12 Things I Find Extremely Chic as Someone Designing a Life I’m Obsessed With

The older I get, the more my definition of “chic” has changed.

Of course, I still love beautiful clothes, great shoes, gorgeous homes, incredible hotels, and all the aesthetic details that make life feel special. But I don’t think being chic is really about what you own or how much something costs.

I think it’s much more about how you live.

It’s knowing what you like. Taking care of yourself. Creating a home you love coming back to. Making plans. Having standards. Following through. Enjoying what you already have instead of constantly waiting for some future version of your life to begin.

As someone actively designing a life I’m obsessed with, these are 12 things I find extremely chic right now:

1. Having a signature scent

There is something so chic about having a fragrance that feels distinctly like you.

Maybe you wear the same perfume every day, or maybe you have a couple you rotate depending on the season, but I love the idea of scent becoming part of your personal identity.

It’s also one of those tiny details that can elevate a completely ordinary day. You don’t need somewhere fancy to go. Put on your favourite fragrance before working from home, running errands, meeting a friend for lunch, or doing absolutely nothing special.

2. Having a clutter-free home

I don’t mean owning nothing or having a house that constantly looks like a magazine spread. I mean being intentional about what gets to take up space in your home.

Getting rid of things you no longer use. Clearing surfaces. Donating clothes you don’t wear. Being able to open a cupboard without fifty things falling out.

A clutter-free home feels lighter, calmer, and easier to live in. There is something extremely chic about not being surrounded by things you’ve completely outgrown.

3. Having a wardrobe of clothes that fit and feel great to wear

Not clothes you hope will fit again one day (I say that with love because I’ve been there, and after pregnancy I needed to rebuild my wardrobe for my new body). Not things you bought because they looked good on someone else. Not a closet packed with pieces that technically work but somehow never make you feel good.

Clothes that fit your body, your lifestyle, your taste, and the person you are right now.

Your wardrobe doesn’t need to be enormous or expensive. An edited wardrobe filled with things you genuinely enjoy wearing is infinitely more chic than having tons of pieces you never reach for.

4. Having standards and actually sticking to them

Standards are incredibly chic.

Knowing how you want to spend your time. Knowing how you expect to be treated. Knowing what kind of relationships you want, what kind of environment you thrive in, and what you’re simply no longer willing to tolerate.

The important part is actually living by those standards.

There is something powerful about deciding what is good enough for your life and then acting accordingly.

5. Being the person who actually makes the plans

“We should do that sometime” is responsible for a lot of experiences that never happen.

I think it’s incredibly chic to be the person who says, “Okay, when?”

Book the restaurant. Pick the weekend. Buy the concert tickets. Invite everyone over. Make the reservation.

A more exciting life doesn’t always appear spontaneously. Sometimes you have to become the person who creates it.

6. Having something on the calendar you’re excited about

It doesn’t need to be a two-week vacation in Europe.

It could be dinner with someone you haven’t seen in months, a concert, a weekend away, a new restaurant, a class, a day trip, or simply a really great Saturday you planned for yourself.

Anticipation is such an underrated part of enjoying your life. Having something to look forward to changes the energy of an ordinary week.

Personally, I want a life with lots of things circled on the calendar.

7. Taking care of your health before something forces you to

Walking. Strength training. Sleeping enough. Eating food that makes you feel good. Going to appointments. Getting outside. Resting when you need it.

None of these things are particularly glamorous, but I find them incredibly chic.

There is something very grown-up about treating your health like one of your most valuable assets rather than something you’ll worry about later.

You don’t need a perfect routine. Consistently doing the basic things that help you feel strong, energized, and well is already a pretty powerful place to start.

8. Making ordinary days feel special

Your life cannot only feel good on vacation, on your birthday, or when something exciting is happening.

Most of life happens on random Tuesdays.

Use the nice dishes. Buy flowers for the dining room. Put music on while you make dinner. Light the candle. Get dressed even when you don’t technically have anywhere important to be. Sit outside with your lunch when the weather is beautiful.

A life you’re obsessed with is built through hundreds of small decisions that make your normal life nicer to live.

9. Keeping your word to yourself

This might be one of the chicest things on the entire list.

If you say you’re going to go for a walk, you go. If you decide you want to start writing every week, you start writing every week. If you tell yourself you’re finally going to book the appointment, organize the room, or work toward the goal, you follow through.

Nobody does this perfectly. But there is something incredibly powerful about becoming someone who does what they say they are going to do.

Confidence grows when you collect evidence that you can rely on yourself.

10. Being genuinely curious about the world

Being interesting is chic. And one of the easiest ways to become more interesting is to stay interested.

Read books. Ask questions. Learn about art, business, food, history, design, travel, psychology, culture, or whatever genuinely fascinates you.

Talk to people who see the world differently from you. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Try something you want to get better at.

There is something so attractive about a person who still wants to learn, explore, and discover new things.

You are never finished becoming more interesting. This is true no matter your age.

11. Having little rituals that make your life feel like yours

I love the idea of having tiny rituals woven into your days and weeks.

Maybe Friday night means ordering your favourite dinner. Maybe Sunday morning is a long walk after breakfast. Maybe you always buy flowers from the farmer's market, read before bed, play music while getting ready, or make a proper dinner even when you’re eating alone.

These rituals don’t have to impress anyone. Their entire purpose is to make your own life feel better to live. More special.

There is something incredibly chic about knowing what makes you happy and deliberately building more of it into your daily life.

12. Knowing when you’ve outgrown something and being willing to let it go

A habit. A friendship. A routine. A version of your style. An old goal. A belief about who you’re supposed to be. A life you once wanted but don’t anymore.

Outgrowing something doesn’t necessarily mean it was bad. Sometimes it simply means it belonged to an earlier version of your life.

I think there is something extremely chic about being able to appreciate what something gave you and still recognize when it’s time to move on.

Because designing a life you’re obsessed with requires editing. You keep what still fits. You change what doesn’t. You make room for what’s next.

And maybe that’s my definition of chic these days.

It’s not perfection. It’s not having the most expensive things or appearing to have everything figured out. It’s knowing yourself well enough to create a life that actually feels like yours, and caring enough about that life to keep making it better.

And if you love the idea of editing your life, you'll love the 40-Day Life Edit Challenge.