August = Style Evaluation & Preparation

Question: Alicia, is there anything I can do in August that could help create an organized shopping plan for the fall? 

The short answer… every month has purposeful maintenance to apply to your wardrobe!

August is about Evaluation and Preparation

Styling is service based on preparation. I prepare people for work, events, vacations…and everyday life. The amount of practical information I have accumulated over the last 15 years in the clothing industry has offered insights on how to organize and vet the minutia. I've determined that while seasonal maintenance is generally intuitive, monthly adjustments will engage mindful behaviors surrounding how to get more out of your pieces. Having spent time in plenty of closets, I've observed how most people have a tendency to only use clothing items one way. I attribute this to brain mapping or a subliminal decision-making process that is the path of least resistance when we are getting dressed. Unless your daily tasks involve solving puzzles with multiple outcomes, you are likely to miss solutions that already exist in your own closet. This is also why many people look at the same items in their closets and feel they have nothing. Often they have more than they realize but have not evaluated and tested the possibilities. I've also found that many of my clients come to me due to a cycle of purchasing without obtaining desired results.

Fashion is a push/pull business that relies on consumers purchasing ideas from designers. Currently, we are observing a trickle-up effect where the consumer has identified a more relaxed uniform has taken hold in the office and asking for designers to adjust their vision to this requirement. To answer the call, many designers have responded with collections that can seem austerely generic with a more relaxed proportion than in previous collections. This has many people stymied. How does one implement these new structureless silhouettes with pieces that are holdovers from a pre-pandemic work wardrobe? It's not an easy puzzle to construct and can seem disjointed during the migration toward 2022 styles. This is a natural occurrence when shifting gears but can be remedied with a little mindful and purposeful decisions as to when you'll wear what outfits. One client gave me the ultimate compliment of sharing how she wears the clothing we have purchased together 90% of the time, and pre-Alicia items are now only worn on "low visibility" days. 

The Fashion Adoption Process

There actually is a documented process surrounding the decisions making process surrounding fashion that involves various stages - Awareness, Interest, Evaluation, Trial, and Adoption. Consider October and November your months to implement the adoption phase of new ideas. I suggest taking a leap with one or two innovative concepts at the beginning of each season, allowing time to explore how this impacts the pieces you own. Maybe this is the season you'll invite a new shape for your pants or a slightly relaxed and oversized blazer. Too many changes at once often feel assaultive, so incremental grazing is encouraged. This will also invite new energy into your wardrobe.  

Consider how Alexandria Stylebook is a vehicle that provides Awareness & Interest to your knowledge of what's current. As a wardrobe architect, I am hired to guide and coach people through the trial & adoption process. Navigating foreign territory alone gives many people anxiety, and it's my job to offer authentic validation and encouragement. My involvement also alleviates the evaluation portion of those who hire me. Vetting pieces is a major part of my job. Whether the client already owns it or I am bringing a solution, value assessment relates to the end user's needs.

My definition of "need" is based around some of the following concepts: texture, pattern, application, color, architecture, modern POV, and necessary alterations.

Diversity of these concepts allows for a wardrobe that serves you and offers interesting elements to build outfits. It can feel as though you're trying to capture lightning in a bottle. Nothing lasts forever, and there's the ever-present reality that we are aging while styles are changing. 

One Great Solution…

The following tops from Ulla Johnson are making a comeback this year and have been a proven exponent (or outfit builder) in client wardrobes. The price ($185 - $195) is actually very friendly if you consider how many ways you can utilize this unit. My style math supports the CPW, which can be as little as $6.50 per wear if you implement the top 30 times. If this seems improbable, let's first agree that these could be six-month tops (worn October through March). Shouldn't you be able to wear this five times in one month without feeling too repetitive?

Here are outfits I've created for one client using similar tops from Ulla Johnson. You can get your head in the style game by practicing selecting your exponent and locating associations or connections within your wardrobe. 

Lastly, consider the following…

1. Develop a color story 

2. Diversify fabrics

3. Try on your outfits

4. Identify versatile layering

5. Practice ways to dress your outfits up and down with accessories

6. Implement the Rule of Three - can you come up with three alternative looks with your pieces?

Have fun and enjoy the art of creation!