Style Buzz: Shopping Your Closet + Styling a Hawaiian Shirt

Three Ideas to Inspire Your Style This Week

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"What an eye opener! I look so different in my own clothes!"

She was absolutely delighted by this one!

A vibrant woman recently contacted me because after retiring from corporate America, she felt her style had also retired! She had a closet full of lovely clothes but she lived in frumpy shorts and t-shirts. We cleared her closet of everything that wasn't aligning with her style inspiration - Katharine Hepburn - and I put together a couple dozen outfits from what we kept. I loved watching her realize that just using her existing clothes, she could have an elegant, effortless style that works with her new life, completely changing how she sees herself in this next phase.

xxx rachel

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SHOPPING YOUR CLOSET

Last week's newsletter talked about building your confidence to dress well by using pieces you already own. Taking it a step further and creating whole new outfits from your existing wardrobe is what I call Shopping Your Closet, or a Remix, because we're mixing and pairing your clothes in ways you've likely never considered before. It's the best place to start rather than heading to the shops and going wild without a plan. You already know you like what you've got - after all, you bought it and have kept it for whatever reason, so let's put it to good use! As I've said before, most pieces in your wardrobe should be versatile enough to be used in four or five unique outfits, so remixing is a good way to put that into practice.

When I'm working with you, I'll teach you some of the thought process that goes into putting outfits together. It takes a little bit of time up front, but it'll save you loads of time later. What this means is that down the road when you're getting dressed, you'll already have an idea of the pieces that go together in interesting ways and won't struggle to create an outfit quickly.

We start by identifying pieces that you don't know how to style at all. Frequently it's something that you love and you intended to wear a lot but you only wear it one way. We look at its structure, fit, and color, and - literally - hold it up to other pieces in your wardrobe. Do they seem like two pieces that could work well together? Do the colors play nicely together? If we think so, I'll have you try them on. We then look at the result with an eye to adding or changing anything that might not quite work. Does it need adjusting with a belt or cuffed sleeves? How does the silhouette work on you? Does it enhance your shape and personality?

Once the top and bottom are figured out, we look at your accessories and what you have that would either complement or contrast the outfit. Just changing the shoes and jewelry can shift an outfit from super casual to quite dressy and everything in between. [NOTE: this is one reason why I encourage clients to invest in shoes and jewelry! You do need different styles and colors to play with to get a variety of looks. Plus they're very forgiving if you tend to have weight fluctuations.]

By focusing our initial attention on pieces you're not sure about, we're simultaneously remixing pieces you already have in your rotation, showing you how those items can also be used in more ways. You'll also work your creativity muscles and learn your wardrobe inventory so when we do go shopping, we know what you already have and can deliberately buy pieces to enhance them.

Having my outside perspective allows you to see your clothes in a way you might not have considered before. You'd be surprised at how much money you'll save and how much more you'll get out of your wardrobe just by trying pieces together that you normally wouldn't.

(But again, if you don't own some items you want yet, I give you full permission to invest in yourself and buy pieces that align with your future stylish self.) 

Give me a shout if you are curious about how we can do this for you!

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3 WAYS TO WEAR IT: Hawaiian Shirt

One fabulous piece my now-stylish client was unsure of is a beautiful Hawaiian shirt. She admitted to only wearing it when she's on holiday, usually somewhere tropical, but likes it so much she wanted to wear it around town without looking like a lost tourist.

Of course the shirt goes with shorts, but mixing in a blue bead necklace and bright blue suede flats elevates a casual outfit to one with personality.

We drew color inspiration from the shirt and added a softer blue heel and turquoise necklace, letting the white pants play a supporting role.

The same pants and shoes (with a natural weave that suggests a tiki hut!) as the pic above but adding a gold necklace really polishes the shirt up.