By Katrina Kinney
Who is ready for cooler evenings, football games, and pumpkin spice? Do you embrace fall? Daylight savings time, changes in colors, flavors, and new trends. As women, we are known to quiver at the thought of change. Whether the changes are small, like moving from season to season, or big, like job promotion, moving to a new home or even to a new town, we tend to feel safe in our small and structured surroundings and shake our heads “no” to moving beyond our confront zones. Change means growth, and that is not always easy.
What does this mean when it comes to your style? Do you have to embrace all new things? I personally say no: trends don’t last. Sometimes they pass by without us noticing; some we more actively resist. But when we do grab hold of them, we often have a hard time letting go. Though it is when we learn to let go that we allow and free ourselves to live bigger and better lives.
In the past, I have shared how my closet can get out of hand. I walked in the other day and thought to myself what happened? It was not bad, but it had certainly gone beyond my thirty-hanger rule. I needed to move out a number of seasonal items and several “what ifs.” I looked at a few items I had added for the current season, and then gave away a few more to maintain some balance. To me, keeping my closet efficient means that I can walk in and out of my closet feeling good about my outfits while wasting no time or effort in getting dressed. One of my secrets: I play dress up with my clothes, so have ideas of items to mix and match throughout each season. Our own styles change everything from our posture and body language to how we to talk to others, all because of the impact it has on our confidence.
Jesse is married with two children, and while she has been a stay-at-home mom, she is going back to work. She loves cami’s and tank tops and has a great eye for color. However, in the business world she needed an update in wardrobe without spending much money, so we pulled items out of her closet and did some mix and matches. We did some flat-lay pictures with her clothes with accessories, and since then, Jesse has sent me several pictures of the outfits we created. She has even added some extra accessories to complete the outfit. A few weeks back she sent me another picture with “It’s my Friday today, and the day has been a drag, but I don’t care because I feel super cute!”
Bethany is a college graduate seeking her master’s degree while working. We played with a couple of her shirts, one dress, and a denim jacket. She wanted more looks and to be able to do it quickly. We did decide that she needed to add a few more solid tops and white pair of jeans to expand her closet. Here are five looks we created with one shirt and her jacket.
The jacket also worked well with her dress and new white jeans.
Both Jesse and Bethany lit up when we were able to create so many looks from their existing clothes. My job is to simply help open their minds to wear things they had never thought to wear before. Choosing what to wear may make us feel overwhelmed or stressed. Both of these ladies had looked though everything in their closet, but they didn’t feel motivated to wear most of it. I shared my secret with them about having a fashion show with their closet each season. Mix and match items and take photos of your creations so you have inspirations and reference when you need quick out the door looks. Have you ever thought to wear a blazer with your jeans in lieu to your favorite sweater? You will be surprised by how great you look and by a style that you did not think was yours.
When trying on clothes, take pictures, and share them with a friend or family member that will be honest with you. If it is an outfit from your existing closet, this will help you know whether to keep it or give it away. Same rule applies when out shopping. If it’s a good deal, but it doesn’t compliment your style or our body shape, how likely are you to wear it? Chances are you will donate it in a few years with tags still on.
A final thought is to know your body shape. When dressing in your style, knowing your shape will enhance your over all look. A great example is my daughter, Brittney. We were out shopping for new glasses, and she stopped to look in the mirror and said, “I used to love this dress, but I am not crazy about it now.” I looked up and quickly saw the small problem causing her dislike. Last year she was postpartum, and this year she had worked hard to lose ten pounds. I suggested she move her high-sitting belt to her lower waist, “Brittney, there is no need to hide a little belly that’s not there!” Brittney smiled as she moved the belt down, looking at me saying “that is incredible.”
Katrina Kinney is Personal Fashion Stylist and Wardrobe Consultant since 2000. She attended St. Johns River Community College, and has taken courses in both business and fashion design. In 2008, she started coordinating spring fashion shows informing audiences of upcoming styles.
Katrina transplanted to Goose Creek, SC from in 1993 with her husband David and 3 children. She married her high-school sweetheart in 1983, raised 3 children and is currently a proud “MaMaw” of 6 grandchildren. Contact her at: katrinadavid.mypremierdesigns.com or katrinalovnherjewels@gmail.com