Is it time to refresh your style? Nearly everyone needs a fresh look from time to time. You don’t want to wind up as that person who obviously found a look they liked years or even decades ago and stuck with it. While the occasional daring and creative iconoclast can get away with this approach, for most of us mere mortals, an update from time to time is in order.
It’s not even necessary to tie it to a seasonal shift, although that can be a great way to approach it. A new season often means a sense of starting fresh, and there’s usually a fresh set of looks from designers debuting as well. You don’t have to be a fashionista or have thousands of dollars to spend to take inspiration from what’s on the runway. But there are many other ways to give your style a reboot as well.
Consult a Personal Stylist
This one is really a must if you’re feeling lost when it comes to fashion. But even if you like to keep your finger on the pulse of what’s fashionable and develop your own look, a personal stylist may have a lot to offer you. They can refine your instincts and help you figure out what looks most flattering.
They can also provide informed, valuable feedback. They’ll help you develop a better sense of how to evaluate different fabrics, colors and textures. If you’re aiming for a specific look, whether it’s more professional, more bohemian or more practical, they can help. Best of all, personal stylists have never been as accessible as they are now. While you can still go the old-fashioned in-person route, you can also consult an online service or even use an app.
Consider Medical Aesthetics
While you’re giving your wardrobe a boost, you may want to consider doing the same for your face and body. A trip to a med spa can be a great way to feel as though you yourself are refreshed along with your closet. There are several procedures you can get at a med spa, such as injectables or laser skin resurfacing that can reduce wrinkles. Some med spas also offer nonsurgical fat or cellulite reduction procedures.
Cost is a concern for many potential customers when it comes to med spa procedures. However, more med spas now offer payment plans, which allows you to easily apply and get the treatment you want right away and pay in installments. The program is also integrated with Allē, the loyalty program for BOTOX® Cosmetic, JUVÉDERM® Collection of Fillers, and more. You can ask the med spa for an application link to get started.
Conduct a Closet Audit
A closet does exactly what it’s supposed to do, which is store your clothes someplace where they’re out of the way. Unfortunately, that also creates the out of sight, out of mind problem. When you’re ready for a wardrobe refresh, you can’t skip the step of going through your closet, your drawers, the storage bins under your bed, and anywhere else that you keep your clothes. A common rule is to say that if you haven’t worn it in six months or a year, you should get rid of it, but you may want to bend this for a few special pieces. After all, you might have a few unusual items in your wardrobe that don’t even come out that often but that are perfect when you need them.
It’s more important to come up with guidelines that work for you, your wardrobe and your lifestyle than to follow an arbitrary set of rules. However, a few things need to be non-negotiable. If you’ve been hanging onto something that’s stained or needs a tailor’s needle, go ahead and take care of that item this week. Otherwise, get rid of it. If you don’t, you’ll just stick it back in the closet and never get around to it. Be honest with yourself as well about the pieces that no longer fit your aesthetic, your lifestyle or your body. It’s sad to say goodbye to some pieces, but this is an important step in freeing up not just your physical clutter but your mental and emotional clutter so that you can start fresh.
Consolidate
Once you’ve been ruthless with your existing wardrobe, it’s time to take another look at it. This is where you figure out what you have too much of and what you’re missing. That means that further paring could be ahead, but you also get to buy more things at this stage too. There’s a rule that says roughly two-thirds of your wardrobe should be basics and what remains can be the unusual, the trendy and the flashy. As with the one-year rule, you don’t have to follow this to the letter, but it gives you a basis to work from. If a review of your existing wardrobe has left you with all basics or all flash, you know what you need to do.
If you find that you’re actually building an entirely new wardrobe from the ground up, don’t despair as this is a great opportunity. If you’re working with that personal stylist from step one, they can assist you, but even if you aren’t, following a few principles can help. Think in terms of sticking with one color palette to start. Try to begin with pieces that are versatile and that you can mix and match in several different ways. Only buy things that are just right. If it’s nearly there or kind of fits, it’s no longer good enough for your closet.
Read more fashion articles at ClichéMag.com
Images provided by Deposit Photos, BingAI, Adobe Stock, Unsplash, Pexels, Pixabay Freepik, & Creative Commons. Other images might be provided with permission by their respective copyright holders.
