The more we talked, the more we began putting our style skills together.  Before we knew it, we had come up with something that made the most of accessorizing our shoes! It is a ‘shoe cape’ to dress up any shoe, sandal or boot! We called it GlamWraps , and the best thing is – it could also be worn as a cuff too. You can’t pack fifteen pair of shoes for your trip but you can esely pack fifteen GlamWraps to dress one pair of shoes in fifteen different way! These are limited edition designs, so you would be the only fashionista around rocking your very own GlamWraps.

So what started out as a chance meeting at a party, has resulted in our fun new company

- FaySi Creations -

For more info about our fabulous GlamWraps contact me!

Ciao

Recently I put on my favorite elegant black dress and realized I didn’t love the way it looked on me. It still fit OK, but it wasn’t as flattering as it had been. I knew I’d gained a little weight but I also knew I’d work on it—after the holidays. So I decided to use the power of distraction! I paired the dress with bright purple shoes. I loved the effect, and so did everyone else–I got so many compliments on them!. Everyone’s eye went to the shoes and not to my snug dress.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Now is the time to use the power of distraction, draw attention away from the skirt you’ve worn a million times or the dress that might be a little snug. Add accessories! Try some sexy heels or cute flats in a statement color or metallic or patent leather. Red is big this year and what’s more festive than a pair of red shoes? The new cobalt blue is another great option, fun yet versatile—it can mix with brown, black, or grey. Choose a medium tone, not too dark or light. Animal prints are also popular–ballet flats in an animal print can make even those black yoga pants you’re wearing to do your shopping look kicky and cute, and don’t we all want to look a little more festive when the holidays are here?

If you don’t want to buy new shoes, then take advantage of all the holiday sales for costume jewelry. A statement necklace or one of those dainty, lovely flowers will give your outfit a “pop” that draws the eye. Just a few dollars and a few minutes, and your whole outfit is changed.

Listen, I know how it is and so does everyone else! Give yourself a break. Everyone’s eating cookies from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, nobody will notice.

We are all beautiful, and we deserve to have some fun with fashion for the holiday season.

To all Have a Happy Holydays!

Ciao!

Here are 3 “Re’s” that you can do to keep the memory safe while opening up some valuable space in your closet:

Restructuring:

Tailoring is a great, simple way to update an older piece; I do this for many of my clients. I’ve shortened and slimmed many skirts, blouses, dresses, jackets, pants, and more. Every time, my clients were able to get more chances to wear them…and lots of compliments. Certain patterns and pieces never go out of style, a wool hounds tooth skirt, a black jacket, a good pair of jeans. If the fabric and seaming is good quality, I can recommend and perform alterations for a more flattering look.

Reimagining:

Taking tailoring one step further, I like to redesign pieces. One of my clients had a long, flowered sundress. The fabric was pretty, but the style was extremely outdated. The client loved this dress, she had worn it to many special events and didn’t want to give it up. We reimagined the dress,  we made the length shorter, and replaced the matching fabric belt with a thick grosgrain ribbon in a contrasting color. Now the stodgy, out-of-date dress has a vintage flair. The client wears this cute, flirty sundress with a denim jacket and wedge sandals and gets compliments every time, it was better than buying a new dress!

Repurposing:

This is when you take a piece of clothing that has sentimental value and put it into a totally different form. Think of it this way, what do you think patchwork quilts used to be made of? They were developed out of scraps from peoples’ old clothes, back when they made all their own clothes. One of my favorite stories of repurposing is the sweater pillows. One of my clients had a beautiful sweater that she had bought on her honeymoon in Ireland. It wasn’t flattering on her body and was a little outdated too, and you know how a good quality Irish sweater is but, it’s bulky, plus it takes up a lot of space! She felt sad at the idea of giving it up though—so many memories. We thought hard about this, and decided to use the sweater fabric to cover a pair of pillows. The light color and soft texture of these “sweater pillows” made them a perfect addition to her bedroom set. Now she can enjoy those lovely memories all the time,better than having them stuffed in back of her closet!

These ideas are a great way to use those items in your wardrobe that you are only hanging onto for sentimental reasons,not only for yourself, but perhaps even as holiday gifts! Contact me to help make them happen.
Ciao!

Sometimes, men need fashion help, too! I recently worked with a client who wanted to update his wardrobe. Michael is a 38-year old mechanical engineer. His workplace is casual, but he wanted to put together a more sophisticated, attractive look as he moves forward personally and professionally. As you can see Michael tended to wear his clothes a little to big and baggy for his body type making him look short and heavier.

What we did was very simple, often using clothes he already owned. I made sure he was dressing for his true size and body type, and helped him create outfits for easy looks each day, giving him a much more lean and modern look. Michael was so happy with the results, he told me, “I wish I had found you years ago.  I feel much better about the way I look, and much more confident shopping for myself.”

Of course my favorite thing about Italy is the food. Buonissimo !

But I do love to look at the fashions when I’m there, too. What I saw in Europe was a sophisticated look, a lot of neutrals with strong colors appearing here and there for emphasis.  Jewel tones like purple and green are hot, and so is a new, trendy color they are calling “petroleum blue.”  Mixing patterns and color blocking are popular.  And, as in the US, I saw lots

of adorable faux fur accent and sexy animal prints.

Ciao!  Sira

P.S.  Many people ask me about wearing white after Labor Day, now that white jeans and pants have become popular.  White is always in style! If you want to wear them in the fall, just add a dark color to them—brown, purple, or black. Pair with nude color shoes, and you can wear your white jeans all through the fall!

Rule #1: Only one item can be an animal print otherwise it takes on the look of a costume. One item is more than enough to pull off this look.

Rule #2:  Pair it with solid coordinating colors.  Turn to your neutrals like black, white and denim to keep the look both sassy and classy! 

With Spring kicking in to high gear, everyone is asking me, “What should I spend money on for my wardrobe? What clothing is considered an investment, and what pieces should I just buy on sale or at a discount store?” My advice is to splurge on basics, and save on trends. Basics should be timeless, lasting a while because they are of good quality, and have a long shelf life in your closet. Here are some examples:

Splurge on:

Suits: as you know from our Ten Ways to Suit Up blog, a suit can take you a long way and provide endless options. So you want to get a really good one and have it tailored to fit (City Chic does custom alterations!)

Shoes: I always recommend people buy good shoes. There is no need to suffer for style, and there is nothing fashionable about blisters!

A good pair of jeans (now, before you disagree, think of how often you wear jeans! If you look and feel good in a pair of jeans, you will wear them all the time. So it needs to be high quality to wear well, and the cost-per-use will average out to your benefit.)  

Save on:

Seasonal clothing: Most seasonal clothing can be found at amazing prices after the season is done, so it makes sense to shop around for next season and find a classic shape.

Trends and fads: Here today, gone tomorrow fashion trends should not cost an arm and a leg!

Accessories, especially costume jewelry: There is nothing like finding that fun, funky necklace on the sale display or getting those cute hoop earrings at the BOGO sale. Don’t spend a lot on accessories and trendy jewelry–save your money for diamonds, ladies!

When you have the right basics in your wardrobe, you will never wear the same thing twice because you can always change accessories or add flair. So now you have your basics, and you are ready to start creating outfits. To get started, here are ten ways you can wear a basic black suit (or its pieces), no matter what your lifestyle is like:

1. Suit jacket + skirt= perfect for business or formal occasions. Use classic accessories like pearls for business or a statement necklace for formal.
2. Suit jacket + jeans=wear for dinner with the girls, pair with fun shoes for lots of compliments.
3. Suit jacket + jeans + lace cami=wear for dinner with your husband or boyfriend—simple long earrings and a sexy perfume are all you need to accessorize this outfit!
4. Suit jacket + printed skirt or dress=great for daytime social events
5. Suit pants + sweater set=wear for client meetings or offsite work events
6. Suit skirt + fancy top=wear for formal occasions, even a wedding
7. Suit jacket + coordinating pants=wear for child’s evening school events
8. Suit pants + V neck sweater = wear for a casual day or evening
9. Suit pants + white t-shirt + denim jacket = wear it for a parents teacher conference.
10. Suit skirt + white blouse = wear it in the office, add a scarf or patterned    hose with heels for

Now you know how much wear you can get out of one suit—get out there and suit up! If you need help finding that perfect suit, call me and we will set up a personal shopping appointment. We can even do personal online shopping for far away clients!

My clients often tell me they have a “closet full of clothes but nothing to wear.”  What they mean is, their wardrobe does not work together. If you want to have a wardrobe that truly works together, you must have basics. They are like building blocks, always making new outfits for you.

I recommend that every woman has the following basics (classic, well-fitting, quality pieces that never go out of style) in her closet:

• Black suit consisting of jacket, pants and skirt (straight fit for the skirt) in a lightweight material like gabardine or rayon
• Fitted white blouse
• Denim jacket (we will talk more about this in an upcoming blog!)
• Basic trousers (flat front, tailored: charcoal, chocolate brown or camel, can be pinstripe or solid)
• Medium-rise, dark wash, straight-legged jeans
• Pointed-toe shoes, either flats or heels, to elongate the line of the leg
• A-line skirts, flattering for any body type
• An assortment of cami’s
• Sweaters:
  • V-neck knit sweaters elongate the line of the neck and make you appear taller and slimmer
  • Sweater sets can be worn separately or together, stretching the number of outfits you can create.
• A trench coat  never goes out of style—you’ll need black, tan or a fun color that gets you through the “shoulder seasons,” spring and fall
• Black Dresses —every wardrobe needs a little black dress that can be paired with just about anything in your wardrobe such as a blazer, jacket or cardigan sweater.

I am always here to help you go through your closet to find these basics and help you put new outfits together. Call to schedule  your consultation, and go shopping in your closet for those new clothes you want for the new year!

Ciao!