Tips From A Closet Consultant
Last year to celebrate my 30th birthday, Brian got me the best gift I could've asked for -- a closet consultant/stylist for a day. It was so eye opening and fun to have someone else look through my clothes to show how to put different outfits together and help me source and purchase quality missing pieces from my wardrobe.
I truly felt like a celebrity, and I loved every minute of it. Now, a year out from the best gift ever, I wanted to share what I learned and implemented into my routine and wardrobe.
1. Steam EVERYTHING Before Wearing
This is one I have still yet to adapt fully into my daily routine because well...time. But when I do it makes a world of difference in how my outfit looks. Your clothes are an extension of you and are how you portray yourself to the world. Steaming your clothing helps prep everything to look it’s best before wear. And steaming is so much easier, in my opinion, than ironing.
2. Buy Your Actual Size
I am notorious for buying one size bigger because I'm either trying to conceal something or larger and baggy clothing is synonymous with comfortable for me. But ultimately it can make you look heavier and feel sloppy. My day with the closet consultant taught me to try on multiple sizes to determine which is the right fit because most times it is not what you assume it might be. And you should purchase items that fit your current size. Also, note that you will not always be a large or a medium or a small. Depending on the brand, cut, etc. you could actually be two sizes smaller or larger. And this is not a reflection on your body or a representation of what number you are or will be. It is just how the garment fits.
3. Take Better Care of Your Clothes
This one is so important because it is what will make your clothes last. I’m talking how you store/put away your clothes and how you wash your clothes. Are your shoes in boxes that easily stack and are searchable or are they thrown in the closet where they can get damaged? What type of hanger are you using to hang items in your closet? What are we folding versus hanging? Are you washing items per the garment tag?
After working with the consultant, I neatly fold all sweaters and pants and stack them nicely on a shelf in my closet so I can see everything in a glance. I already had matching black plastic hangers (you know I got rid of those wire hangers), but I’d like to move toward black velvet hangers to help save space and hopefully avoid the pop mark in some shoulders of clothes. Also, I read the tags on all my clothes to better understand how it should be washed and dried. This has saved me many a frustration over the last year in how something fits and if the coloring is still true to when I purchased it. For the most part, I hang dry most everything even if I can tumble dry it on low just to be safe.
4. Shop with a List
Similar to the grocery store, you should never go shopping without a list of what you are looking for and need to grow your wardrobe. Otherwise you end up with items that don’t go with multiple items in your closet (items in your cart that don’t make a recipe) or you spend way more than you intended to do so because everything was cute (or spend more than intended because everything looked like it tasted good). Take inventory of your closet and find the missing pieces and shop for those first. Now that I am moving toward a capsule wardrobe shopping with intention and with a list has become more important. I’m currently making a list of gaps in my closet to purchase next.
What tips do you have to help you dress better or smarter? I’d love to know as I make steps toward refining my wardrobe.
Xx,
Linds
