Your closet: 7 basic steps to success
Does the label make the clothes? The answer is only if you feel like you have to be a dropper or if you are on a red carpet revealing who designed your dress. There are some in certain social groups who would not agree with this, but the reality is that if you are an average person, it is much more important that you look your best with a style that is appropriate for your lifestyle and type of body of what it is. have the last tag.
When was the last time someone you respect for their fashion sense told you that you looked great? If you keep seven basic principles in mind, you can look great every time.
Step 1: know your body type
None of us are perfect, so know your measurements and shape. Think about the length of the arms, legs and torso and the shape and width of the shoulders, hips, waist and thighs. Assess the general shape of your body. One trick we like for this is standing in front of a mirror with someone tracing their shape on the mirror with soap. Ok so you will have to wash the mirror afterwards, but it gives you a great feel for your shape. Finally, think about the areas you want to hide or accentuate.
Step 2: be realistic
This works for all body types. Wear clothes that fit well. Squeezing in a smaller size does not make it smaller. It makes you look like you’ve put on weight and didn’t buy the right size clothes. On the other hand, wearing baggy and larger clothing in an attempt to hide things doesn’t work either. You just make yourself look sloppy and bigger. Do not buy what you would like to look good, but what really compliments you.
Step 3: Just because they do it in your size …
… doesn’t mean you should buy and use it. Fashion is only in fashion if you look attractive in it, not because a celebrity wears it or because it’s all over the fashion magazines. Low-rise pants brought this point home more than any fashion trend in recent history. A few years ago, you couldn’t be seen in public if you weren’t wearing low-rise pants / jeans. However, 75% (and that’s conservative) of women in this country shouldn’t have used them. Now, at this point, we have to say that our opinion on low rise pants may not be mainstream with the rest of the opinions in the fashion industry, but we know what we see. Also note that there are different styles of low-rise pants and some of this disastrous fashion situation could have been avoided by changing the style of low-rise pants. Low-rise pants make long torsos appear longer. The least amount of excess weight or sagging in between is emphasized. Someone without an obvious waistline looks even straighter and less shapely. Big butts appear bigger as do wide hips. However, everyone was quick to buy them and we’ve since been subjected to rolls of fat, thongs that come out of our backs, and worse. Moral of the story: wear a style that flatters not fatten and you will receive many more compliments.
Step 4: know your colors
Black is not everyone’s best friend. The colors that are sold in stores in a particular season may not be yours. Regardless of the method you use to determine the right colors for you, you must. If you are unsure, contact an image or wardrobe consultant for professional help. It is worth the time and money. I had a client who went from people asking her if she was sick all the time to people asking her if she was having an affair, all because she changed the colors of her wardrobe. Suddenly, it seemed her skin was glowing, her eyes were sparkling, and she was well rested and ready to take the world by storm. People began to notice. What do you do when your colors are not in stores? Stock up on base pieces when the season or the colors of the year are yours. When the main colors aren’t your own, you can usually still find accessories to complement your base pieces or check out clearance and discontinued items from last year.
Step 5: building the base
You have conquered the great challenges: knowing your body, knowing your colors and not becoming a slave to fashion. So now you need to put together a wardrobe. Your lifestyle will determine where the emphasis lies on the core elements of your wardrobe. However, here are some suggestions on what you should have. It will need to be tailored according to your life, but remember that the key to any successful wardrobe is having items that can be mixed and matched with other items. Please note that we are not dividing the list by summer and winter. Some of their items will be year-round and others will be seasonal.
Jeans:
- 3 pairs of work pants
- 2 pairs of casual pants
- 1 pair of evening pants
Skirts:
- 2 skirts for work
- 1 skirt for weekend or fun
- 1 skirt for evenings or social events
Jackets / Coats: (Where you live determines weight)
- 2 blazers or suit jackets for work
- 1 casual jacket for weekend or fun
- 1 evening jacket or coat
Shoes:
- 1 pair of tennis shoes
- 2 pairs of black, brown, or navy blue walking or casual shoes (depending on your base color)
- 2 pairs of work shoes in black, brown or navy
- 1 pair of elegant boots for winter or sandals for summer
- 1 pair of evening shoes
Tops:
- Work tops / blouses for one week
- 2 weekend casual blouses and 2 T-shirt blouses
- 1 night top
Dresses:
Not all forms lend themselves to wearing dresses. However, if you love dresses, you should have one for work, another for play, and a third for the evening if you have a lot of social occasions.
Step 6: Think before you buy
Unless you’re shopping for a new base piece, don’t buy an item unless you already have three things in your wardrobe that you can wear it with.
Step 7: budget
Spend most of your budget on base parts. You will thank me later for this advice. Quality base pieces will last and stay on trend. Accessorize your wardrobe with the rest of your wardrobe budget. These items are usually the trendiest or seasonal items and have a shorter shelf life in your wardrobe. And for those of you who don’t have a wardrobe budget, get one. The easiest way to have a runaway closet or overflowing shoe basket is to go shopping without a plan.
We can’t cover all the fashion dos and don’ts in one article, but these seven steps should get you started. It is important to have a plan, make a list of what you have, and stick to it. It’s even more crucial to know your body, be realistic, and wear what was made for you, not what was made for a supermodel. Happy shopping!
