Do you feel self-conscious about your looks?

Do other women seem more “put together.”

 

Do you wonder how they do it?

Do you compare yourself to models in magazines or people you see on television?

 When you were a child or teenager was someone highly critical of your appearance?

My hope is that by  learning about fashion personality you can be one step closer to being less critical of yourself.and not so influenced by critical voices from your past.

 

My Story

When people ask me how I became an image consultant, I tell them I owe it to my mother.

 

My mother was a beautiful woman who never felt beautiful.

She was critical of herself and of me, her oldest

daughter.

 

My passion for helping clients look good and feel good about themselves  comes from my own journey to look and feel good.

 

My mother thought her nose was too big and she hated her freckled skin.

 

She envied all of her friends who could lay in the sun until their skin was leathery brown.  

I have my father’s small nose and only a sprinkling of freckles, so my mother focused on what I wore and my weight.

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My mothers constant criticism took a toll on my self-esteem and made me very self-conscious.  I know now, my mother thought she was being helpful.

 

 If you have a daughter who dresses in a way you do not approve of, my hope is that after learning about “fashion personality,” you will try to understand that not only is there a generational difference, but her fashion personality may be different from yours.

 

If you can accept her way of dressing, instead of trying to change her, it will be easier for her to discover her own fashion personality and feel good about her appearance.

And by understanding your own “fashion personality,” shopping and dressing yourself will get so much easier.

 

Back to my story.

When I was 13, my mother encouraged me to wear lipstick and heels and dress in a more sophisticated way.

 

She told me she wanted to make sure I wouldn’t be an “old maid.”

 

My friends were envious and told me how lucky I was to have a mother who wanted me to wear lipstick and heels.

 

I didn’t feel lucky.

 

Because at 13, heels, lipstick and dressing more “sophisticated,” did not represent my “true self.”

 

Intuitively, I knew that if I presented a false self, I would not attract a compatible boyfriend or future husband 

 

My mother did not understand that she and I had

different fashion personalities.

 

The clothing that was right for her, was not right for me.

 

She was interested in looking ” sophisticated and

elegant,” and I was interested in feeling

comfortable, “being my self,” and having low

maintenance clothing and hair.

 

Now I understand that I have a “sporty natural fashion personality,” and she had a “timeless classic, elegant,” fashion personality.

 

But when I was a teenager I felt hurt and angry

she did not try to understand me.

 

As a result of her constant criticism, I felt self-conscious about my appearance and stayed angry at my mother for a long time.

 

When I became an image consultant and learned

my best colors and styles and found out about

fashion personality, much of the early damage to

my self-esteem disappeared.

 

 

One of the first things I do with a

client is give the “fashion personality test.”

 

 

Fashion personality has nothing to do with your height or weight or how long or short your hair is or what colors you wear.

 

I believe it is “in-born,” like temperament.  You may be a combination of two types but one is usually dominant.  Here are brief descriptions of the four fashion personality types and  photo examples.

“Sporty Natural,” Fashion Personality:

 

  You want comfort and ease.  You probably don’t like to iron and prefer a very easy to care for hair style.  You may not like to get dressed up.  Your friends think you wear the same outfit frequently because you end up  wearing the same few comfortable things or have the same style in different colors that you wear over and over.   Whoppi Goldberg, Ellen  De Generes, and Katherine Hepburn all have this fashion personality.

 

“Time-less Classic,” Fashion Personality

 You probably like classic styles.  You may prefer tailored clothes.  Think Ann Taylor and Ann Klein clothing.   You  don’t waste your money on fads and may be slow to adopt trends .  Diane Sawyer and many anchor women have this fashion personality.

 

“Romantic,” Fashion Personality

  You probably like some feminine touches in your clothes like soft flowing fabric, maybe a few ruffles, scarves, perfume, maybe long hair or at least some waves or curls,as well as  delicate jewelry. Examples of famous people, Jane Seymour, Princess Diana,  Grace Kelly.

 

“High Fashion-  Dramatic or Creative,” Fashion Personality

  You like to make a statement with your clothing and jewelry.  You may like trying different hair styles and colors.  You like trying the latest styles and fads. You don’t mind being the center of attention. Cher, Lady Gaga,  Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna, and Rhyianna are examples of this personality.

 

In order to present your most authentic self to the world, I believe it is important to understand and respect your fashion personality.

 Even if an outfit was a flattering color and fit me, I would still feel uncomfortable if it had ruffles.

 That’s because ruffles feel too “girly,” romantic on me. I  have a “sporty-natural, dramatic.” fashion personality. I am mostly sporty- natural with a little dramatic.

I like wearing pieces that breathe, do not need ironing and are super comfortable.  I do the dramatic part with  big earrings and or a funky lapel pin.

 

At a recent Wardrobe Wizard presentation one of the participants , a successful, woman entrepreneur, wanted to know how she could look more appropriate when she  has to go to “dress up affairs.”

I determined she had a “sporty-natural fashion personality.”  She loves wearing pants and boots and hates getting dressed up, but she must attend certain important “dress up,” events where she has to look less casual.

I suggested she could do this by wearing a 3 piece pant outfit in a silk or  knit fabric all in one color. (When you wear all one color you will always look more elegant and dressed up.)

The pants should be soft and flowing with a deep v  neck shell and an open jacket.

 

She could wear simple earrings  and comfortable dressy pumps the same color as her hair.

 

If she wanted to look more feminine she could wear a pashmina over her shoulders instead of the jacket.

The outfit should be as comfortable for her as pajamas.

It’s important for you to understand and “honor,” your  fashion personality so that you can choose clothing styles that help you feel comfortable and be at your best in every situation..

Joanna Nicholson, “Color 1,” founder and my teacher, would probably say fashion personality categories are too confining and we can change our looks based on how we are feeling.

I could look a little more romantic, if I put a sheer scarf around my neck, but I would feel very uncomfortable dressed totally in a romantic style.

 

Think of your fashion personality as a home base where you feel most relaxed and comfortable.

You can leave home for a while wearing a different style, but eventually you need to return home to your “fashion personality.” to relax and recharge your batteries.

 

Do you know what your fashion personality is?  How has this affected your choice of clothing and accessories? 

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Nancy Goldblatt, “The Wardrobe Wizard of Baltimore,” is a Color 1 Associate.  She specializes in working with mid-life women whose size or shape has changed.  She has worked over twenty years as a Personal Image Consultant.  She works with clients in  Baltimore, Maryland and surrounding areas and now she can work with clients all over the world using the telephone and internet.

E-mail to set up a complimentary, no obligation telephone,”Wardrobe Needs Assessment. During this needs assessment, “The Wardrobe Wizard,” will give you the “Fashion Personality Test.”

She  can be reached at Nancy@wardrdrobewiz.com, website is : http://blog.WardrobeWiz.com

accepting yourself, Add new tag, being authentic, being comfortable, choosing flattering colors, fashion personality, fashion style, Learning to Like Your Looks, looking good, mother daughter conflicts, self esteem, understanding yourself, Wardrobe, WardrobeWiz

beauty, closet shopping, critical mother, fashion personality, fashion tips, feeling beautiful, feeling self conscious, Learning to Love The Way You Look, Looking in the Mirror, Mother daughter conflict, real beauty, Uncategorized, Wardrobe, WardrobeWizard