Everyone has a white blouse right? Check. So how can we wear this classic with some charming creativity?

Do: 

1.Wear a chic black vest on top or perhaps a preppy school girl pullover vest. (if you’re particularly daring add a tie)

2. Wear it under or over a sleevelesss dress

3. go ahead, wear it under a short-sleeve sweater and maybe add a draped  scarf.

4. Wear it collar up!

5. Wear it belted,  brown leather looks particularly classy against the white.

6. Pair it with a shiny or statement skirt. The contrast compliments each other bringing one down and the other up.

7. Tuck it into your favorite beige, black or navy skirt. And don’t let your denim feel excluded.

8. Wear it with a bright skirt on bottom (yellow skirt etc)

9. wear a short sleeve version under a strapless dress. It can be quite adorable.

10. wear it with your favorite broach or multiple strand necklace.

11. wear it with a white skirt, add a colorful sash and you’re ready for Spring!

12. Wear a colorful tank top underneath, leave a few unbuttoned at the top and knot the ends together. (Just make sure the knot isn’t right underneath your bust)

13. Wear it all white with other items of varied texture.

Don’t: 

belt your shirt unless it’s long enough. It should hit below your hips before it’s cinched so it sits properly.

wear a baggy version of this classic piece. a Feminine, fitted cut is a must.

wear a white bra with a white shirt. Wear nude or tan, it dissapears.

(please excuse the short skirts…these pics were the best I could find)

We still have a good 3 months of winter ahead of us. But that hardly means we have to settle in the dull-drums of fashion consciousness. We love wearing skirts right?

Spice up your legwear with some fun colored tights. Here’s a few helpful hints on how to find the perfect match.

1. Beige and Navy.

You can’t go wrong with this. Professional and sophisticated but still a flavor of girlish charm.

2. Black and Fuchsia

paired with black this scintilating fuschia becomes posh and feminine.

3. Navy and Olive

This mild, earthy flavor is perfect for all you girls who love the country style. Can’t you see yourself wearing this combo while reading a book before the fire?

4. Brown and rust

So utterly fallish. Reminds me of oak staircases and old-fashion libraries.

You need a new fashion conscious hair style? This takes only a few minutes and looks modern and feminine.

How to: 

Instead of the old-fashioned method of setting your hair in hot-rollers and back-combing for height (also known as teasing or ratting) go for this simple approach.

Spray your hair lightly with your favorite hair spray. Slick back the sides securing in a low chignon or pontail whatever the situation dictates. Use your fingers to loosen strands at the corwn and fluff them up into a wispy bump. I also used a comb handle to slide under and pull up.

Try it a few times and you’ll have this classic down pat.

Writer and guest blogger Margaret Everton conducts a week-long experiment on why we really are what we wear.

I will never forget my middle school tennis partner who, before one morning bell, professed, “The clothes don’t make the person; the person makes the clothes.” The aloofness was cool, the adage wise. But she didn’t believe herself. I knew how many outfits she had tried on that morning.

I didn’t believe her either, and scoffed for years at such trivialization of the role that attire plays—yet I wonder. Am I putting too much emphasis on the impact that clothes can have? As long as I look clean and covered, how can clothes determine how I navigate through this world? As a freelance writer, I can wear whatever I want. So I will. I will document one week of my life wearing only my black track suit to determine if what I wear matters.

DAY 1
Track suits are underrated. Slimming, collar up: I’m Jackie Kennedy ready for tennis. Refreshing to put no effort into myself. This could become my uniform. I feel fine. I think I’ll get tea.

DAY 2
Husband: Do you have a cold? [Glancing at my outfit]
Me: No. This might be my new uniform. Might be the new me. It’s function-meets-comfort.
Husband: Meets pajamas.

DAY 3
Slouch clothes. Fun for the ol’ college slouch day. Not so fun when I’m trying to feel professional and serious on a phone interview I’m conducting.

DAY 4
What are the odds that this week I run into a girl from high school? Former rival dancer now guest lecturer at the local university. And I had wanted to appear so on top of the world if ever we reunited. Did I detect smugness in her smile? Seriously, what are the odds?

DAY 5
I’ve been in this clothing store for ten minutes and no employee has approached me. I’m invisible, unkempt. A woman with poise (and a killer pink scarf) just entered—she owns the room. Like moths to a flame, the three employees approach her. I slink away between two racks of sweaters and leave the store.

DAY 6
Groceries. Tea and—nooooooo. The wife of my husband’s colleague. She can’t see me like this: sloppy, not on top of my game enough to match her lawyer-turned-stay-at-home-mom intelligence and verbal wit. Jeans, boots, cream sweater—her simplicity approaches brilliance. Turn away. I can hang at the back of the store until she leaves. Drop the tea and walk slowly away. No, drop the tea and run.

DAY 7
The end of the day and the experiment is finally over. Jeans, blouse, vintage satin clutch for dinner with my husband. Wow, he says, you look amazing. Confidently I enter the restaurant. A woman taken seriously. I admit that I expected to determine that clothes do matter, but I didn’t anticipate to discover why. Conscious dressing can get bad press as materialism exemplified, but clothes that reflect our identity boost our confidence. Whether we’re most at home in a wool gabardine suit and heels or yoga pants and a tank, we should represent our most authentic self. To any onlooker, I’m just a girl in a shirt, but I sip my Pellegrino and feel like a supermodel. Nobody in the room cares about what I have on; it wouldn’t alter their evening if I still had on my track suit. But it matters. It matters to me.

Clothes Matter, Simplified:
*Well-fitting tailored jeans cover a multitude of sartorial sins.
*Sunglasses and a scarf or hat transform Bad Hair No Makeup Girl into Jackie Kennedy     look-alike.
*Voguish purses or shoes exhibit attention to detail and respect for self.
*Vintage costume jewelry creates a uniqueness to an average ensemble.
*A wrap can be a signature piece that serves as a shawl or scarf (and ups the ante) for several
outfits.
*Yes, track suits give grace to those quick errands, that early brunch, or those “off days.”
Just do yourself a favor and don’t wear it seven days in a row.

Check out two scientific studies on how clothes matter:
ABC NEWS
Psychology Today

Clothes make the man, but Accessories make the woman. We are highlighting three timeless favorites that are appearing all over the runways.

The Brooch: 

pinned elegantly onto jacket lapels or blouses, hats, scarves, purses, necklaces or even your hair, these transmit arty, retro chic.

Find them at Vintage shops or in your Gramma’s jewelry box.

The Bangle: 

By bangle we mean anything that is hanging from a chain around your neck- watch charms in particular.

It all started with some smart chic who took an ordinary object (a small watch) of its chain and slipped it around her neck. Voila! A major trend.

You can find an ordinary watch face at an antique store guaranteed, slip it onto a chain and your set!

The Button: 

Have you ever changed the buttons on your coat for more interesting ones? now is the time to try. Replace the buttons on your coats and cardigans with beautiful treausre you find at antique stores or trimming shops. I recently procurred a three button combo and used them as hair embellishments in an updo. (no one ever guess they were buttons!)

String them on a chain for an unually charming necklace.

When I think of wearing glasses, I picture one of two people. Lois Lane or Sarah Palin. Glasses instantly give you a chic, intellectual vibe. Who wouldn’t want that?

Picking the right glasses can be as simple as 1, 2…3

Remeber these principles:

• The frame shape should contrast with the face shape. Think “opposites attract”.
• The frame size should be in proportion with the face size.
• Eyewear should repeat your personal best feature (such as a blue frame to match blue eyes).

1. Determine your face shape.

No one fits into one category exactly, but everyone tends to follow one.

Round- Face is as long as it is wide

Oblong- Face is  long and narrow

Square- strong jaw, wide forehead

Heart- wide forehead, narrow defined chin

Oval-  harmonious balance

2. Contrast your face shape with your frames. 

Round/Oblong- you want to break up the roundness by adding some angles. Rectangular lenses or square.

Heart-rimless lenses do wonder to balance the width of your face with your petite chin. Thin rims are also suitable. Look for vertical lines to lengthen the bottom of your face.

Square- choose a pair with some curve to them. A semi-rimless pair is your best option.

Oval- You are balanced so choose a pair that highlights your personality. If you aren’t perfectly oval (who is?) figure out where you tend to lean (am I more round or square?) and use that as a guide.

3. Match your Coloring and Proportion

You want a pair of glasses to meld with your color toning. If you have very blond hair, do not choose a very black pair (unless you are intentionally going for high contrast).  Keep your glasses in proportion to your face, your eyes should be centered in the lense and the ear pieces should sit straight (not tilting up or down).

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I visited this site and found their pictures helfpul:  Here

Scarves really can lengthen and slim the body by one of two ways- 1) Camouflaging the tummy or 2) adding length by one continuous line down the body. Not to mention the warm and cozy factor.

Do:

-choose a color that is flattering to your skin tone

-play with patterns, push your comfort zone by adding a patterned scarf with your patterned shirt or skirt

-try wearing or knotting it in different ways. Experiment!

With oncoming winter approaching like a lumbering bear we all want to hybernate into our cozy sweaters till spring rolls around. But just because we’re piling on the layers doesn’t mean we leave chic at the door. Here’s a few quick tips on wearing your knits without looking like you’ve gained 5 lbs.

“How can I avoid looking like a tent in a chunky sweater?”

 Do: 

-Gravitate toward a little cropped number, (like those pictured above) and stay sleek underneath to avoid any extra bulk

-Team it with a body-skimming top that peeks out below the sweater to accentuate your waist.

-Wear tapered jeans or well-cut trousers or a floor-sweeping skirt to create a long, lean line.

-Boots with heals or pumps help too.

-Contrast the bulky knit with a floaty top underneath, belted at the waist. The Contrast is dynamic.

Don’t: 

-wear chunky knits that drown your frame, especially if you are petite.