Dress with Intention

I always tell people that they need to be prepared to give clothing a great life. It was designed and intended for attending parties, having dinner with friends, wheeling, and dealing. The fashion trends of 2011 want to be taken out on the town and shown a good time, rather than be treated like a pop-tart for breakfast - mindless and bad for you.

This coming season will be filled with textures, prints, rich fabrics, sheen, and luxury. To me, a lot of the styles featured are very 60s inspired in their simple lines with bold colour blocking and accessories. The fashion is not mute, but rather, screams out, "Hello! Look at me!" Will women outside of the pages of Vogue be able to handle this kind of attention? (Insert a "Hell, Yah!" here)

As always, the details are what create greatness in everything - your job, parenting, client care, architecture, design of all kinds, and fashion. Every day before you leave the house, you should have at least 3 fab accessories visible with every layer of your outfit. So, when you are bundled up, accessories can be seen to make a statement, and when you get to where you are going, take off your coat to reveal an outfit that shows deliberate attention to detail - it shows you made an effort! This can be a scarf, brooch, a great belt, printed tights, amazing jewellery, and statement pieces like shoes, purse, and/or coat.

There is no doubt in my mind that I will get asked if the fall trends will hold through the ages. Uhhh... no, and the entire point is that they are not supposed to. Buy things that you love and you will love them for a long time. Buy practical pieces and you will be a practical person for a long time - whippee ding, just what every woman wants to be described as; practical.

Seeing as you can get amazing pieces for less by shopping at Changes, or consignment in general, money gets taken out of the question. It simply becomes a question of being artistic and detail oriented in your wardrobe art, OR being plain and thoughtless about what your clothing is saying about you. You choose.

Many women exclaim that they don't pay attention to what they are wearing because "they are a Mom," or they are "too old for that." Bullhooey. Stop hiding. Women who dress plain or frumpy do so because that is what they choose for themselves. It is a question of self worth. Dressing in comfort and dressing like you were issued a set of dingy yoga pants in 2003, that you are required to wear every single day for the rest of your life, are very different things. One has intention and style to it, and the other is a cop-out. If you can't do this for yourself, then do it for others. Your co-workers are the ones who look at you every day, and don't kid yourself in thinking that they don't notice what you wear.

Having a limited fashion vocabulary is no excuse to give up. If your car breaks down, and you don't know how to fix it, you wouldn't leave it on the side of the road to rot... I hope. So, if your wardrobe speaks more about the fact that you have ignored yourself than exuding empowerment, then it is time to find an expert to help you. Diva Dens are free at Changes. It is never too late to learn, change, and shine.