By Julie Rath, on Fri Feb 1, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET Today’s post is courtesy of the queen of romantic planning, Sarah Pease, The Proposal Planner (TM). Whether she’s taking over the flight deck of the Intrepid for an epic proposal, or organizing the perfect picnic in Central Park, Sarah knows what’s what when it comes to making romance happen.
For some, Valentine’s Day is the most romantic day of the year filled with love, red roses and candlelit dinners. For others, it’s a commercialized, manufactured holiday rife with cheesy teddy bears, silk boxer shorts and exorbitantly priced prix fixe menus. Regardless of your opinion, it’s a great excuse for organizing a fun date with your loved one (even if it’s just your most-loved friend!). Here are five of my favorite ideas for Valentine’s Day:
1) For the Wallet-Conscious: Create your own wine tasting. With a little research done online or with your local wine shop, select 2 reds and 2 whites and pair them with cheeses or chocolates. Using a scarf from your closet, conduct an official blind tasting by candlelight. Not only will you expand your knowledge of wines, but you’ll also enjoy the flirty part of blindfolding each other! Budget not an issue? Hire a sommelier to do a private tasting!
2) Starry Night: Research the hours at your local planetarium or night-sky observatory and arrange to have a private tour. Whether you’re strapped into an IMAX seat watching the latest space-themed movie, or gazing at real stars in other galaxies, you’ll be in a romantic mood under all those stars.
3) Love is all Around: Plan an entire evening around love. Meet your sweetheart at the Museum of Sex near the Flatiron Building – who says a museum can’t be fun? Once you’ve explored all the newest exhibits, head to your favorite cocktail bar to sip on the cocktails she loves. From there, treat her to her guilty-pleasure food – is it cheesy biscuits from Red Lobster? Coconut Invasion cake from Asia de Cuba? Tonight is the night to indulge. End the evening by sharing three reasons why you love each other.
4) Futuristic Love: Want to know what the universe has in store for you? Do a psychic reading together! Make an appointment or stop in to see what the crystal ball or tarot cards say. If you really want to tempt fate, try a few different fortune tellers to see if their predictions overlap.
5) Ice Skating and Hot Chocolate: Strap on your skates and join the crowds for a lively spin around the ice rink. If you’re in New York, you can blend in with the tourists in Central Park, Rockefeller Center or Bryant Park, or discover some of the smaller rinks around the city. Reward all of your activity with a cab ride to City Bakery and test out the “drinkable chocolate” of the day. Got a sweet tooth? Plan to come back every other day for the rest of their Hot Chocolate Festival which runs the entire month of February. That way you can try a new flavor every night.
Many thanks to Sarah for sharing her fantastic ideas. For more info on Sarah, check out her website.
And now that you’ve got the best date ever planned, read here for what to wear.
By Jonathan Miller, on Wed Jan 30, 2013 at 9:00 AM ET 
It’s now time for your favorite contest, “Guess the Jew-Fro!”
Today’s entry, at left, comes to us from a loyal reader, who apparently is using this as a blackmail attempt against the picture’s subject.
The winning guess in the comments section below wins a FREE SUBSCRIPTION to The RP’s KY Political Brief, an email wrap-up of the day’s Kentucky political news, delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.
(OK, anybody subscribe to The RP’s KY Political Brief for free. Just click here to sign up.)
To get you started on the contest, here are 3 hints:
1. The picture is 40 years old.
2. The owner is not really a Member of the Tribe; BUT
3. From his neurotic sense of humor, he is certainly classifiable as Jew-ish. Click here to read why.
By RP Staff, on Tue Jan 29, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET From Jason’s newest venture: Sock 101
 SOCK 101
How’s your sock cred? Step it up for $7.
Sock 101 exists to enhance the style, appeal, and success of young professionals through colorful, yet professional and stylish socks.
Socks you say? Yes, socks. Our question…Why not socks? Socks are no longer your grandfather’s boring Gold Toe’s. The idea that your socks should match your pants is long gone! Socks are now a fun accessory that you can use to spruce up your wardrobe and appearance while remaining professional. Socks, like ties, can add color and style to any outfit.
Being the self-proclaimed fashionable young professionals we are, we noticed an opportunity that such a small accessory as socks had in the market. Even President George H.W. Bush was quoted in an interview saying, “I’m a sock man!” We are sock men ourselves. We believe in a new sock style.
There was one significant problem, we were tired of paying between $12 and $25 for a nice pair of socks. We knew there had to be a better way. We started with a question…Could we make high quality, high fashion, colorful, yet professional socks and sell them for $7?
It turns out, we could. Without any real experience in the fashion business, but with passion and ideas, we began work on Sock 101. We know what we wanted and now the product is here.
Three “Sockpreneurs” coming together. One an entrepreneur, one an attorney and marketing strategist and one an attorney and media man.
One man was responsible for handling the manufacture. One man was responsible for the marketing and PR. One man was responsible for our website and operations. All helped build the designs. To say the least, it was a learning experience and a total blast! Overall, we were very pleased with the result. Now, we hope you are too!
We design our own colorful yet professional and stylish socks, and sell them for only $7 each. That’s right, seven bucks for a great pair of socks. We ship our socks in 24 hours and there is a flat rate shipping price of $5.95 no matter how many socks you buy. Oh yeh we also have a sock of the month club, a six pack and sock gift cards.
Get noticed. Look Great. Join us in crossing your legs, raising your pant leg and showing off your Sock 101’s!
By Julie Rath, on Fri Jan 25, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET Do you avoid opening your closet door because you’re afraid a tennis racquet is going to fall out on your head? Sporting goods aside, it’s always nice to have a workable closet. Much of my client work is helping people to streamline and edit their wardrobes; trust me, I’ve seen it all in there…everything from bike pumps and paint cans to women’s unmentionables. And that’s all I’ll say about that! So don’t worry; no one is beyond help when it comes to getting a closet in shape.
Here I am on a recent closet session checking out my client’s go-to navy suit.
When your wardrobe contains only items you actually wear, it allows you to get your day started faster so that you can focus on what you do best – instead of worrying about where the pants to your gray pinstripe suit are. The first step to creating a closet that works for you is to set aside a couple of hours for a closet clearing. Below are 7 questions to ask yourself when considering each item:
1. Is it in good condition?
2. Is it out of style or do you not like the style?
3. Is it relevant to your lifestyle?
4. Does the color look good on you? (to find out what colors look best on you, contact me).
5. Does it fit?
6. Have you worn it in the past year and a half?
7. Do you actually like it?
If the answer to 2 or more of these is “no,” then you can do better, and I’d recommend donating it. And if you’re too busy or don’t have the patience to do this yourself, call in a professional who can get the job done for you quickly and efficiently.
Here’s to starting 2013 with a functional closet that suits your needs.
By Julie Rath, on Fri Jan 18, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET 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.
By RP Staff, on Wed Jan 16, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET  In BREAKING NEWS from the Pulitzer Prize winning news site, DailyPix.Me, our own contributing RP, Jason Grill, was named the #12 best looking politician under the age of 40.
With breathless pose, the reputable news agency writes:
Grill is a former Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives. He’s also a lawyer, writer, TV analyst, radio host and an all around handsome man! Oh and did we mention that he’s only 33?
Check out the piece here.
Of course, Jason had already been labeled, by the hard news, Cosmopolitan magazine, as one of “7 Politicians We’d Like to See Shirtless (And One Who’s Already Taken It Off).”
Wrote Cosmo when Jason was an active politician:
This smokin’ hot Dem is running for a second term as a representative in the Missouri House of Representatives. Hey Jason, if you need anyone to hang out on the campaign trail, give us a call.
While we here at The Recovering Politician are big admirers of Jason’s dreamy blue eyes (or are they brown?), we are not sure if he is the sexiest recovering politician alive.
We need your vote below. Besides Jason, here are another few choices:
 Krystal Ball
 Michael Steele repping the red states  John Y. Brown, III in best fashion mode
By Julie Rath, on Fri Jan 11, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET 
Peter Elliot Blue
Sometimes I forget how lucky I am to live and work in a city with so many fantastic style resources. But then I go into a store like Peter Elliot Blue, and in short order I’m reminded of how fortunate I am. The flagship Peter Elliot store opened on the upper east side in 1977 — the first independent retailer to carry the line of another young style pioneer you may have heard of, Ralph Lauren. The store has a superb selection (suits/shirts/ties to outerwear to casual clothes and accessories) and is always gorgeously appointed, as you can see above and below. I love how the each pile of pants at left is cleverly wrapped in a belt.
If you haven’t yet seen my Behind the Scenes video, part of it was shot at Peter Elliot Blue. Here I am, browsing before the shoot. The clients in the video couldn’t get enough of the store either — they each walked out with purchases!
If you haven’t been over to Peter Elliot Blue yet, I encourage you to check it out. It’s a true NYC style experience. The store is located at 997 Lexington Ave, at 72nd St.
By Julie Rath, on Fri Jan 4, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET It’s always nice to get a fresh start in the new year. Below are 8 suggested style resolutions to help you abandon old ways and embrace new ones.
 1) Incorporate color. Fall and winter are seasons for dark, moody colors, but Spring is the time to work in some pep and optimism. Try a solid shirt in an unexpected shade like this green above. Keep the rest of the look solid to avoid overkill (or eye strain).
2) Try a different brand. Too often what I see in new clients’ closets is a lack of variety. While it’s natural to stock up if something works for you, think outside the box in the new year, and experiment with new brands. One that I love is Todd Snyder, which now has a website from which you can order directly.
3) Shoe care. An easy way to get right in the new year is to have your shoes refurbished by a good cobbler. My go-to in NYC is The Leather Spa.
Read the rest of…
Julie Rath: So Fresh and Clean in 2013
By Julie Rath, on Fri Dec 28, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET  With business casual all the rage in many offices, the pairing of dress shirts and pants is a hot topic. In some ways, this is actually easier than putting together an outfit where you’re considering suit (or blazer and pants), shirt, tie, and sometimes pocket square patterns. But still, based on empirical data (a.k.a. what I see when hanging out in clients’ closets), a lot of people get it wrong. Below are 7 quick and easy points to keep in mind when selecting a business-casual dress shirt and pants combo.
1) Avoid wearing striped pants with just your dress shirt. This tends to look a little “off,” like you broke your striped suit apart and wore just the pants themselves.
2) If you broke rule #1 and are wearing striped pants with just a dress shirt, don’t worry I won’t hunt you down. Just promise me that your dress shirt isn’t striped too.
3) If your pants have a pattern (plaid, windowpane, check, etc.), go with a solid shirt, and vice versa. Otherwise you border on looking clownish. Some fabrics are “tone-on-tone,” which means they have a subtle pattern to their weave, like a herringbone, but are still all one color. Fabrics like that read as solids and are perfectly fine to wear with patterns. See above how, viewed closely, there appears to be a pattern in the shirt, but overall it reads as a solid.
Read the rest of…
Julie Rath: No Brainer Shirt and Pants Combinations
By Julie Rath, on Fri Dec 14, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET
There are few things more devastatingly dashing than a man in a beautifully-fitted tuxedo. If you’ve received an invitation for an event calling for “Black Tie Optional” attire, your best option is – you guessed it – Black Tie. Why not take the opportunity to bring out the big guns? I promise, womens’ heads will turn, and the other guys not in tuxes will wish they had opted otherwise. Check out this shot above from a recent photo shoot for my new website (coming soon!). Pretty good, right?
Relatedly, designers have been showing formalwear looks deconstructed with individual items worn as separates (as seen in my Fall style report). This gives you even more reason to invest in a tux as well as some fun and interesting formalwear elements, which will come in handy when you’re faced with a Creative or Festive Black Tie dress code. Below are my top 5 picks for pieces that will help you mix up your evening gear.
1) Acne Velvet Double-Breasted Tuxedo Jacket — Acne made a splash with their fall lineup of swanky eveningwear separates. This jacket speaks for itself, so keep the rest of the look simple and classic.
2) Acne Jacquard Print Pants – These print pants are next-level style at its best. The trim cut calls for a similarly tailored jacket.
3) Michael Bastian Dinner Jacket – For evening wear with a festive twist, I am very much into this tartan shawl collar dinner jacket. The beauty of this piece is that you can wear it formally as shown above with ivory dress pants, but you can also dress it down with a bowtie, denim dress shirt, boots and cords, as seen in this excellent WSJ article on the topic. 
Read the rest of…
Julie Rath: Get this Party Started — What to Wear for Black Tie Optional and Creative Black Tie
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