OK, a couple of posts back, along with other fitness/lifestyle
suggestions, I advised giving your wardrobe an update with pearls.
Seems I'm not alone in touting the luminous, classic gem. Read what
another fashion guru--Lamont Jones, fashion editor at the Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette--says about pearls and other trends for 2007.
"The beginning of a new year is a natural time to make a fresh start,
to renew commitments, to make good on old promises.
It's a time to hope, wish and dream anew.
So here's my seven-part wish list for 2007 related to matters of
fashion and style.
- I wish people would become more experimental and uninhibited in
their everyday dress.
Elegance is always "in." And it's for every day, not just weddings or
parties or other special occasions.
Try a new silhouette this year.
Wear an old piece a new way.
Mix patterns and colors that you initially think might clash.
Rather than looking at what's already in your wardrobe, start with how
you would ideally like to look and work your way back.
Push your style envelope, going two steps further than you ever dared
and then taking one step back. Find out what makes you a unique
individual and convey that through your wardrobe.
That's true elegance.
And remember the words of the eternally chic Coco Chanel: "Elegance is
not the prerogative of those who have just escaped from adolescence,
but of those who have already taken possession of their future."
- I wish that women would wear fewer diamonds and more pearls.
It's time for the understatement of a whisper rather than the roar of
ostentation. A single pearl states with ease and simplicity what a
dozen diamonds might never convey.
One of my sisters phoned me a few weeks ago and asked if it's OK to
wear pearls during the day. Of course, I told her. Their classic charm
and sophistication communicate a quiet dignity, and their subdued
lustre makes them much more versatile than glittering diamonds.
Consider the pearl's range. A woman can be occasion-appropriate
wearing a single-strand pearl choker to work with a power suit, simple
pearl earrings with jeans and a sweater to the mall, or multiple ropes
of faux pearls with an evening gown or cocktail dress to a formal
affair.
Classic white remains the most popular color, but black, pale green,
peach, yellow, pink, lavender and champagne are showing up more than
before. Get them big and chunky or small and round -- whichever you
prefer, they're equally attractive.
- I wish that Americans, especially men, would stop running from color.
Most people would look better with more color in their wardrobes. The
waves of black, navy, gray and brown that wash over the populace,
especially in the fall and winter, are boring and depressing -- and
inexcusable when one considers that brands from GAP to Gucci turn out
terrific colors every season.
While cultures in Europe, Asia and Africa luxuriate in color,
Americans are notoriously afraid of it. Neutrals may be safe and easy,
but there's much more out there that can show personality and make the
wearer look more distinctive.
Pastel dress shirts and colorful ties have made some inroads in the
workplace, but they're only a start.
Here are three easy steps for making color work for you: Identify
colors you like; select shades and tones in that family that
complement your skin and hair color, and wear the color as an accent
rather than as the dominant color. The beauty is in restraint.
- I wish that all women would wear makeup, wear it regularly, and wear
it well.
"The best thing is to look natural," Calvin Klein once said, "but it
takes makeup to look natural."
He was right. Many women are under the illusion that they look best
without makeup. Some boyfriends and husbands tell these women that
they prefer them to "look natural," but the natural look at 35 and
beyond is much different from the natural look of 25.
(Maybe some guys don't want their women to look more attractive
because they're afraid other guys might hit on them.)
The truth is, there's not a woman on the planet who doesn't look
better with makeup, even if it's the barely-there look of lip gloss
and mascara. If cosmetics can benefit Halle Berry, Heidi Klum and Eva
Longoria, believe that they can enhance you.
Makeup isn't about being superficial. It's about deciding that you're
worth the time and expense it takes to put your best face forward.
It's still true that you get only one chance to make a first
impression, and you can do it with cosmetics that don't cost you an
arm and a leg.
- I wish that men would wear less bling and invest more in other
accessories such as quality shoes and brimmed hats.
Men must begin to be more conscientious about their everyday and
dressy footwear. It's true that expensive shoes can make a cheap
outfit look better, and cheap shoes can make an expensive ensemble
look bad.
Shoes anchor a look, and at the very least should be clean and well
maintained.
It makes sense to wear a brimmed hat year-round, given the rising
threat of skin cancer from sun exposure and cold weather in the fall
and winter.
If you're at least 20 years old, give the sock caps, beanies and
baseball caps a well-earned rest. A brimmed hat adds a sartorial touch
to any look, and there are styles to fit every head shape and size.
- I wish that people would stop dressing matchy-matchy.
If I never see another Burberry-plaid shirt worn with matching pants
and matching cap, it will be too soon.
Just because you bought it together and it matches perfectly doesn't
mean you look good wearing it all at once. Where is the creativity in
it? It's boring, predictable and requires no imagination. And seldom
does it look magnificent.
The same goes for business suits for men and women, and those casual
"two-pieces" worn by urban middle-age men who want to look suave.
Want to stand out sartorially? Break up the jacket and trouser or
jacket and skirt. Wear them separately with other components
sometimes. You'll get more mileage out of this sort of mixing -- just
make sure the fabrics are compatible.
Most patterns and bold colors are too strong to wear in multiple
pieces. A few months ago, I sat on the bus near a woman whose coat,
hat, gloves and boots were all in leopard print.
I cringed at the feline overkill. It was a powerful reminder that
being stylish is not matching to the point of costume or caricature.
It is exercising restraint and learning how to edit your look.
- I wish that men would be more gentlemanly.
I am among those who believe that you can judge a culture or society
by the condition of its women and children.
Here's an example: I routinely take the bus to work downtown and have
ridden buses and subways in various parts of the country. Everywhere,
I am appalled to see most men remaining seated, unwilling to offer
their seats to women and the elderly who are standing.
I routinely see men walking down the street with their female
companion on the street side; he should be on the opposite side to
shield her from a mud splash created by a passing motorist. And more
often than not, you can see women climbing in and out of cars, opening
the door themselves while their male companions go about their business.
Men are born, but gentlemen are cultivated. Being gallant is a choice
that begins with self-respect and a desire to learn. You can know the
right utensils to use at a banquet and your shoes can be buffed to a
high sheen, but if you treat women with indifference in everyday life,
then you have missed what it means to be a gentleman.
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