket on over her white top. She kept her jeans on. That was the whole outfit.

At the mirror, she did up one button. She adjusted the collar. She looked again.

I said nothing.

"You know," she said, "I used to dress like this."

She turned slightly to see the sleeve. Then, mostly to herself, she said it. "I didn't realise how invisible I'd made myself."

I knew what she meant. She was talking about her own wardrobe, and how little of herself she'd let into it.

She bought the jacket that afternoon. She said she'd wear it to lunch with a friend on Saturday.

What stays with me is how ordinary it was. Nothing dramatic happened. She wore the same jeans and the same white top she'd walked in with.

She'd just remembered she liked this. Colour, a bit of detail, something that felt like her.

I used to assume most women had moved on from colour by a certain age. I don't anymore. I've seen too many women pick up a jacket, smile, and put it back.

That's the idea behind our embroidered jackets.

Each style is embroidered in several shades, such as olive, teal, burgundy, gold and cream. That's what makes them easier to wear than you'd expect.

When a jacket has a few colours in it, there's usually one that sits happily with what you already own. You don't have to plan an outfit around it.

Try one with:

• A white tee and blue jeans.
• Black trousers and a simple top.
• Navy from head to toe.
• Khaki trousers and whatever you usually wear on top.

Same jeans. Same top. One jacket you actually like.

I'd rather show you how they fit into an ordinary week than list features.

They're made from comfortable cotton, light enough for a cool spring morning when a cardigan feels like too much and nothing at all is too little.

Coffee with a friend? Put one on and head out the door.

Lunch somewhere nice? It looks right there too, without looking dressed up.

Errands, visiting family, a weekend away. A plain outfit can feel a little more like you.

The styles are all different, with different collars, colours and embroidery. Choose the one you keep looking at.

You don't need a new wardrobe. You don't need to look younger, or braver, or different. You've probably got the jeans and the white top already. All you're adding is one thing you like, and finding out how it feels when you look in the mirror and think, "Yes. I like that."

This spring marks twenty years of Daily Aussie, so we're running our 20th Anniversary Spring Sale.

Jackets are currently $84.95.

If you've been wondering whether one would suit you, this is a gentle time to find out.

I hope you never have to say that sentence in front of a mirror. But if some part of you nodded as you read, take a few minutes with the collection. Pick the one you keep going back to.

Hold it up and see what you think.

— Olivia · Daily Aussie