Julie Rath: How To Define Your Personal Style

Do you ever get so sick of your wardrobe that you want to toss the whole thing out the window? I often hear that sentiment from new clients – they’re tired of wearing the same boring blue shirt and khakis every day. I don’t blame them. If you don’t work at Blockbuster, why dress like it? If you’re in this kind of rut, now’s as good a time as ever to define a new personal style. Below are eight tips on how to do that:

1) Look for inspiration from celebrities, magazines and style blogs. Earmark looks or parts of looks that you want to try.

2) Try elements of what you like and ask a friend whose opinion you value and who you know will be honest.

3) Incorporate elements of your personality into your style. Love your Vespa? Wear a pair of cufflinks that pays homage to it. Integrating features of your unique personality into your look will help you feel more comfortable in your own skin – and make it more likely that you’ll actually wear your new items.

4) Go ground up. The easiest, most pain-free first step in a style redo is new footwear – mostly because there’s no tailoring involved, so you can literally walk out of the store in them. There’s something about a great pair of shoes that makes you stand straighter and walk with more swagger.

5) Make sure the new look you select works for your body type. How to tell? Check out your overall silhouette in the mirror. Many of us home in on a certain part of our bodies when checking ourselves out. Try a more macro approach and see yourself as a larger whole. If the overall shape appeals to you, you’ll know it’s flattering.

6) If you’re nervous to try something new, make like Gavin and take it for a test drive to the grocery store. See how you feel when you’re there. No one has to know you’re just going to the supermarket!

7) Try a little at a time. I’ve seen too many closets full of one particular style that the client went whole hog on without realizing that it wasn’t right for him (Western shirts, I’m looking at you!). So pick one to start. If you find yourself going to that item again and again, you’re ready to commit to getting more.

8) Be patient and open-minded when you look at yourself in the mirror. Your eye is used to seeing you dressed in one specific way. The new look might be jarring and take some getting used to – like a new haircut.

Defining your own personal style takes some work, but it’s definitely worth it. Try the steps above, and let me know in the comments how you do. And if you’d like more tailored help with ramping up your look, contact me.