Make it Work Monday
As Shari’s new sidekick I have the opportunity to
let Shari know about some of the things I like about her blog and some of the
areas I would like more information.
Today’s post is a result of one of those conversations.
Shari sent me an email from a
reader. We chatted, I checked my handy “Good Girls Don’t have toDress Bad” book. Here are my
notes, feel free to use them as often as you’d like!
The reader sent us this cute dress and asked us
how to accessorize it. What jewelry,
shoes and purse should she wear and how would a Pure Natural or Classic Modern
wear it well?
Let’s walk through the basics
together. Grab your notepad so you can
just have your personalized style handy since I am writing for every body,
color, and style.
Ready?
Let’s go!
Depending on where this dress hits
your curves it should be great for all body types. It should give you a waist
and minimize your Overly Endowed Bust or Rockin’ Derriere. B’s make sure this
waist line is high enough, just under your bust is best and it should not flare
out at your widest area. X’s make sure this doesn’t hang on you like a loose
potato sack, grab a belt if it does.
Ladies if you are a Warm, Soft, or
Light we recommend wearing a Turquoise Scarf around your shoulders and DON’T
let that Black peek through! The scarf will
make you look younger and reveal a breezy summer style.
If you are a Clear, Deep or Cool you
can wear this dress alone if you’d like. The Turquoise scarf would be good and so
would a Black one.
For Clears you might want to find a
way to bump up the color contrast with a White shawl (or the lightest/brightest
color in the dress).
Deeps you want to keep with the darker
shades the dress or take the Teal a little darker.
Cool’s you are pretty much able to any
of the above so have fun!
Accessories:
General rule: Wear what is best
for your coloring and which
size accessory is best for your height.
Gem tone jewels would be great for every woman as a necklace or
bracelet. Wear your gold or silver jewelry as it looks best on you.
Now on to shoes and purses!
Buying a pair of “go to” shoes and a purse is a great
investment. It means that you can easily grab them and know that it
should match almost any outfit. Imagine the time you save when you don’t
have to make that last minute trip to the store.
I have a pair of “go to” heels that have been repaired after
many years and much abuse. I think the repair cost more than the original
shoe… it is SO worth getting a good quality shoe that will last you for years
to come! I also have a pair of flats and a purse that match my best
color. Mixing and matching is easier when you have the basics.
Here are the best basic shoe/purse combinations as shown
in Shari’s “Good Girls Don’t have to
Dress Bad” book.
Remember to try to match your hair color, the closest you can
get the better it is.
Light: Light Taupe
Soft: Medium Brown
Warm: Brown
Cool: Charcoal/Black
Deep: Dark Brown or Black (Depending on how dark your hair is)
Clear: Black
Want to Go crazy? Here is how to do
it successfully!
First grab your swatches and
stick within that set of colors! You will want to pick the hue that is
closest to your best shoe/purse combination.
For example there are several very pale colors on the Light
swatch set. These are the perfect “splash”
colors to add to your wardrobe. If I was a Light I would look for baby
blue shoes or a pale green purse for this dress. Lights, you want to find
a similar hue to your best shoe/purse color, light taupe.
Same goes for all the other colorings. Take your best shoe/purse
color and find a splash color in a similar hue. I’m so glad Shari told me
this because it means I can carry a blue purse and not have blue hair… I was
seriously considering changing my hair color to blue. Kidding!
Ladies I hope you’re giggling.
You are over half way through making this dress work! Bear with me a few more minutes.
Shari wanted me to remind you that in the summer time, metallic sandals and other shoes are always
winners. Gold, Silver, Bronze, Pewter...are all magnificent choices, remember
to check your swatches for your best metallic.
Fashion Personality
On to the last part of the question. How would a Pure
Natural wear this dress? Or a Classic Modern? Think of walking into
a room of women and maybe you can picture a woman in each of these
categories. I hope it helps you figure out which looks best on you for
your event.
A Pure Natural would be wearing the most comfortable set
of heels, flats or make a statement going barefoot (just kidding Shari!).
She wouldn’t have too many jewels and it would likely be just her wedding set
and a pendant necklace. She would be keeping it simple and above all
comfortable. Remember what Shari said
during her Frumpy toFabulous Challenge (Day 18) “PLEASE know that you CANNOT be FABULOUS without accessories.
Remember, you are NOT frumpy anymore….but FABULOUS! Even if you are a Pure
Natural, you need accessories so no wigging out on me here, okay?”
Here are a few jewelry choices from Premier Designs Jewlery
today. Most Pure Naturals will only wear
the smaller necklace and with this dress it works!
Disclaimer: I do not have any affiliation with Premier Designs Jewelry. I thought it would make it easy to have each look come from just one company today. I plan to continue just one company/store in the future.
A Classic Modern would appear sleek and stylish, polished and
poised while staying modern and fashion present. She is wearing classic pumps and is carrying
a purse of a newer design. It could be
using a vintage broach as a modern hair piece.
Her jewels are very modern and have a vintage feel, like the pearls
shown below.
Here are a few jewelry choices from Premier Designs Jewlery
today. The turquoise pendant may not
match this dress, but it might match one in your closet.
A Style Fashionista would have the impeccable hair, makeup and
would be wearing lots of accessories. For me I would have to raid my
whole jewelry box to have the same amount of accessories on. She is
usually wearing the latest trend (that looks good on her). No matter her
size it looks like her look came off a Runway.
Here are a few jewelry choices from Premier Designs Jewlery
today. These necklaces offer an
opportunity to have only one necklace on with a very dressed up and layered
look. Pair with a few fabulous bracelets
and some great (sized right) earrings.
And on to the Creative Original. She is the woman who’s
look is so different yet so put together. I mean she added a blue ruffle
skirt under this dress, a pair of pale green leggings and had shoes with
matching floral prints on them and somehow it looks absolutely fabulous!
I’m not sure how these ladies pull their outfits together, but they are
wonderfully styled for their body shape and coloring so it works great.
Here are a few jewelry choices from Premier Designs Jewlery
today. These were the funkiest and most
fun pieces I could find that went with a black printed dress. I’m sure Creative Originals would add a few
layers of fun or use these accessories in an “original” way
Where I am going with this Dress
Here is my two cents worth… I am normally a Classic
Modern.
If I were going to a graduation party or a social gathering I
would wear this outfit with a cute pair of sandals…sparkly flip flops
anyone?... or my ballet flats. I would probably have on a single well
beaded necklace that is good for my height.
If I were going to something a little dressier I would wear my
cute black heels with my dressy black purse (I’m a Clear by the way). I
would dress up the outfit with a gemstone necklace and maybe my charm bracelet
(which would drive me bananas and it would be off by the end of the night).
I also would take my heels off mid way thru the night and make sure my flats
were handy. If I wanted to get really dressy I would probably feel like a
fashionista for the evening, but I would do it in a way that made me feel most
comfortable so my identity would still be a Classic Modern, just leaning toward
the Style Fashionista side of the equation that night.
The way I see Fashion Personalities is like this… I am not a
fashionista and it would be INCREDIBLY exhausting for me to try to always be a
style fashionista. A Creative Original is simply a category my creativity
does not fully comprehend when putting together an outfit. My Pure Natural tendencies come out when I am
seeking comfort over style, but Classic Modern is firmly where I belong at this
point in my life.
The style personalities help me put into perspective that there
are other women out there who do not dress to the nines every day or have to be
creative all the time. It helps me
understand that if I wear what looks good for my body, color, and height then I
will look fabulous no matter how trendy or un-bedazzled I am.
Don’t be afraid to take a look around at the next time you’re
around a group of women to take note. Also take note the ladies who have
not embraced their outer beauty. Do they look out of place? Are
they as confident standing in a group versus talking one-on-one? Take
note how women who purposely put their look together also are able to show
their inner beauty more confidently.
Ladies this is going to be a great summer. Thank you for
being so welcoming. I am happy to be here with you.
Until Wednesday! Yes I
said Wednesday, we will have a (hopefully) shorter post on Contrast and Color
Hues.
~ Laura ~
P.S. Did this help? Would you like more of this type
of post? Is it just WAAY too long? Were you looking for different
detail? What would you like to hear more about? Leave me some
comments!
Thank you Erika and JoAnn for asking! If you have questions
like this please send them on! We will do our best to answer as many as
we can, remember there are 2 ladies and only 52 weeks, we will try to be as
super as possible!
