Julie Rath: That’s What She Said, Vol. 3: Nisha Moodley on How to Be a Man That Makes It Happen

In my third and final interview, Leadership Coach Nisha Moodley explains how attractive “a man that can make it happen” is to her, and how having good style can easily create that. She also gives her take on the difference between confidence and cockiness. Click here or on the image below to hear what Nisha has to say on the matter.

Men's Style Advice: What Women Like

And if you’d like more style tips and to get your questions answered by me, sign up for my FREE online event “How to Dress for Power and Success” coming up next week.

Julie Rath: That’s What She Said, Vol. 2: Ms. Williams and the ONE Accessory to Avoid at All Costs

In today’s edition of That’s What She Said, I interview recording artist Ms. Williams on men’s style.

Click here or on the image below to watch our interview. You’ll hear her take on the matter, including the ONE accessory that makes her run the other way when a guy wears it.

Men's Style: What to Wear on a Date

 

After you’re done watching the interview, make sure you take my style quiz to see how you rate on a scale of 1 to 10.

Julie Rath: That’s What She Said, Vol. 1: Sara Davidson on Dressing for Attraction

I interviewed some of my most successful, smart, and gorgeous girlfriends to find out how important it really is to them for a guy to pay attention to his image and style, and I thought you might be interested in watching what they had to say. The first of these three interviews is with Sara Davidson, business strategist and marketing maven.

Click here or on the image below to watch our interview. You’ll hear what turns her on and off, and the one thing a guy did that completely changed the way she looked at him (and as a result she couldn’t keep her hands off of him).

Men's Style for Dating

After you’re done watching the interview, make sure you take my style quiz to see how you rate on a scale of 1 to 10.

-Content provided by Rath & Co. Men’s Style Consulting. Read more: http://rathandco.com/2014/09/thats-what-she-said-vol-1-sara-davidson-on-dressing-for-attraction/#ixzz3KJhNdfTE

Julie Rath: 3 Mistakes You Are Making Everyday — And How to Fix Them

People often ask me – usually at parties – if I walk around every day critiquing peoples’ outfits. While I can turn my critical eye on and off, and I certainly never go up to anyone and give them my opinion unsolicited, there are certain mistakes that I see consistently. If you’re someone who cares about how he looks (and I assume if you’re reading this article, you are), read on for three common errors and how to easily nip them in the bud.

Black-Ralph-Lauren-Double-M
1) Loafers with your suit – I get it. Traveling in lace-ups is no fun. Try a monkstrap instead, like the pair above. You can slip in and out of them, and they work with a suit.

Men's Style: How Pants Should Fit2) Wearing pants that are too big in the waist – If your belt loops are pulling up when you tighten your belt like in the picture above, it means the waist on your pants is too big, and you run the risk of having diaper butt. Go down a size and your pants and belt won’t work against each other.

Men's Style Advice: Boots
3) Mismatching themes – I often see guys in preppy polo shirts or khakis wearing things that are edgy in feel (like a biker jacket or boots) elsewhere in their outfit. It doesn’t work. If one piece in your outfit is preppy or conservative, the whole look should be such. Likewise, if one piece in your outfit has an edge to it, the rest of your outfit should too. For example, you wouldn’t wear a rough and tumble boot like the one above with a pair of traditional khakis. A pair of dark jeans or slim dark dress pants would suit them much better.

Have you ever made any of these mistakes? Fess up! I’d love to hear where things have gone awry for you. Leave me a comment below, and perhaps I can offer some additional solutions.

-Content provided by Rath & Co. Men’s Style Consulting. Read more: http://rathandco.com/2014/09/3-style-mistakes-youre-making-everyday-and-how-to-fix-them/#ixzz3KJh7Zx00

Julie Rath: How Powerfully Are You Showing Up?

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Have you ever wondered how you rate on a scale of 1-10? Winter is practically here, and the holidays right after that. Those are key times to be exuding confidence and looking your best.

If you want to get serious about your style, and be taken seriously as a result, I invite you to watch the video I made for you explaining how it all works. I’ve worked with hundreds of men worldwide, and it’s been my incredible privilege to observe how much their lives improve and what opportunities come their way when they upgrade their style.

On the same page as the video, you can also take my style quiz. It will show you how you measure up, and what you can do to get to a 10.

-Content provided by Rath & Co. Men’s Style Consulting. Read more: http://rathandco.com/2014/09/how-powerfully-are-you-showing-up/#ixzz3KJgkrqF6

Julie Rath: Glasses — Not Just for Nerds Anymore

It used to be that sporting glasses was reserved for nerds like Lewis and Gilbert above. There was a stigma attached to it, so the people who did wear them only did so because they absolutely had to, and/or because they didn’t really care that much about their appearance.

But over the course of the past decade, all that has changed. There are tons of options for stylish frames, and glasses are now used as a tool for expressing one’s personal style. Check out heartthrob Jon Hamm in a classic black frame below. The look is clean, confident and smart.

If you’re thinking about updating your look, glasses are a fantastically handy way to do so. Read on for my tips on choosing a pair of frames. And by the way, if you don’t need glasses, don’t feel left out. Plenty of people sport specs sans prescriptions.

SHAPE

1) Angular-shaped glasses read as authoritative, while glasses with rounded shapes make you look approachable.

2) There’s a lot of information out there about what shape faces should wear what shape glasses. To me, it’s less about rules and more about choice. If you wear the same shape glasses as that of your face, you’ll reinforce that face shape; if you wear the opposite shape, it will balance your face shape. So there’s no “bad” or “good” here. Rather, it’s what you choose to play up. As a specific example, if you have a round face and want to look tougher and more commanding, I recommend wearing glasses that are squared off. Luxottica CEO Andrea (above) is doing just that.

3) The sides of your glasses should end between the corners of your eyes and the sides of your face. (However, if you have a long and narrow face and want to balance that, look for shapes that extend slightly beyond your temples so as to create width in your face. Also, people with long and narrow faces should avoid very small frames.)

COLOR AND MATERIAL

4) A very dark frame can make a strong, dramatic statement (it’s also trendy). If this is what you’re going for, be careful that the dark frame doesn’t overwhelm your own coloring. Check out the guy on the left above — his own coloring and features stand up to the heavy frames. In comparison, the dark frames on the right dominate Brad Pitt’s facial features. On him, you see the frames first before you see his face.

5) Choose a color or type of metal that works with your own coloring. If your skin tone is warm, go with warm-colored frames; if it’s cool, go with cool-colored frames. Hint: if you have grey hair, a silver frame can play off of that nicely.

6) Metal frames have a more modern and dressy feel, and plastic reads more casual. Tortoise frames have a preppy and collegiate vibe.

7) Avoid transition lenses, as they often end up in an unflattering middle-ground of lens color — not quite dark enough to be sunglasses and distractingly shaded for when out of UV-light. They also don’t darken inside vehicles, so they don’t work as driving glasses.

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Julie Rath: Glasses — Not Just for Nerds Anymore

Julie Rath: How to Pack Like a Pro

The way you pack can either make or break your trip. Hanging around the airport lost baggage office is a drag (I’ve been there), as is opening up a suitcase and finding everything in a crumpled mess. With some foresight and planning, however, you can make the process seamless and worry-free. Read on for 9 tips on how to pack like a pro:

1) If you travel frequently to the same location, say from your east coast office to your west coast office, leave a trunk or suitcase at the hotel. Most good hotels are happy to do this for frequent guests, and often without charge. Lifestyle engineer and frequent traveler Tim Ferriss recommends this, and while you may not keep lentils and whey protein in your trunk like Tim does, his idea is enormously useful for clothes and shoes which can take up a lot of space in your luggage. When the clothes you wore are dirty, simply give them to the hotel laundry and tell them to put them back in your bag when they’re clean. Every so often you can switch things out so you aren’t repeating outfits too much.

Men's Personal Stylist: How to Pack for Travel2) One can tend to accumulate things along the way when traveling, particularly for leisure. In order to make sure everything fits on the way back and/or that you can still fit your bag as a carry-on, bring along 4-5 empty gallon-size Ziploc bags on your trip. When you’re packing to come home, fold and put your dirty clothes inside the bags, then (and this is the key), SIT on the Ziploc to squeeze out all of the air, and then zip it shut. You’re essentially vacuum-sealing your clothes. This works great for dirty t-shirts, underwear and socks, and it saves you a huge amount of space. When you get home, the contents of the Ziplocs go straight into the laundry. No sorting required.

3) Keep a separate travel toilet kit with travel-size versions of all the toiletrees you’ll need for travel. Don’t touch it except for when traveling.

 

Men's Executive Image Consultant: Brown Buttons Work with Brown Shoes4) If there’s one thing that makes suitcases unwieldy, it’s shoes. Try as best you can to only pack one pair of shoes. That means you’ll need a couple of pairs in your wardrobe that are extremely versatile. A brown dress shoe (lace-up or monk straps – see #8 on avoiding a major shoe fail) is a great call because you can wear it with everything from jeans to a suit. If you’re going with brown shoes, also pack or wear a brown belt. And if you want bonus points, make sure the buttons on the sportcoat/suit jacket you’re bringing have brown in them too like in the image above.

Read the rest of…
Julie Rath: How to Pack Like a Pro

Julie Rath: Sweaters

Men's Holiday Gift: Cardigan Sweater

Question:

Hi Julie,

Happy holiday season! I hope Black Friday/Cyber Monday treated you well. I’m hoping you might be able to help me out with your amazing knowledge of the menswear market. I bought my husband Stephen a sweater at Mulberry (see photo attached) about 5 years ago (or maybe 6? or 7?) and he has loved the thing to death. It definitely needs to be replaced but I haven’t found anything else like it (Mulberry doesn’t do men’s anymore). It’s really really thick and has a high-ish collar and he raves about how warm it is. Do you know where I could find one like it? Are there any men’s luxury brands known for doing really thick classic sweaters? Thank you for any guidance you can offer!

-Jenny

Men's Holiday Gift: Cardigan Sweater

Answer:

Hi Jenny,

Thanks for your email and flattering words! It’s funny, I just got a client a similar sweater (in navy) at Barney’s today — from Shipley & Halmos. They do really nice heavy knits that look great on. Also, check out this sweater from Billy Reid, and this one from Ami Alexandre Mattiussi. Let me know how it goes!

 

Julie Rath: Your Fall Jacket Primer

One of my favorite activities at this time of year is selecting transitional  jackets for my clients. Moderate in weight, the Fall jacket falls squarely  between an overcoat or parka, and one made of light material like cotton or  nylon. The reason I like this type of jacket so much is that the stylistic  options are practically endless. Below are my top picks for Fall outerwear in 7  different categories.

Leather

Men's Style: Leather Jacket

The nice thing about this leather  jacket from John Varvatos ($1898) is that its waxed texture won’t show  scratches or spills the way a softer, smoother leather does. But at the same  time it still has a refined quality. The most important tip I can give you on  buying a leather jacket is to make sure it fits perfectly. If you  haven’t read my leather jacket guide, check it out here.

Field Jacket

Men's Style: Field Jacket

Downtown meets classic country in this great Moncler field  jacket ($1695). I love the combination of the quilting and knit fabrics for  creating visual interest.

Biking Jacket

Men's Style: Biking Jacket

I probably should’ve called this  jacket from Fay, “Field Jacket 2,” as I’m not quite sure what a Biking  Jacket is (the company’s term, not mine). Nonetheless, I am very much into this  refined yet approachable tweed wool coat which also comes in blue and gray.

Peacoat

Men's Style: Peacoat

A peacoat is one of the most versatile jackets around: you can wear it for  everything from a night out to a trip to the gym. I like this  one ($1795) from cult brand Camoshita for its elegant tailoring and  supersoft wool-cashmere blend. Bonus that this mid-gray color is universally  flattering.

Trench

Men's Style: Trenchcoat

You can’t go wrong in this minimalist pick from Jack Spade  ($595). It’s a clean and modern take on the classic trench. Wear it for dressy  or casual, rain or shine.

Vest

Men's Style: Quilted Vest

As I’ve said before, a thin down vest is a terrific layering piece. You  can throw it over or under a sportcoat/suit jacket for extra warmth  once the sun goes down. This  navy one from J. Crew ($128) is perfect because it’s thin and not as sporty  as many other vests.

Denim

Men's Style: Denim Jacket

This jacket  from Vince ($245) is a bit of a cheat, as denim is pretty lightweight. But when  layered correctly, you can absolutely incorporate a jean jacket into your Fall  repertoire. Rock it layered with a cardigan, hoody or wool vest. Bonus  tip: for a bold-playful look, try it with a pocket square. If that’s not  your jam, but you still want to add a stylistic touch, then put your sunglasses  in the chest pocket for an alternative take on the pocket square.

 

You’ll notice that my picks on a whole are simple and unfussy, which are good  things to aim for with outerwear, especially when you’re building a wardrobe. My  suggestion: keep the jacket classic, especially if it’s an investment piece.  Then you can pull in trends, colors/patterns you love or personal touches via  your accessories, like with the pocket square suggestion above, a scarf or even  a lapel pin. That way, if you get tired of those things, you can easily change  them up (which is much less painful than getting a new jacket every  season!).

What’s your Fall jacket of choice? Leave me a comment or question below. I  always love hearing from you!

Julie Rath: How Powerfully are You Showing Up?

nls-logo

Have you ever wondered how you rate on a scale of 1-10? Fall is practically here, and the holidays right after that. Those are key times to be exuding confidence and looking your best.

If you want to get serious about your style, and be taken seriously as a result, I invite you to watch the video I made for you explaining how it all works. I’ve worked with hundreds of men worldwide, and it’s been my incredible privilege to observe how much their lives improve and what opportunities come their way when they upgrade their style.

On the same page as the video, you can also take my style quiz. It will show you how you measure up, and what you can do to get to a 10.