Some of the best wardrobe staples are ones you might pass up because they seem boring and drab. I encourage you to look at clothing pieces with an open eye in order to see their full potential. 
This dress is from The Limited and is a classic belted long sleeve shirt dress. Upon first glance its simplicity might not excite you. The belt alone with its cheap grommets and material buckle are enough to turn you off. However, it is the simplicity that can make this dress a versatile wardrobe staple.
Many of my clients confess they typically wear clothing in their closet only one way. They feel challenged to visualize any other way to wear something than what they already know. For instance, this dress could be your funeral dress. It sits in your closet collecting dust because in your mind you have to wear it as is, to a funeral. Let’s breathe some life into your wardrobe!
One simple trick to add pizzazz is to wear an interesting belt. Just because this dress came with an ugly belt doesn’t mean you have to wear it. Choose a belt that adds visual interest and adds an element of your personality to the outfit.
Check out the same dress below with the red or gray snakeskin belt. This dress is now much more chic and interesting! All you did was change your belt. It changes the way you perceive this outfit. This girl now has presence and something interesting to say.
The next time you’re searching for the perfect outfit, whether in your closet or in a store, think about how you can make simple changes in order to put together a look that turns heads.
If you feel like you are in a fashion rut and can’t figure out how to wear things in new and different ways, join me for a FREE telecall, “Get Out of Your Fashion Rut.” Sign up today!
Okay, we all have the little black dress, black power suit or favorite pants. Now, the challenge is wearing them over and over again without telling the world you are wearing them AGAIN! All women, in my opinion, want to be pretty. However, in today’s economy, there is less to spend on the pursuit of style. Style can be effortless. There are ways to enhance and even create the look you want to achieve without overspending. The key is versatility and convertibility in your wardrobe. Jewelry instantly and dramatically changes any outfit. Today there are countless options for jewelry from costume to Cartier. Look for pieces that can be worn multiple ways with various settings. Here are a few tips:
Earrings are great. They come in every shape and size. Don’t be afraid to dangle. Drop earrings are hugely popular and look great any time of day. Many dangles look great at the office, and then look amazing with you hair pulled back at an evening event. I recommend that you stay lightweight or else your gorgeous drops will be a big headache, literally! The perfect earrings can complete a style and the right dangles are ageless. You can find great earrings in every budget. Even you lovely ladies without pierced ears can find clips that look phenomenal!
Necklaces, ooh, la la. You can do so much with a necklace. Necklaces add personal style to any outfit. Long necklaces offer a lot of versatility. They add length (therefore you look thinner, yay!) Beyond the benefit of looking trimmer, they are convertible. Look for pieces that offer multiple looks. Choose necklaces that look good with your power suit and favorite pair of jeans. Many long necklaces can be doubled for a completely different style. Best yet, choose a long necklace that can be worn doubled over and has a removable pendant. That is a jewelry staple that offers versatility and instant style.
Bracelets are perfect for quick added color and fun! They fit every budget and can morph to match any ensemble. When you are wearing a dress or shirt that has a neckline or print and you have no necklace that “fits” throw on a fun pair of earrings and a bracelet. Bracelets that are very dainty can get lost on a person in the summer with short or no sleeves. Try a bangle or even two worn together. Just be cautious not to “over stack” and look like you could not make up your mind so you just wore EVERYTHING. There is a fine line between tastefully chic and “bad idea.”
You thought we were done….but, brooches and hair pieces are great accents. Don’t be afraid. Just remember that “fine line.” You may be the lucky girl who has all these in her closet. Just choose carefully and do not wear it all at once. . I challenge you to be creative. Find new ways to change your old favorites. (PS a pair of awesome shoes always help….I find lots of favorites at Susan Michelle Boutique in Mount Pleasant.)
About the Author:
Feel that you may want a quick jewelry in-service? Visit http://www.lellafoster.com and send me an email. I am Lella Foster, a jewelry artisan in Charleston SC. I love working with clients to make custom pieces that are “perfect” for any outfit or event. I also love creating my own designs. I feel strongly that all women should have the opportunity to feel beautiful and bring out their inner fashionista. I work to make jewelry that is striking but attainable, and can be worn in multiple ways and settings.
When buying a new wardrobe piece, determine its versatility by calculating its cost per wear. Cost per wear is the original cost of an item divided by the number of times or ways it can be worn.
Let’s say you find the perfect trench coat for $300. It is classic in design and neutral in color. This coat can be worn all year round and will be a wardrobe staple for years to come. During that year, even if you only wear it twice a month, its cost per wear would be $12.50.
Cost Per Wear: $300 Trench Coat/ 24 Times Worn = $12.50 Per Wear
Cost per wear is a helpful tool during the allure of a killer sale. A $60 top on sale that you can only wear twice might not be such a great deal. That top has a cost per wear of $30 and won’t help you figure out what to wear on a daily basis.
Calculating cost per wear is often thought of as an advertising tool to get people to spend more money that they normally would be comfortable doing. For me, it just makes good sense. It forces me to analyze the versatility of each item I buy to determine if it will be a good investment for my personal style, lifestyle, and wardrobe.
Charleston Style Concierge believes in the importance of creating a versatile wardrobe. Contact Charleston Style Concierge to get great versatile style.
Do you envy the woman who always looks stylish and put together no matter what? You know the woman, the one who looks like she spent hours getting ready with a stylist and tailor at the ready. You will be surprised to find out that many of your style icons (I’m talking real world style icons. Your co-worker, the neighbor, your best friend.) are able to get dressed in minutes with minimal effort, and look fabulous.
A Perfect Fit. Without fit you have no style. A trendy blazer that is too big will look shlumpy and outdated. The same blazer too small makes appears as if you are trying too hard, and will remove the chic sophistication from an outfit. Learn about your body type and dress it appropriately. It is sometimes hard to see our bodies for how they really are. Get advice from a personal stylist or ask a trusted friend to help you examine the fit of your clothing.
Embrace Your Personal Style. Stylish women own their look and exude confidence because of it. Take note of the style and type of clothing that makes you feel like you can conquer the world. This is your personal style. If the trendy item of the month doesn’t fit your personal style, it will just look silly on you. Find a style that makes you feel sexy, confident, and proud. Then embrace it, that’s your style, and what makes you unique.
Flaunt your Assets. The put-together women of the world know what their best and worst body features are. Nobody is perfect, and everyone has at least one hang up about their body. Stop dwelling on the parts you don’t like and flaunt the parts you do. As you study how to play up certain assets you will learn how to downplay you least favorite body parts, and stop worrying about them.
Create a Versatile Wardrobe. French women are a great example of how chic a versatile wardrobe can be. Walk the streets of Paris and you will find women who put together fabulous outfits with fewer pieces than hang on your husband’s side of the closet. Examine your lifestyle and then purchase wardrobe pieces that can be mixed and matched to make different outfits.
Accessorize. Accessories are one of the most important parts of your outfit. The right accessory is the missing link between you and your style icon. Learn to accessorize with unique pieces that compliment an outfit. Add pizzazz to a boring outfit with a colored shoe. Carry a handbag in a pseudo-neutral color like purple, pink, or burgundy. It goes with everything and will save you time from changing back and forth.
Effortless style isn’t just for celebrities. Change how long it takes you to get dressed and feel good every time you walk out the door. For help creating your effortless style contact the Charleston Style Concierge.
The first step in creating a versatile wardrobe is to decide what style you desire. To put it another way, you need to figure out what you should be wearing to create the look you desire.
As you think about the style you desire, don’t worry whether or not you can pull off a particular style or outfit. Once you figure out what you like, you can find ways to wear the style of clothes so that they are appropriate for your body shape and lifestyle.
It’s impossible to create a versatile wardrobe when you have no direction or goal in mind. What you get is a closet full of clothes that you don’t want to wear and that won’t make different outfits. And clothes that still have tags on them.
We can all use a reality style check. It is very easy to end up with a style that makes you no longer feel good about yourself. The young professional whose wardrobe reflects who she was at twenty-two, not who she is at twenty-nine. The man who has lost a significant amount of weight, yet still buys baggy, unflattering clothes. Or the mother who has focused so much energy on her family that she’s forgotten herself, only to wake up one day and wonder why she is so unhappy with herself.
Whatever your situation, creating style goals is easy. Simply decide how you want to look and what you need to wear in order to create the style you desire.
Tips on how to discover your style goals:
· Observe what people are wearing when you think to yourself, “Wow! They look great!” Do you notice a pattern in what you like? If so, you’re onto something.
· Notice if you gravitate toward a particular style or look. Are you constantly drawn to classic sophisticate, bohemian chic, or preppy? Make note of this.
· Ask yourself if you want to look younger, more modern, more professional, more put together. Then ask yourself why.
· Pretend you live in a perfect world with none of your lifestyle and body constraints. Now, how would you like to dress?
· Cut out images in fashion magazines to narrow down what you really like. Don’t focus on what you think you can wear. Focus on the style you like.
Take some time to answer the above questions. Write down you answers and refer back to them as you develop a versatile wardrobe that fits your personal style.
This is an excerpt from our Style Guide: 5 Steps to a Stress-Free and Versatile Wardrobe. To view the entire style guide for FREE logon to our website and sign up for our mailing list. Once you have signed up for our mailing list the link will be emailed to you.
For more help creating style goals contact the Charleston Style Concierge. We can help you develop a unique personal style that fits your budget and lifestyle.
Imagine waking each morning, walking to your closet, and choosing an outfit that makes you feel great. You put it on, accessorize, and in minutes, you are ready to walk out the door. Imagine you’re running late and have a dinner party to attend in one hour. You walk to your closet, stand in front of it, and quickly choose an outfit. Slip on the dress, slide on your stilettos, and you look like a million bucks.
With a versatile wardrobe, getting dressed can really be this easy.
For those of you who think this is impossible without having a lot of money, let me reassure you, that is not the case.
In fact, creating a versatile wardrobe saves you money, time, and energy. When you have a versatile wardrobe that’s created to fit your lifestyle needs, you immediately eliminate all the headaches of trying to find something to wear.
Having a clear idea of what you have and what you need will prevent you from spending money on items that you’ll never wear or wear only once.
Christian Dior had it right when he said, “It’s not money that makes you well dressed, it’s understanding.”
The key is understanding how to mix and match pieces while creating your own style that fits your lifestyle. Creating a versatile wardrobe takes time and energy. But it’s not as hard as you might think.
In fact, you probably already have a good start with items you already own. Investing time and thought into creating a wardrobe that serves your lifestyle needs will produce results. And fast.
Feeling fabulous shouldn’t be a chore. When you create a versatile wardrobe, you’re investing in yourself, in who you want to be in this world, and how you want people to perceive you. So, have some fun with your clothes and feel great every time you walk out the door.
This is an excerpt from my latest style guide, 5 Steps to a Stress-Free and Versatile Wardrobe. To read more from this great guide sign up for our mailing list at www.charlestonstyleconcierge.com and download 5 Steps to a Stress-Free and Versatile Wardrobe for F*R*E*E.
Do you put together an outfit for a specific event with ease, but have trouble creating new and different looks for every day? Your wardrobe may suffer from lack of versatility.
Your wardrobe lacks versatility if…
1. You buy similar items to those you already own. The new black shirt you loved in the store is less exciting at home when you realize the outfit you will create looks the same as the one you always put together with your other black shirts.
2. You buy an outfit for a specific purpose and then never think about it again. Break up the pieces and think of other ways to wear them. Add accessories or layers to change the original look.
3. Your clothing purchases deviate from your true wardrobe needs. Buying what you actually need is a key element to feeling stylish and put together all the time.
4. You are not buying clothing in your correct size. Fabulous but ill-fitting items will do you no good hanging in the closet. Buy clothing that fits you as you are right now.
5. If you don’t have a mental inventory of what you own. Make an effort to edit your closet at least twice a year. You will remember what you own and will now be able to determine if a new piece will be a versatile addition to your wardrobe.
More often than not, each piece of your brand image was created when you needed it, but not altogether in a strategic fashion. Your image may look fine, but does fine help you grow?
Eventually as you scale, your image foundation cracks, and the way your business presents itself no longer helps propel growth – costing you time and money to fix.
When you unlock your brand power, you get to pick and choose how people perceive you and your brand.
Our Image Mastery System™ takes the 5 key brand components that you already have and ties them together in a way that amplifies your results and achieves your vision.
