Is your love affair with your yoga pants alienating you from the rest of your wardrobe?

For me, the answer to the above question would be an emphatic “NO!”

But for so many women, their answers would a definite “Yes!”

When it comes to style offenses committed by women, this one would be right up there at the top!

For many women it’s all about doing ‘yoga’ from the waist down, day-in-and-day-out! For many women, yoga pants are no longer work-out attire; they’re everyday attire. They’re even go-to-work attire!

For many women, their love affair with their yoga pants is alienating them from the rest of their wardrobe. It’s keeping them from clothes that fit and flatter. It’s keeping them from dressing their best!

So ladies, in order to dress your best there are some things you must adhere to. When teaching my clients, I refer to them as “Style Rules to Live By’. 

‘Style Rules to Live By’ – #2 : Buying clothes for an activity (i.e. yoga) means you only wear them for ‘the’ activity.

are for  

Yoga pants have become like dandelions in Toronto – they’re everywhere!  They’ve become a blight on the ‘landscape of everyday style’. They’re in coffee shops, grocery stores, at the theatre…they’re even in nice restaurants! I see them worn to work by teachers (and not gym teachers), nurses and other professionals.

Ladies it’s time… time to put an end to your love affair with yoga pants! The popular expression used for Vegas should also be used for yoga pants, “What you wear to the gym, stays in the gym!”

Is your love affair with yoga pants alienating you from the rest of your wardrobe?

Are you ready to try on something new? Something more flattering?

Let’s chit chat…

PS for more on yoga pants read Kelli Lawless’ post, “Yoga Pants: Love ‘em or Leave ‘em” on her Dating and Mating in America blog http://datingandmatinginamerica.com/2009/01/19/yoga-pants/ You may find out that you’re alienating yourself from more than the rest of your wardrobe??? *wink, wink*

PPS You also may want to check out “So I’m ready to break up with my yoga pants. What do I wear?” post on our Tips, Tool and Trends page.

 

“We can’t all be Dita, but we can all unleash our little devil in a blue dress.” ~ Dana Karlson, Founding Editor of Fashion For Lunch

http://fashionforlunch.com/?s=devilish+blue+beauty

Ok, this statement is totally true for us ‘real-life’ women…

Yes, we can’t all be Dita Von Teese…and I’m good with that but yes, we can all totally unleash our little devil in a blue dress!

Blue is a trend for this spring/summer 2010 and it’s very much a ‘wearable trend’ for us ‘real-life’ women…maybe one that you should try.

So how can you as a ‘real-life’ woman be sexy in blue and do it right?

First – Find a shade of blue that is flattering on you and with your skin tone.

Second – Choose a dress that fits you well and flatters your body shape.  i.e. If you have an hourglass shape you want to define your waist; that’s  key to giving you a sexy look.

Blue DVF dress accentuating the waist and highlighting sexy curves

Third – Doing sexy ‘right’ means you have to leave a little bit to the imagination. Don’t think that all that the opposite sex (or quite frankly the same sex) wants to see is nothing but ‘the girls’; only unless you’re Ms. Von Tesse…and that’s why we can’t all be Dita!

BCBG halter dress brings attention to the shoulders and neck without letting ‘the girls’ steal the spotlight!

Fourth – Keep it simple…simpler is better.

BCBG dress simple, sexy and blue

Not sure if this is how you do sexy ‘right’?

Then take a look at Sarah Jessica Parker, playing Carrie Bradshaw in “Sex and the City 2″ in her sexy, electric blue frock!

She’s doing it all right. Her look is both ‘sweet’ and ‘sexy’!

My challenge to you: Instead of doing things that are too revealing, play with things like colour and texture for added interest and sophisticated sexiness. Why not give it a try and unleash your little devil in a blue dress, this season’s trend colour!

Let me know if you’re up to this challenge.

Let’s chit chat…

Should I update my wardrobe with a new piece from Rachel Roy? Her Entire Rachel Rachel Roy Collection is 30% off at the Bay!

So what do you think? Should I update my spring/summer wardrobe with a new piece from Rachel Roy? This could be a great opportunity to get a new fashion savvy piece for an incredible fashion savvy price! And we all know how much us ‘real-life’ woman love that!

Who is Rachel Roy you ask?

Rachel Roy is a new contemporary designer at the Bay. http://www.thebay.com/Women/rachelrachelroy.aspx

Her fashion forward Rachel Rachel Roy collection captures a fresh and ‘youthful’ look by mixing elements of downtown cool with uptown chic – all at affordable price points. Yes, some styles in her collection are geared to younger women but there are many suitable for the modern, ‘real-life’ women 35+.  And remember ladies, in order to dress your best you always want to keep your look modern!

So let’s take a look and see…see what I’ve found, and let’s have some fun with it!

I’ve taken pictures of me, who is most definitely a ‘real-life’ woman 35+ wearing three of her pieces. We’ll compare my pictures to pictures of models wearing the same pieces on the Rachel Roy web site.  http://www.rachelroy.com/Editor%27s-Picks/110028001,default,sc.html

Now I want you to use the ‘tips and tools’ that I’ve taught you on how to dress your best. I want you to choose the top that you think will help me look and dress my best!

Remember, my body shape is The Pear. I am bigger on the bottom than I am on the top. My goal is to choose a top that flatters my body shape, fits me, embraces my feminine side and reflects my personal style. Oh, and don’t forget my budget…it is $100. In order for me to ‘shop smart’ I always want to stay within my financial comfort zone and stick to my budget.

So here are my three choices….

Should I update my leggings with the Short Sleeve Fringe Top (Reg $119 – Sale $83.30)?

Model Look : Rachel Roy model                          ‘Real-Life’ Look: Janeen Joyce

Should I update my leggings and skinny jeans with the Lightening Bolt Intarsia Uneven Hem Tank (Reg $99 – Sale $69.30)?

Model Look: Rachel Roy model                  ‘Real-Life’ Look: Janeen Joyce

Should I update my soft pants and jeans with the Striped Raglan Cardi (Reg $89 – Sale $62.30)?

Model Look: Rachel Roy model                ‘Real-Life’ Look: Janeen Joyce

So what do think? Which top piece should I choose?

Oh, and there is one other thing you should consider; something I like to teach my clients when purchasing clothes. It’s important to always…

Look for pieces that bring value to your wardrobe. What does that mean?

When you’re looking for a piece to update your wardrobe and you find more than one that you like, then look at all of them and ask, “Which piece will give me the most value?” Asking this question will help you make the right choice.

• Value is not just about the ‘cost’ of a piece but about how ‘useful’ it is to you; how often you can wear it and how many ways you can wear it.
• Another way to say this would be cost-per-wear.
• A $100 top that you wear one way (i.e. only with leggings) and only in one season will have a cpw of $20. Where as a $100 top that you wear many ways (i.e. with pants, skirts and dresses), in two seasons will have a cpw of $2! Big difference…
• So look for pieces that have great value; their cpw is very low because you are able to get multiple uses out of them.

The Stripe Raglan Cardi would be a good example of a piece that has great value. I certainly can get multiple uses out of it. Here are just a few:

So now I ask you, what do you think? Should I update my wardrobe with a new piece from Rachel Roy? And if so, then which piece? Which piece do you think helps me look and dress my best?

It would be great to hear from you!

Let’s chit chat…

PS The sale ends soon…Thursday Apr 29th. The Rachel Rachel Roy collection is only found at select Bay stores: Queen St., Bloor St., Yorkdale and Sherway.

“It’s really amazing. They’re so much hotter when they wear the glasses.” – Neil Sedlak

Ok, pretty funny eh, we’re so much hotter when we wear the glasses! Do you think?

Well maybe if you’re Audrey Hepburn wearing ‘hot’, fashionable eye glasses? But where does one ‘real-life’ woman find these spectacles???

See I’ve been on the hunt for ‘hot’ fashionable eye glasses for almost a year now. Yup a year. I’ve called on all the ‘well known’ optical stores…from the one with the big orange glasses to the one with the swinging symbols that customers smile and center their eye under. But I keep coming home empty-handed.

I think, here I am, a ‘real-life’ fashion consultant (who has no particular fame or fortune to speak of making me quite ‘real-life’), who loves style, living in the big urban city of Toronto and in desperate need of a chic pair of spectacles with none to be found! I say ‘desperate need’ because with each passing day, trying to view anything up close, clear and crisp with my current glasses is becoming more and more difficult. My new prescription for stronger lenses is tucked away in my bag, ready to be handed over at any time, as soon as the need be but the need has not been.*big sigh* There are no ‘hot’ glasses to be had in TO, no not-a-one!

Until I found Spectacle!  http://spectaclelovesyou.blogspot.com/

With Audrey’s picture being the first thing you see on their blog, I knew I had finally found a style-worthy eyewear boutique!

After being in Spectacle for only a short time, I quickly realized I had found exactly what I was looking for: a wide choice of quality brands that boast fashion forward styles! But the train didn’t stop there. Their staff were wonderful. Riki-Kay and Jeff educated me on what styles would work best for me and why. They gave me exceptional customer service!

Then imagine my delight when I was told they have three, yes three locations to serve us Torontonians (and all my amazing clients) who are desperately seeking ‘good style’ and ‘good service’ when it comes to our eyewear needs!

Well, now I’ve gone from finding nothing to finding two pairs of ‘hot’ glasses. I’ve found two styles I absolutely love!

Which one do you think I should choose?

Ok, so this is me.

And these are the styles I love!

1. The Dita Confidante

Modeled by this lovely lady.

AND

2. The Dita Statesman

Modeled by this lovely lady.

So what do you think? Do you like? Which one do you like?

Which one do you think I should choose? Which one do you think you would choose?

Do you think I’ll be so much hotter when I wear the 1. Confidante or 2. The Statesman glasses? *wink, wink*

Let’s chit chat…