Turtlenecks are completely valid on their own but how they make a spaghetti strap sundress or a camisole top work in the winter is their real magic. A turtleneck under a cotton blouse, jumpsuit or dress adds depth in addition to warmth.
Turtlenecks
Closet Hacks: Do's and Don'ts
DO: Use velour hangers, they are slim, cheap and colorful so you can organize your closet by hanger function. For example: use pink for hot weather items, beige for evening wear, and black for business.
DO: Have a full length mirror very close by with ample light.
DO: Put a wastebasket in your closet for clothing tags, pins and dry cleaning refuse.
DO: Put a pair of scissors in your closet for snipping tags or errant threads.
DO: Have double stick tape and a lint brush in your closet.
DO: Put a hook in your closet for gently worn clothes or a cozy bathrobe.
DO: Build essentials to create foundation wardrobe.
DO: Assess whether you would buy that item again today.
DO: Subscribe to one item in, one item out when purchasing new items by taking an item out of your closet when you purchase one of a similar category.
DO: Wear your newly purchased items as soon as the opportunity allows. Don’t save new, beautiful pieces for a better day. Today is the best day.
DO: Know where to donate your discarded items so you feel purposeful while editing.
DO: Find a great tailor. The cheapest clothes get elevated when the fit well.
DO: Place new items in a spot with their tags on so that if you find you haven’t worn them within a week or so you can return them within the store’s return policy. Tape the store receipt to the hanger.
DO: Built a capsule travel wardrobe and store it in your closet for efficient packing.
DON’T: Expect your closet to look like a boutique unless you have the energy to keep it up that way. It’s is a working space and need not be photo ready unless that’s your pleasure.
DON’T: Place any thing you try on and take off without wearing back onto the shelf or rod until you can evaluate why those pieces aren’t working for you.
DON’T: Forget to turn around and check the back of your outfit. Rear zippers, buttons and slips sometimes get forgotten.
DON’T: Forget appropriate undergarments when trying on clothing.
DON’T: Hold onto anything that is damaged or stained.
Selfie, #OOTD
Every day for the last few years I take a quick pic of myself before I leave the house. Sometimes it causes me rush back into my closet to change. Looking at a photograph of your outfit of the day (#ootd), gives you a different and more productive perspective than just looking in the mirror. You can examine the elements together instead of piece by piece. Seeing yourself in a mirror image photograph isn’t perfect. It can highlight a curve to look out of proportion when in real life it looks perfectly normal. I try to remember that I am a 360° person and the one dimension is helpful but not wholly accurate. It does give me a catalogue of outfits that have worked and ones that didn’t. It allows to see my style evolution: which item of clothing or accessory is in constant rotation and which items I am forgetting are a good option. I also take a pic of myself when I am trying on clothes in a dressing room. I can visit that image and decide if I really love/want/need the item I am trying on. I created an Instagram account for all of these images so they are easily accessible to me. Of course, you can just create an album on your phone.
Muddy Hues
When I see an unusual color in one place, my brain is turned on to notice it elsewhere. These muddy hues of red keep showing up for me.
Sailor Pants for Spring
Annual Word and Phrase List
I started this list in 2015.
“I love words. I feel triumphant when I chose a word judiciously. As a consumer of podcasts, broadcasts, lectures and other media I often hear the same words and expressions ad nauseam. They aren’t bad words–just overused words. They need a little break from usage to regain their power.”
Here is my 2019 list. Cheers to 2020.
Strategic
Level up
Starting a sentence with, “I said,”
On boarded
Narrative
Granular
Cancel culture
Vision board
Pivot
In the space
Welcome 2020
As I scrolled through Instagram last night (I’m a stay home New Year’s eve type of person) I saw how many people spoke of their growth in the last ten years or a least they noted where they were then and how their life is different. I cannot remember much of the last ten years without looking at photographs. I was so entrenched in making chicken for my people who are now vegetarians, driving them to interests they no longer pursue, doing laundry for clothing that now hangs in a distant closet and focusing on who they are and what they needed. It’s all a blur. But, if you ask me what shoes I was wearing in 1982, 38 years ago, I can tell you: Capezio white leather jazz shoes. It took much white shoe polish to keep them looking fresh. They haven’t been back in style since and I think it’s time.
As I tried to think of resolutions for 2020 I realized that wanting what I already have seems like more than enough. The girl that wore those Capezios would be pleased to see this as her future- shoddy memory and all. Happy New Year.
