A new wardrobe was purchased last week in our household and for the first time in 20 years of marriage I now understand why other women are better at shopping for clothes than I am. Three main points distinguish women that are immaculately presented.

1. They have wardrobes that are as organised as an army regiment
2. They research and know what suits their shape and lifestyle
3. They shop all the time and know every shop on the high street and online

The wardrobe is the key to shopping for ladies clothes successfully. An inventory of the items you have and changing them in the order they are hung gives you a true view of who you are nad what your clothes say about you. Advice from a well heeled fashionista friend of mine was as follows:

1. Get rid of any item you have not worn for 6 months. It is true that “Pareto’s Law” extends to female wardrobes and we only wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time.
2. Get rid of any item that does not fit you. The majority of women have a range of 4 dress sizes. Keep only those in your current size.
3. Now looking at the pared down items make a list of the items you are missing that would make up complete outfits.
4. Find what tops, trousers, skirts and heels suit your shape. ( see books by Gok Wan or Trinny or Susannah (littlewoods direct)
5. Find out what colors suit you using a gold or silver necklace, which makes your face light up? Gold then warm tones and if Silver then cold tones. Research further with a book.
6. Buy some fabulous support underwear that fits as this can drop a dress size instantly and makes your clothes hang beautifully.

Now finally you are allowed to venture to the shops. There are two final small things to do. One is to decide your budget and only take that cash amount. Secondly you need to research online which retailer’s clothes you feel an affinity too and reflect your taste.

Once purchased, keep receipts and take them home. Try the clothes on with other items you decided they would compliment and look at yourself from all angles. Ask advice from an honest friend or family member. Then take one last critical look and if you love it and feel gorgeous only then remove labels and hang on your newly gleaming coat hangers.

If not then try try again and start at the beginning.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 29th, 2010 at 4:59 am and is filed under Clothing.You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.