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As originally posted on March 15th: for more than seven years we have kept the same rates in place for David’s services in spite of the rising cost of living impacting office, travel and salary expenses. Please note that in order to provide the same quality of services we will be increasing rates as of September 1, 2016. However, gift certificates for all services may be purchased prior to this date at the old rate and redeemed through December 31, 2016.
Before navigating the racks of fabulous new Fall merchandise, stop and schedule a style check-up with yourself. By doing so you will not only get rid of the items that you no longer wear or never wore, and more importantly make room in your closet for new purchases. You can then use the items in your closet as benchmarks for all future shopping, and know exactly what it is that you are shopping for!
First, block out some alone time when you can focus totally on your closet — no phone, TV, interruptions and not even music. That way, nothing but your clothes set the emotional tone.
Ready? As you peer into the closet ask yourself if your wardrobe accurately reflects who you are today. Not last season, not last year, but now. When you open the closet doors does everything inside capture you? If you were a character in a movie would this be the wardrobe of that character? Put the first item on, and take a good look in the mirror. Do not just focus on the item but how you look in the garment. Does the color, fabric, cut and condition express your authentic self? Would you rank this as an ‘A+’ look? Continue this analysis with each item. Start by putting those ‘A+’ ranked garments on the left side of your closet. Put the ‘B’s in the center. The ultimate goal is that eventually everything in your closet ranks an ‘A+.’
Remember that the garments in your wardrobe have different types of value:
Emotional value: The personal associations with an item are what create its ’emotional value.’ This type of value can lead us to hold on to clothes that either don’t work for us anymore or never worked for us in the first place, but these clothes have no ‘use value’. Take a deep breath and slide the items to the right side of your closet.
Monetary value: If the garment doesn’t make you look and feel fabulous, what good is it to you? Maybe spending all that money on it was the right decision at the time or maybe it wasn’t; either way, you’re not getting any use value out of letting the expensive item hang in your closet, and you’re actually creating negative use value by wearing it when it doesn’t suit you. Put it to the right also.
Don’t beat yourself up if you find several pieces are not cutting it anymore. We change. It could very well be that you lost weight, transitioned from student to the workforce or perhaps you even switched careers. All of these reasons can contribute to why an item in your closet is not reflecting the very best version of who you are.
Don’t confuse your closet for a clothing museum
Many people hold on to garments for historical reasons: the tee commemorating the high-school reunion, the rehearsal dinner shoes, etc. You do not have to get rid of them completely, but please don’t leave them in your closet. 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.
In short, if you don’t feel great in it, or need to talk yourself into it with “it was expensive” or “my best friend gave it to me” it needs to go. It clearly is not reflecting and magnifying who you are. Our clothing should be thought of as raw materials to showcase us at our best.
Now back to your closet:
Dress from the left
After you have gone through and ranked each item, push all of your ‘hit” and “near hit’ clothing a little farther to the left so you can look at them as a group. Take a moment to appreciate how all of the colors, patterns and textures relate to one another and tell the story of who you are.
Now, for a week or so before you go shopping for new Fall clothes, try dressing yourself only from the left side of the closet. Discern what it is about this group of clothing that gives it the ‘A+’ rating. When you wear them, do you get more compliments? A different type of romantic attention? More respect at work? Do you feel more confident? Take what you learn from this existing group when shopping for new items, and also use the palette, fabrics and cuts that serve you so well. In other words, take the clothing that makes you feel at your best, and repeat your past successes!
Get rid of the rest
It is at this point you should feel free to try on the ‘C’ and ‘D’ list items from your closet for comparison. It is now so much more obvious that they do not serve you the same way that the ‘A+’ ones do. You might even have come to the realization that some of the “B”s are actually “C”s! This is the moment that you can bundle them up and drop them off at the thrift shop on the way to go shopping for your new Fall clothes! Whether you’re shopping for slouchy pants, embracing the rounded shoulder or choose to “go for the green”, make sure that every new piece ranks “A+”, and captures exactly who you are!
Once you discover your True Colors and Authentic Style, and now are cruising the Internet and shops shopping them, you surely have become more aware of the necklines that are your most flattering.
Unless you along your colors and personal style recommendations are the muse of a fashion designer, there may be some struggle on knowing when to purchase the almost-right items for your wardrobe.
The good news is that when it comes to necklines, there are ways to minimize a less-than-ideal ones. A very common dilemma is finding the perfect fit, color and price point in a top or dress, which unfortunately could also feature a non-A plus neckline.
Do you pass or consider purchasing? Don’t pass until you read the tips below on taking the so-so to a great place!
Creating Angles
You have found the perfect dress in your Romantic Color. It is your size, and fits like a glove. However, it has a crew neckline. If your best neckline is v-neck, you can improve this neckline with a long necklace with an angular pendant on the end of it. The lines of the chain create a v-shape, and the pendant emphasises it.
Creating a Circle
A bib necklace can help make the Energy-Colored square neck top appear rounder if your best neckline is high and round. You can create the same rounded effect with a square shaped scarf folded diagonally and tied to one side. To emphasize the shape more, reach for a bib necklace or scarf one shade brighter or in a contrasting color to the top and really emphasize the recreated neckline.
Creating Asymmetry
You find the perfect match to your elusive Tranquil Color. However, it is in a simple symmetrical scoop-neck sheath dress. You can add a bit of imbalance to it with a focal point single or cluster of small pins worn between the bust and shoulder on your left side, or add a wrap belt to the look, tied in a knot to the side.
Creating an Oval
The sweater is a perfect match to your Essence Color, but the plunge v-neck seems a bit severe. The solution: add a long scarf and cowl it. A long cowled scarf can make any neckline softer, and puts the emphasis on your face. Consider using the colors of the scarf to tie all of the tones of the outfit together to create the most harmonious head-to-toe look!
Creating a Wrap Effect:
If you are best in shapes that are draped and do not have a hard endpoint, which emphasize your head to toe curves, you can take a basic Dramatic-Colored v-neck shift dress and soften it with a low-contrast chiffon scarf worn around the neck, crossed over itself and kept in place with a very thin belt at the waist.
I look at each person I consult with as the subject of a great master painting. The person has been “painted” in a unique set of glorious colors that work together in a singular harmony. What I do in creating a palette is to create the background that magnifies the tones that are there and ignites and illuminates them!
A quick and easy way to gaining depth or clarity on your Archetype is to think about the type of clothing that you are authentically attracted to. When I say authentically attracted I mean, that if you did not have to dress for a particular job, live in a certain climate, etc… In other words: Which type of clothing makes you feel the most like you?
If your answer is “a Victorian ballgown”, don’t fret if your lifestyle is a super casual one, as you can incorporate elements of this inspiration into your wardrobe.
For example, you can add the Victorian vibe to an outfit by wearing a t-shirt with a puffed sleeve….
a cameo on a chain…..
…or a pair of Victorian lace up boots.
You will still look completely contemporary but, most importantly you will express your own unique Authentic Style!
