Confession: I haven’t had a full length mirror in my home since college.

I have had mirrors, like over the sink in the bathroom. But it meant that when I got dressed I had to rely on my husband’s opinion for the bottom half of my outfit. It meant that I never really saw my shoes with my shirt or that I never saw if my shoes really worked with my dress. I also think it meant that I wasn’t exactly aware of my body.

I can look down and see my body, but somehow, seeing myself from top to bottom, the way you would see me if you stood across the room, makes a difference to my brain. It’s a reminder of how things really are, and not this total rose-colored glasses perception that I’m skinny or well groomed.

Sunday, I wore yoga pants for the first time in these 30 Days. I put them on in a sleepy haze at the airport in Chicago. I wore them on the direct flight back to Charleston. I went to lunch with my family in my yoga pants. I’ve done it before, and I didn’t think twice. When I looked down, things looked fine. I didn’t think I was polished, stylish, or perfectly made up. Fine.

But when I got home I went to take photos of myself in my full length mirror, I didn’t think things were so fine. The pants were baggy, slouchy, unkempt, like I’d rolled out of bed and was still rocking my pajamas. It didn’t help that I was wearing flip flops and no jewelry or that I’d pulled my hair back quickly and didn’t bother with make up. It wasn’t pretty.

I’ve worn a lot of yoga pants in the last years. A. LOT. But I’ve never seen any outfit I’ve put on in its entirety. From top to bottom. Knowing exactly how I look makes a huge difference in the way I feel, in my confidence level. And I might’ve looked much better and been just as comfortable in jeans and the same top.

Sometimes the biggest differences in your wardrobe don’t hang in your closet at all.