Dafna’s Fashion Friday: New Year’s Fashiolutions

From Dafna Steinberg. Follow her @AlizaySteinberg. Email her at dafna[AT]borderstan.com.

Happy New Year all… hope everyone had a stylishly good time on New Year’s Eve (I know I did!).

With a new year comes new promises we make to ourselves. “I will lose those 20 pounds I always said I would.” “I will take that class I always said I would take.” “I’m going to run a marathon!” Yet, with these new promises, one thing never seems to be on anyone’s resolutions list: Fashion.

It should be. Better style can help make for a better year. It can also be a great reward for all those long hours you promised yourself you would be spending at the gym. So to help you out, dear readers, I have come up with a list of style resolutions for you.

More Color

One of my biggest pet peeves (and as I’ve mentioned before, there are many) when it comes to styling or helping people finds clothes that work for them is the phrase “I don’t really wear colors.” First off, it’s a pretty silly statement. Of course you wear colors. Black, white, beige and brown ARE colors.

What you mean to say is “I don’t wear INTERESTING colors. Only boring ones.” If you open your closet and the only difference in color is the shade of black, you need to go out to some stores and spice it up a bit. This does not mean you have to run out and buy everything in hot pink. Start off small.

Try adding a colorful scarf or tie. Then work your way up to a sweater or shirt. When you feel comfortable enough with that, try coordinating colors. If you feel nervous about clashing colors, ask a sales person to help you next time you’re in the store. That’s why they are there.

Better Fits

I am directing this specifically to the male readers, though ladies can pay mind to this as well. Guys…remember when everyone was making fun of Paul Ryan because his suits looked like they were hand me downs out of Mitt Romney’s closet? Yeah, don’t be Paul Ryan. The man was the poster boy for P90X, but you never would have known it based on his suits.

It’s 2013. Zoot Suits are out (unless you are really into vintage and swing music). If you buy a suit off the rack, take it to a tailor and have it fitted properly. For one, it makes you look more serious at your job. Two, it makes you more attractive to the opposite (or same) sex. There is nothing like a well-fitted suit on a man that causes one’s head to turn and take notice.

Quality, Not Quantity

Stop. Buying. Clothes. At. H&M. Or even worse, Forever 21.  At least stop buying ALL your clothes there. Yes, they have trendy clothes for cheap prices. But you are getting what you pay for and that cute skirt will have a hole in it within two months. If you are out of college and have a professional job, you should invest more into your clothes. They will make you feel better about yourself. I promise you.

Support local area boutiques. There are a number in Borderstan that pride themselves on having unique clothes in LIMITED quantities. That adorable t-shirt you bought on the sale rack at J. Crew? It’s your favorite. And the favorite of the 2,000 other people that bought it as well. Spend a little more and stand out from the crowd. If you are concerned about saving money in difficult economic times, keep in mind… small boutiques have sales too!

Investing in Self Image

There is one idea that connects all of these resolutions together and it is belief in self image. If you are making resolutions to lose weight, try that new Paleo diet, or work out more, you obviously want to feel better about yourself by taking pride in your self image. This should apply to your closet as well. I realize in these tough economic times, spending money on clothes seems frivolous.

But believe me, if you are already putting so much effort into making yourself look better, having the clothes to match will only accentuate the hard work you have put in. You will look as great as you feel and that, dear Borderstanis, is worth more than the price on the price tag.

Stay tuned for another edition of Dafna’s fashion.

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