The Tale of Six Pink Cardigans

Is doing your own wardrobe review difficult?  If you're me, yes, which is why this is hard to write.

Maybe it isn't hard for you - maybe you’re one of those enviable people who can just say ‘no, I've had you for long enough, you're tired and out of fashion; bye.’  If so, then this blog is for your amusement only.  

Oh, before we even start, I’m assuming that everything in your wardrobe is in your correct Seasonal Colours - if not, that's the first question you should ask. 

 
My wardrobe’s ruthlessly organised with trousers, jackets, skirts together and so on, neutrals on the left and then a rainbow progression from red through to violet.  This may seem to border on the obsessive but when you have many clothes it makes sense to keep them organised.

The problem with this is duplication - when I switched over to my Summer wardrobe last week it was embarrassing to find that I have no less than 28 cardigans!

  
Now, I can cope with having 28 cardigans in theory, but worryingly a closer look revealed that I had six pink cardigans!
 
I’ll share with you the painful process of whittling them down to an acceptable number.

The first question I ask myself is‘Did I wear it last year?’ Yes to everything except the shell pink one and the Kettlewell short cascade.

• Did I enjoy wearing it? Yes, except the classic round neck. 

• Is it still looking good? They're all fine except the round neck, a bit flat, and the shocking pink looks a little tired. The round neck was new last season, a cheap £10 bargain - maybe not such a bargain after all?

• How many items in my wardrobe does it go with?  The shell pink goes with nearly everything, as does the coral wrap, the shocking pink goes with three things and the ugly sister is the classic round neck!

• Lastly, do I love it? I do love the silly waterfall sleeves on the shocking pink, I'm really fond of the Kettlewell short cascade and I'm prepared to love the shell pink crop. The round neck thing is boring and I'm happy to let it go!

So there we are. Six pink cardigans reduced to five - was it worth the effort?

Well, I’ve gained the space of one cardigan and, remember, I’m now going to carry out the same exercise with the rest of my wardrobe.

The point is that there’s nothing wrong in having lots of clothes as long as they all work hard for you, you enjoy wearing them and they all look great on you.  Oh, they also need to fit and be in good condition!

It’s worth going through this process at least once every six months - even House of Colour Consultants have the odd sub-standard item that needs weeding out – do you?!

 

The Art of Communication

The G8 summit - a gathering of the most powerful people in the world.  Interestingly, whilst holding a position of authority, they also need to be able to communicate to people at all levels and to all cultures… at all times. 

 
Thanks to the power of the media, their most reliable form of communication is often visual.  Their words can be misquoted, misinterpreted or taken out of context but their clothing is, within reason, as they put it on that morning! 

So how interesting to see a whole article dedicated to the fact that all the men turned out tie-less for their photo call 

Am I old fashioned?  If I’m putting my trust in a leader, regardless of my personal or political opinions, ultimately I need to know that I can trust them; they demonstrate this by presenting a consistent appearance, whether formal or casual, a consistent level of quality, thought, attention to detail and style that tells me ‘they know what they’re talking about’….. If we perceive that someone knows what they are talking about in one area it is often assumed that this applies to many other areas as well.

George Osborne is quoted as responding to the request to ‘turn up in smart-casual wear’ as, “I have followed it to the letter: I got out my jacket and my blue shirt”!  Looking to the dictionary we have:

      Smart – fashionable, elegant, canny and shrewd in dealings with others

      Casual – occurring by chance, occasional, unpremeditated, relaxed, informal

 

So smart-casual is almost an oxymoron.  In simple terms, it’s absolutely possible to be smart and casual, but there is nothing unpremeditated about the way these leaders chose what to wear and how can something ‘occurring by chance and occasional’ also cover ‘fashionable and elegant’? 

Frequently people lose the ‘smart’ when they apply the casual, others keep the ‘smart’ but struggle to make it ‘casual’ – maybe fearing they’ll look like they’re there by chance and are not the world class leader on the global stage?

Removing some of the ‘armour’ is a great way to demonstrate to each other and the world that they are ‘open’ – a good premise for a summit meeting.  Maybe the formality we are familiar with and have come to expect (why else would going tie-less raise an eyebrow?) communicates immovable, entrenched thinking.  Relaxing the dress code communicates a friendly, relaxed get-together where they are open to finding compromises and solutions that work for everyone rather than a ‘bunch of businessmen on a jolly’?

Which is it for you?  And therein lies the problem, we each have our own interpretations, their visual communication needs to translate across borders and cultures to everyone…. Consistently!

The Red Lippy Project

Don a bright red lipstick during cervical screening awareness week 9-15 June 2013. The Red Lippy Project in association with The Eve Appeal is encouraging women to wear their favourite shade of red lipstick to create awareness for cervical screening.

At House of Colour we encourage our clients to wear lipstick as it makes our eyes sparkle and really enhances our natural colour as well as ensuring our communication is as good as it can be.  We love the transformation when clients, who have never tried lipstick before, wear an amazing shade once they know what colour is right for them, and we see the change in their confidence as the compliments flow in. Of course if you’ve had your colours analysed you will know the best shade for you, here are some of our best reds for each season:

L-R L 28 Cherry for Summers, L 499 Deep Red for Winters, L 12 Brick for Autumns and L 606 Geranium Red for Springs. All available to purchase from our webshop

Show off your House of Colour red lipstick this week and support The Red Lippy Project.

Red Lips Say:

“The initial idea was to create a platform that talked openly about the importance of cervical screenings and cervical cancer with a fun, bold, visual language that women and especially younger women can relate to.”

 

For more information visit their website 

www.theredlippyproject.com

The Power of Fear – why would you not want to?

There are many people who recognise in life that we are motivated by love or fear, in some ways this could be seen as being motivated towards or away from something.

I love the colour and style element of my job, it is so liberating to be able to wear colours that make me look healthy, vibrant, confident, young, awake, fresh and styles that flatter my figure, respecting my personality.

It’s been a bit of a joke amongst my friends who are clients – ‘better wear your right colours, Jackie’s coming’ or ‘if I’d known you were here I’d have worn something different’.

While I totally understand the comments, after all who doesn’t tidy up their home when visitors arrive, wear your best suit (outfit for an interview) – what a shame it is the fear of my reaction which has motivated the comment.

I’ve often said to clients ‘I’m not here to tell you what you can or can’t do, rather to show you what works, what flatters you and enhances your appearance.'  Knowing this, why would you not want to?

 

 

 

Do you match your dog?

It’s a joke, isn’t it, that owners grow to look like their dogs? In fact, I often say that I’d like to adopt a retired greyhound because, hey – I’m hoping!  But like all clichés there is more than a grain of truth in there somewhere.   

Every Monday afternoon I see a woman walking her Doberman. Now, there’s a match – especially when she’s in her black leather coat and knee-boots. A very pretty (honey blonde) I know has a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  Well, of course she does.  Now moving onto another friend who keeps Old English Bulldogs – obviously I assumed that here was the exception to the rule: then I met her husband!  So here’s a thought; maybe, if your dog doesn’t match you, does he or she match your ideal mate?

What a novel idea for the dating scene. You already know that dog-walking is a great way to meet people, but now you’re going to be looking at the single men you meet (and their dogs) in a whole new way.

And, looking at my husband, I need to adopt a Smooth Haired Fox Terrier, not a greyhound. Oh well….

New Hairstyle, New You!

I’ve just discovered a new hairstyle… and no hairdressers involved!  Visiting the West Country for Easter, I rediscovered the ‘natural curl’ present in a damper environmentJ 

I’ve also had that rare luxury of being able to read the papers for more than 5 minutes!  How appropriate then to read Glenda Cooper’s account in The Telegraph and reasons for changing hairstyles through the ages, I’m sure you’ll be able to relate to many of those cited!

She notes that we give away more than we realise about our state of mind through our hair, whether we hold on to styles through the decades (The Queen, Jerry Hall) or morph frequently (Madonna, Victoria Beckham).

A change in relationship, lifestyle, life stage, job or career can prompt a need to change hairstyle, which could include colour and/or style.  Wigs have long been used as a disguise, to ring the changes or to hide changes brought on by health issues.   As with glasses and shoes, our hair is an accessory. 

Hair is an easily changeable element of our identity but the problem arises when you consider we make most changes on the back of an emotional charge.  Cheaper than a completely new wardrobe, less controversial than Botox, less permanent than surgery, faster than weight loss, not permanent, it can still be traumatic to some; we all want to get it right. 

The good news is that Personal Branding enables you to bring some objectivity and logic to the emotional motivation.  You can ring the changes while honouring who you are.  Working within your colour season, warm or cool, ensures you confidently ring the colour changes in line with your natural colouring.  Switching from bob to layers, long to short, curly to straight, can all be achieved but move away from working WITH your colouring and personality and you may end up with the kind of style that you’d like to forget but everyone else remembers!

It’s possible to ring the changes and look your best, feeling great rather than self-conscious.  We all have several styles that can look classy, elegant and stylish; it’s about working in partnership with your House of Colour consultant and your hairdresser to discover them.

My West Country break’s now over and my regular hairdresser appointment is booked; I wonder what will be discovered next!

Cosmetic Surgery or Natural Beauty?

Concern about the cosmetic surgery industry has been in the public eye over the last week with a new report regarding regulation just being published.  An interesting Q&A has been posted by the BBC covering the main points.

Vanity is not a particularly nice interpretation – however, excessive pride isn’t something to be ashamed of is it?  After all, ‘If a job’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well!

At House of Colour we believe it’s up to the individual to choose their path to beauty however, in almost 30 years our consultants have seen clients numbering in the hundreds of thousands.  We have a tried and tested three step process, taking into account age, shape, size, colouring, budget, lifestyle and the latest fashion trends, giving access to looking and feeling your best by utilising and enhancing your natural assets. 

And so I’ve had time to contemplate my appearance.  The grey hair, or is it distinguished silver highlights, much as the logical head of my Colour Analyst and the knowledgeable head of my Personal Stylist KNOW without a doubt that I can make look great,  so why does it still bother me?  My husband says he doesn’t notice it, but then he is a man, can I believe him? My friends say they don’t notice it, but do they see me objectively?   

In many colour analysis consultations, I’d cite the example of the Mother of the bride.  She needs to know she looks good so that her attention is focused on her daughter and guests, not her outfit, how it feels, how it looks, does it work?  I realise that if I overcome my commitment phobia (time and money) to regularly cover up my ‘natural highlights’ I will also remove a constant ‘niggle’ that my husband and friends are only being polite.    There are some who even think dying hair and wearing make-up is unnecessary – opening a completely different debate!

But where does it end? Countless billions are invested in research and expenditure on various beauty treatments.  The subtle change to my jowls with the onset of my 40s, the change in skin texture on my hands, the ‘laughter lines’ around my eyes, suddenly become redefined as ‘crows feet’, never mind the tramlines appearing on my forehead, Dad always used to call them character lines, are we really removing our character?

Do we take the long and expensive road to eternal youth, embrace the way we look, accept  our changing appearance or find some middle ground to  work with it naturally, involving make-up, clothes and hair styles?