The famous Cherry Creek North sidewalk sale starts this Thursday, July 21, 2011 and goes through Sunday, July 24th. Just like it sounds, all of the merchants put their deeply discounted merchandise out on the sidewalks giving it a fun, bazaar-like atmosphere. Because this is such an exciting sale, and it’s easy to get carried away and make mistakes, I’d like to offer up some of my best shopping tips. As an image and wardrobe consultant, I’d be remiss to let you hit the sale without your shopping list. You may be thinking that shopping lists are just for groceries, but having an apparel and accessories shopping list is equally important for avoiding poor purchases. Your shopping list doesn’t have to “needs” only. “Wants” are fine, too. Now is the perfect time to buy a new trend you’ve been anxious to try, but not at full price.

• Look for items in your favorite colors. For example, my color this summer is coral, and I’ve bought several coral pieces to jazz up my summer neutrals.

• Try things on! And then walk around in them, sit down, and move around. Next analyze how it will fit into your wardrobe. It’s easy

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As a nod to the resurgence of seventies fashion, colorful pants are back in style. And with so much colored clothing to choose from, why not pants. The key to a modern look  is to let the red, blue, green or whatever color your heart desires pants be the star of your outfit. In other words, keep your top fairly neutral and quiet. Wearing any type of colorful top with bright bottoms can lead to a romper room type look. I am dying for a pair of red skinny jeans that I just haven’t shopped for yet. I’m planning on wearing them with my stone colored, satin trench coat for an eclectic look. Because I won’t wear the coat at all times, (might get a little warm,) I will probably wear a simple, white top paired with casual gold jewelry. I’ll most likely wear metallic flats or tan sandals as the weather warms up. Colorful pants are the answer to the inverted rectangle figure type’s, (a.k.a. mine,) dreams! Because we want to fill out our bottom halves and minimize our wide shoulders, bright bottoms work perfectly, but they've been seriously out of style for several years. So what do you think? Will you (Read more...)

I can honestly say that many of my clients, regardless of their height, have short torsos. More commonly you’ll hear it referred to short waisted. I am included in this group of fabulous women. If you’re still unsure of what this means, basically the length from your shoulders to your natural waist is shorter than average. If you’re short torso’d, you usually know it. Clothes can often be difficult to fit. For example, when you try on a pull over sweater, you get bunching in the torso; it’s especially evident from the back. Another garment that can be hard to get to fit right is dresses. A lot of dresses will have a fitted waist. If your torso is short, again you’ll get bunching or bagging.  Or you may have the urge to pull up on the shoulders and exclaim, “There, now it’s perfect…if my shoulders were just 2 inches higher!”  (Yes, I do it sometimes.) Don’t despair! I have an option you might not have thought of. First, even if you are average height, consider checking out the petite department for tops and dresses. I went shopping Saturday and found a great Tahari cardigan…in the petite department! I’m 5’6”, and believe (Read more...)

One of my main tips from my chapter “How to Shop Like a Pro and Look Like a Million Bucks,” from the book I co-authored, Image Power, is to Buy Complete Outfits. Complete Outfits not only include all of the garments, but also the accessories. My dear friend and AICI colleague, Marjory DeRoeck, MFA, AICI CIP, has written an entire Image Power chapter entitled “Accessories: The Frosting of Fashion.” Here’s an excerpt from Marjory’s chapter. “Top Reasons to Use Accessories To put separates together as outfits. Use a multicolored scarf as a road map to pull together individual clothing items. A brown, orange and gold scarf would coordinate with brown pants, an orange sweater and a gold tee. To direct attention toward your best features. Is a tiny waist one of your best assets? Wear a wide leather belt with a gorgeous buckle and everyone will notice. To vary your wardrobe to suit your mood. Feeling upbeat? Put on your sparkly earrings. Feeling calm and casual? Add a mohair scarf in your eye color. To provide a conversation piece. Attach an interesting pin on your lapel and see how many people comment. It’s a great icebreaker at a party. To add color to (Read more...)

I just returned from Chicago late last week after a week’s vacation. And yes, I can affirm--it’s hot there! I knew I’d be doing a lot of shopping, so I took along some casual dresses. I know this might sound dressy for vacation, but truly my dresses were the coolest items I wore. I’ve said it before, skirts and dresses are far cooler than pants. (I was baffled by women wearing jeans and maxi dresses!) Other pluses for these cotton knit sundresses: - They don’t wrinkle. I wore one of mine the last day of the trip and it didn’t need ironing. -They can be casual with thongs or dressed up in a pinch with a heel and jewelry.

You might read the title Delish Demure and wonder what in the world I’m talking about. Well, Delish Demure is a world of all things womanly, girly and absolutely fabulous! It’s a new (2008) Greenwood Village, boutique I visited with a client on Saturday. Walking in the front door you’re immediately taken in by the hot pink walls, the very cool crystal chandeliers and the sparkling white marble floor. And although the shop isn’t huge, you’ll want to stay there all day. Along with the inviting interior, the clothes are fabulous, too! Even in post holiday sale mode, there was plenty to choose. As a wardrobe consultant, I try to encourage my clients from wearing all black, and here there is far more color than I have seen in almost any store recently. What also sets this boutique apart is the range of sizes-they don't stop at size 4 like so many local boutiques. Owner, Lauren Metz, has her finger on the pulse of what women want. She told me she buys for women, 40-60; however, her high school aged helper modeled pieces that she couldn’t wait to buy. There’s something for all categories of your life: work, play, evenings out, relaxing and (Read more...)

Thursday, October 15th 8:15 – 9:45 am Do you avoid shopping, finding it painful?  Do you come home from your shopping trips overwhelmed and exhausted? Join me for this BBH (Business Before Hours) to learn how to turn what you might consider a dreadful task into a tolerable, possibly even enjoyable one.  If you already enjoy shopping, you’ll find these tips can help save money, be more efficient, and you’ll come home from your shopping trips happier then ever. In this session you will: * Learn how to shop for good values, not just bargains, * Discover the secrets for successful shopping trips, * Find out how to plan a wardrobe that works for your personal style, lifestyle, and budget, * Understand how to create the wardrobe of your dreams… and look like a million bucks! 355 South Teller Street, Suite 200 Lakewood, CO 80226 (Two traffic lights east of Wadsworth, off Alameda) Free parking behind the building SPACE IS LIMITED! RSVP by Tuesday, October 13th 303-235-0989 Info@CorporateOfficeImages.com

Here are some ways to help you shop for shoes with ease!

• Shop for shoes late in the day when your feet are largest. If the salesperson tries to tell you that the shoes that are literally killing your feet will “break in” and become more comfortable, ignore her! Shoes should be relatively comfortable in the store.

• If a shoe isn’t fitting you just right, but you love it, it might not always be a lost cause. Ask the salesperson if they can add pads or stretch them in any way. As with clothing, if you find a pair of shoes that seem just a little off, ask to try another pair of the shoes in the same size. They may be perfect.

• Keep your receipt, and give the shoes a trial run around your house before you wear them outside. You may notice pinching or rubbing that you didn’t feel in the store once you’ve had the shoes on for a little while.

• Last but not least…what are some great shoe stores? My all time favorite is Nordstrom. There are also large selections at value pricing at The Rack (Nordstrom’s outlet), DSW Shoe Warehouse, and Off Broadway Shoes. For hard

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The other day, I read the advice that to keep your closet fresh, your clothes should be 70% classic and 30% trendy. I thought this made sense, but I have a couple of tweaks. Thirty percent trendy is a pretty big chunk of your closet. Trendy clothing is extreme and won't last more that a season or two. It could be expensive to replace 30% of your wardrobe every year! Instead, I recommend 10% trendy and 20% fashion forward. Fashion forward clothing is interesting and fun. These pieces are not necessarily classics, but you won't look out of date wearing them a few years down the line. That brings us to the classics, styles that will be fashionable for at least 5-10 years. Some classics can be worn even longer, but truly, there is no classic that can be worn "forever." Silhouettes and fabrics change over the years, and it's important for your image to wear updated, modern silhouettes. I also like to advise my clients to make sure that most of their classics are also basics. Basics are pieces that are relatively simple without a lot of design details. They combine easily with the highly styled garments and allow you to (Read more...)

My husband and I went to the nursery yesterday to buy rose bushes. You see, our backyard is landscaped, but we have very few flowers.

I had always heard that roses are a lot of work, but my father lately has been insisting they're not. We were all excited to get the roses and finally have a beautiful backyard. So we went in the nursery, and although I've browsed through roses before, I suddenly felt as though I was in a foreign country. Looking through trying to decipher the types, etc. I got completely overwhelmed. My head was spinning and suddenly I was wondering about like a zombie! Seriously, I was even nauseated.

A nursery consultant told us all about the watering and feeding and pruning, and all I wanted to do was go home. We opted not to buy roses and went to a smaller nursery to start looking at other plants. We got great advice from the nursery owner, but we were still overwhelmed trying to make some choices. He suggested a (Read more...)