Down But Not Out

Well it is time for the infamous pre-fall sales. Everyone is gearing up and making comparisons to last year's events. I encourage retailers not to do that. I encourage our readers not to spend as they did last year. This is your first real test.

If you are so inclined to go and shop do me a favor. Inventory your closet. Then get a journal and in the middle of the first page I want you to write in big bold letters


Wardrobe Diary






Now you are going to get a pen (or pencil) and you are going to write the following on the next page, again in bold








Career





then skip ten pages. On the next page you are going to write





Casual





again, skip ten pages and on the next page you are going to write








Evening (after 5/cocktail)








again skip ten pages and on the next page you are going to write








Special Occasion








For each category you are going to set up the following:





Dresses











Skirts








Pants








Jackets








Vests








Sweaters








Blouses/Shirts








Underpinnings (tanks/tees/halters)








shoes








bags








scarves








bracelets








necklaces








rings








other accessories





AND YES, you are going to write down every single thing that is in that closet and in those drawers. Men, you can do this also. Your closet is not exempt from order and categorization.





When you write this down do not simply pen black skirt. Describe the skirt. Here is an example of an entry:





Hollywood waist, brown/black/grey glen plaid, PAUW Amsterdam bubble skirt





Classic shirt with front button plackets, shirt-tail hem, dark taupe (brownish-grey undertones) Valette





Pleated front trouser with front fly, belt loops, dark camel (amber undertones) wool flannel, cuffed Elie Tahari.





These entries really describe the garment. This allows the person who is helping you with your selections to know if there is anything that truly pop against that piece you already have. If you are really trying to get a jacket or blouse to go with a skirt or a pair of pants take them with you. We went through this before. Navy is not navy and black is not black.





If you are not good at describing colors then get a friend to help you. I am sure that each and everyone of you has a friend with a great eye for color. My friends use me for that all the time. It is not unusual for someone to ask me about a red. I love red and I do wear it a lot. The question is usually "is this a good red?" What they really want to know is whether it is a blue red. which puts in toward the purple side of red, is it a pure red reminiscent of Valentino red, or does it have yellow undertones which make it more toward the orange side of red.





Imagine going to Janice to buy a jacket and telling her "I have this blue dress and I need a jacket." If I were Janice I would say "how nice for you" (that is why I am not in retail). Remember I am the daughter of a dressmaker.





Blue is a range of colors from cloud (white with such a faint hint of blue you aren't sure it is really there) to midnight (where there is so much anil in it you can't really tell it isn't black). So if you came to me and said "help me find a jacket for my delft blue dress" I know exactly what color that is and what to pair with it. Or, I have this great magenta wool jersey dress I need a great jacket to make it pop.





Don't go to black, that is much to easy for each of those colors. It is safe but makes no statement. For the delft blue dress I would opt for a color that would warm it up and make it a bit edgy; medium lime green or a deep citrine would do the trick. Or to lighten it I would go with a robins egg or sky blue. Ideally you'd have the dress and that would make it really easy.





For the magenta, again it will depend on whether you want to be seen or want to be understated. Understated calls for navy, not black. A very dark navy but navy nonetheless. To pop it hot pink, red (a blue red) eggplant.





Anyway all of this is to say before you go and hit the sales, know your closet. Know what you need, what works, what will be classic and that it is a piece that you can pull out 10 years from now, put it on and feel totally stylish. These times call for investment dressing. A piece here, a piece there.





Remember we are not filling a closet we are building a wardrobe.





a la prochaine





Debra

P.S. If you print this out you have the template for your wardrobe diary. I haven't tried but you may be able to save it as a word document and then do a cut and paste and voila, you're done. N'est pas que bon ?

If you want to see it all in French here it is. Only you have to remember not only do I speak French with and American accent, I also write in French with that accent so my apologies to all of you native speakers.

Si vous imprimez ce que vous avez sur le modèle de votre agenda garde-robe. Je n'ai pas essayé mais vous mai être en mesure de l'enregistrer comme un document Word et puis de faire un copier-coller et voila, vous avez terminé. N'est pas que bon ?