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Mona Lisa Style!

I like to describe each person as a singular work of art, with their unique set of colors or True Colors found in the eyes hair and skin, captured in their own portrait by a great master painter. The natural harmony and contrast of these colors can be varied as the palettes of Renoir to Picasso, from Fragonard to Katz.

When adding clothing, makeup and accessories to your portrait, it is important to connect with, and not go against what already exists. In other words, make sure the “background“ illuminates and does not undermine, and creates a healthy glow about you. To put it simply: Have you ever considered what Mona Lisa would look like if she was painted against a background of cobalt blue?

Claim your Closet!

Each morning when you get dressed, your closet should hold possibility, or a selection of choices that make you feel like the best version of yourself when you wear them.

A closet filled with items that do not fit, are in bad repair or just do not suit are literally blocking you from this possibility.

The first step toward a clutter-free closet filled with clothes you love is to try everything on. This will help you analyze how you look in the garment, not just how it looks on the hanger. Carve out some time alone, put your favorite music on, and then start the process of trying out each item. Ask yourself if  the color, fabric, fit and cut really expresses your authentic self, and whether or not you rank it as an A+ look.

Note: Just because you feel a piece captured you when you purchased it, does not mean that it still ranks and helps to express who you are today.

After you have completed the process of trying everything in your closet on, place all of the A+ looks on the left side of your closet. Then, for the next week, dress from this section only to help further fine-tune your wardrobe. When you wear these items, do you get more compliments from your friends? A different type of romantic attention? More respect at work? Do you feel more confident? Further edit your A+ section over the week.

At this point, you know which items you wear most often and feel confident in. You also know which items don’t rank, and can be deaccessed from your collection. Anything too small, too large or damaged should be the first to go. You then may have some items left that illicit a response of:  “well, maybe for around the house”…My response is that around the house you deserve to feel fantastic, so let these pieces go.  The remaining items that you do not wear or don’t feel are A+ typically fall into two categories: monetary and sentimental. Once categorized, they can then be removed from your working wardrobe in order to make room for future A+ purchases.

For items that you do not wear which fall into the “monetary” category—which include expensive purchases you never wear or use, I suggest you reframe your attachment: You’re not getting any use-value out of letting an expensive item hang in your closet, and you’re actually creating negative use-value by wearing it if  it doesn’t suit you. Give yourself permission to get rid of these items—and if they really were that expensive, perhaps sell them for profit online or at your local consignment store.

Items you’re emotionally attached to (those in the sentimental category) can be even harder to get rid of—like that now-ratty tee commemorating your high school reunion or your mother’s shiftdress from 1970. But it’s important to realize that, at least when it comes to your daily wardrobe, these items don’t hold value. You do not have to get rid of them, but please don’t leave them in your closet for they are literally blocking you from getting dressed each day. Instead, create a memory box or find a storage closet with an extra shelf and store your memory clothing there, the way you keep other kinds of souvenirs.

After this edit, you have a working closet which offers up possibility every time you get dressed. You also now know which clothes you actually wear, and can analyze the A+ section to discern the shapes, necklines, fabrics and colors that you should be shopping for going forward, and therefore guarantee that you feel empowered as the best version of you every time you get dressed!

Breaking the Rules!

Spring Cleaning: The Lipstick Drawer!

Many of the clients that I work with reveal that even if they have a streamlined wardrobe comprised of only things that they actually wear, that their collection of lipsticks often goes unedited, sometimes for years. In fact, in many cases the collection expands each season, mostly purchased in the trial-and-error phase that happens after a perfect shade is discontinued or acquired to help a not-so-great color in the closet look better.

This spring, I ask that you rid yourself of the lipsticks that do not illuminate you. Just like when you dress from your closet, all of the choices in front of you should offer possibility, and never regret!

Here goes:

Open up your lipstick drawer, and start by tossing any lipsticks that you have not worn in a year or more. Then, in good natural light, test each of the remaining ones in the palm of your hand. Are any of them making the tones of your hand imbalanced and uneven? Those are the next to go. Then once you have edited, try each of the remaining ones on your lips. This is the tough part, as many in a moment like this only focus on the lipstick color and decide whether they like it or not. I want you to start there, but to take into account whether the color connects with your skin, eyes and hair. The effect of a good lipstick is not to just make the lips pop, but be part of a palette of colors that thoroughly illuminates you. In other words, think of yourself as the subject of a great master portrait, and your lipstick as well as all of your makeup and colors that you wear in clothing should showcase you!

And now, though the selection may be small, your lipstick drawer offers you possibility to feel like the best version of you each and every time you apply your makeup!