Accessories: Embellishments or Infrastructure?
“Accessories are also the infrastructure of a well-designed outfit. If you don’t have it, your outfit will crumble.”
Brenda Kinsel, from the book Brenda Kinsel’s Fashion Makeover
In the course of focusing on my own comeback, I have finally come to the place in my wardrobe life where I recognize my need for a basic assortment of accessories. Serendipitously, I am also reading this book. Allow me to go out on a limb here and suggest that if you, like me, are an accessory retard, this book could change that. The author does a fabulous job keeping accessories in their proper role, suggesting pieces which support your personal coloring and relate to the scale of your facial features.
She also suggests, after going through what you have and deciding what to keep, but before shopping, that you play with your accessories, grouping them by color (including metals). Take photos.
Without even doing the project I know what I need: necklaces.
- silver to support my hair color (I already have pearls),
- pink to add color near my face when wearing a neutral outfit, and
- brown to enhance my eyes and complete the infrastructure effect of brown buttons and belt.
Often when getting dressed, I know I need a third color near my face. Without a necklace (or scarf, but I don’t like them) my options are limited
Knowing that I don’t like to spend money AND I my stamina for accessory shopping is limited, where would you recommend I look for accessories and costume jewelry? Have you found any good deals lately?
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Catching Up on My Makeover (and Etc)
Let’s see … where was I? Oh yes, I was blogging my “comeback”. By now, I should have:
- Lost 4 out of 5 pounds AND re-built the habit of walking (outside, midday) most days. Check done on the first, although I don’t recommend my weight loss method (being sick caused me to lose my appetite), and that same “method”, along with being in the hospital for a couple of days with my son, got me off-track with exercising.
- Scheduled at least my next haircut. I can see I need to explore this topic more. But, for now, yes, I do have my next haircut scheduled (Oct 22).
- Which is a good thing, since I wanted my hair shorter than I got it. A new concept I’m considering: asking my stylist, who apparently schedules half-hour appointments, to book me for 45-50 minutes and charge accordingly.
- Quit biting my nails. Yay! Now I really should schedule a manicure (and have my eyebrows done while I’m at it).
- I still need a magnifying mirror, so I can see to keep them (the eyebrows, that is) plucked myself.
- Fall wardrobe planning: I should have a shopping list and have purchased at least most of the staples. Still in process.
- An accessories post to come.
- Plan my “comeback” events. Later.
How is everyone else’s “comeback” and/or fall wardrobe season coming along?
Announcing the inception of Eternal Voyageur’s *Starburst Festival*:
The topic is “Things Every Woman Should Know” aka all the things that we have found out for ourselves the hard way, and we wish would have been told us in the beginning of this journey. Visit Venusian Glow to participate.
Lately I’ve also been empathizing with you ladies in the working world, specifically thinking about shoes. Have you tried Soffts? From their web-site:
…Söfft will be making a special appearance on the second season of Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style on BravoTV. We are thrilled to be a part of this show and hope you will tune-in.
Bravo has just recently scheduled the episode featuring Söfft, so save the date:
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 9th, 2008 @ 11/10C. Don’t miss it!
The premier of Tim Gunn is scheduled for October 2nd @ 11/10C.
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Mom: Before and After Haircut
aka “Shirley Jones Fashion Lab”
Mom has graciously allowed me to show you her before and after haircut photos. Also pictured, the photo she forgot to take with her. 
Which reminds me of a concept I had thought of previously:
If you resemble someone beautiful, famous, and glamorous (like Shirley Jones), why not piggy-back off their stylist’s expertise and borrow their hairstyle?
(Perhaps not wanting to be associated with the character of the person you resemble?)
Now, the fashion lab portion of this post:
Based on these photos, do you have any “what color to wear” advice for the subject?
And just for fun: who would play you in the movie of your life? He hee. I have no idea what actress I resemble, but I’m fairly certain any movie of my life would have Mike Myers involved at some level. Thankfully, I live a boring life. 
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Beth’s New Hair
Beth before, as seen in this previous post.
And, looking gorgeous and sensational, as well as younger, slimmer, and happier, here is her after:
Isn’t this just the kind of makeover we’re all dreaming of? Congratulations!
Sadly, I am not there.
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Communicating With Your Hairdresser
In Staging Your Comeback, Christopher Hopkins hints humorously at how he interprets what clients say. For example, if you say, “I don’t want it too neat”; he thinks, “she doesn’t want to feel old”. (And isn’t that the truth? And more than that, I don’t want to look like an old man.) If you say, “I don’t want to look frumpy”; he thinks, “she needs more makeup”. If you haven’t already, buy the book and read the rest of the list yourself.
In answer to the question “What is the most effective way of communicating what you want to your hair-stylist?”, Imogen’s comment is representative of the most commonly recommended way of handling it:
If you have a picture bring it - but look for a picture of someone with the haircut you want who appears to have a similar texture of hair - because what you want may not be possible if your hair won’t do the cut you want.
Interestingly enough, I think the second most popular advice was just to let the stylist decide. Lots of other good advice in the comments back there. Describing what you want seems to be the universally ineffective way of doing it.
Anyway, once upon a time, eons ago, I picked up this book - and I mean, picked it up in the bookstore and stood there and read it - which defines and explains the different kinds of hair textures and what kinds of styles work with them. There’s no substitute for understanding your own hair texture.
The most common communication frustration for my hairdresser, and probably yours too, is people coming in with a picture of a hair style that simply won’t work with their hair. Which is probably the reason some hairdressers prefer you bring a picture of yourself when you liked your hair. Which makes no sense to me. How could I then get something new every fall?
And I guess I’m not the only one doing something new: Carrie has a cute new haircut, so does Bee. And my mom (who looks like Shirley Jones). Drop me a line if you have a haircut to share. (BTW, did you know it’s National Makeover Month at ivillage?)
More hair cut(s):
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Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
Today, many of you know, was my hair cut day in this comeback series (”comeback” is beginning to feel like a loaded term to me).
The before picture.
True confessions: I didn’t take a picture with me.
- I didn’t have one that I felt exactly captured what I wanted; most have the bangs draping across the face, which I didn’t want.
- I didn’t think it should be a problem to say, “I want the kind of layers you’ve been cutting, the same shape around the face, this piece being the longest length.”
- I have enough confidence in the gal who cuts my hair to know that she’s not going to send me out looking ridiculous and there’s a fair chance I’ll get something more fabulous than I was expecting.
This is what it looks like after just letting it air dry. (My normal routine is to blow-dry upside down, product at crown, and blow the top layers around a round brush.)
After:
I’m still deciding whether I am going to call her tomorrow and ask if I can come back to get another couple of inches off the length, so if you have suggestions (maybe even links to pictures!) please leave them in the comments. But in the meantime, I have a question for you:
What is the most effective way of communicating what you want to your hair-stylist?
- the name of the cut
- the name of a person with the cut
- a picture of someone with the cut you want
- a picture, plus some instructions such as “shorter fringe”
- a picture of yourself when you liked your hair
- a verbal description of what you want
- just let the stylist pick
- other
What works for you?
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Blogging Our Comebacks Calendar
Update: Noticing a need for some jewelry specifically to complete color harmonies near my face, I am adding a week for accessories to the end of my makeover schedule. To the end, because I still think it’s more important to not be naked than to be properly accessorized! Here at the bottom of the fashion food chain, not being naked is a priority. LOL
Since I’m presently staring down what could arguably be my busiest week of the year, I would love to have your help: any of you who are playing along and would like to submit a guest post or who have written something about your own “comeback”, please email me with either a post, some pictures, a link to your own post, or whatever. Thanks!
So far, I have brought my scale back into my bathroom and been walking almost everyday. My nails are growing, but not yet manicured and my cuticles are dry and cracked. I have my appointment for my haircut next week. Shopping for a magnifying mirror (for plucking my eyebrows) had been unsuccessful, but I scored on the trench. And after biffing a bag full of stuff, I’m still appreciating the fact that I hardly shopped at all last year, especially during the fall when I was costuming a show. Now I will be able to test how really concise a wardrobe I can build.
I’m still having fun! How about you?
Well, my semi-official first post is up. Leave a link to yours, if you write one, in the comments of this post or email it to me. If you have no blog, but would like to post before pictures or write a guest post, or whatever, send it on in! If I get some links (by 9 pm PDST, Wednesday August 27), I will publish them carnival-style on Thursday.
Here’s my tentative topic line-up:
- August 22 - 28: the big picture
- August 29- Sept 4: weight loss/physical fitness
- September 5th - 11th: scheduled maintenance
- September 12th - 18th: hair
- September 19th -25th: fall wardrobe
- September 26th - Oct 2nd: the face
- October 3rd -9th:
the big day!accessories - October 10th-16th: putting it all together for the big event(s)
How does that look?
Again, I say, this is going to be so much fun!
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Fashion Lab On Location: Blending vs Contrasting Shoes
What a wonderful surprise! Taking a surprise day of vacation, my hero agreed to accompany me to the Nordstrom rack to look for shoes and take pictures on location. He even bought coffee.
More about my fall wardrobe needs later, but I should mention that foremost on my mind today was needing walking shoes. Over the last week or two, I’ve been very disciplined to get out and walk nearly every day and I’m noticing the strength in my back returning (some of you may remember I experienced a very serious back injury this past January). Lately I’ve been wearing sandals, but that won’t continue forever …
The first picture is from my before pictures post. Noting that my legs are shorter than my torso, Imogen suggested a shoe that blends with the color of my trousers. Which I don’t dispute. However, shopping being the experience that it is, having a wardrobe full of the right things is often easier said than done. Grumble. Out of the three pictured, plus several others, nothing better than my old blue ones materialized.
But all was not lost! I have tried, with no real success, several trenches during the run of this blog. Do you like this one? (Unfortunately, the picture of the front was no good. But the look on my daughter’s face when I tried it on for her was very promising. The collar is wide, with softened points which my husband says go with the lines of my face. Not the lines in my face. LOL)
And is this the kind of hair cut y’all were thinking? This lady was as kind as could be to allow me to take her picture. And so pretty! Most interesting, though, was her story: she just recently cut her hair and is really loving it. Before that, all she was able to do with it was wear it in ponytail!
Anyway, keep leaving me your input and suggestions. And keep us posted on what you’re up to. Remember, this week we are talking about weight loss and physical fitness. How’s that fitting into your life?
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Beth Before
My sister and I last Thanksgiving.
Here’s the link to her “before” post: This is what 43 looks like. Recently she also posted a book review of Staging Your Comeback
Hair today, which she thinks is too square and I think is too golden. Before we started all this, I emailed Christopher with my suggestion that she take her hair back to it’s original dark brown. He agreed that would be more “gorgeous and sensational” and suggested she had about 20 minutes left to do it. 
For background, other posts she’s pictured in around here:
Her last known natural hair color, in a cut I remember thinking at the time was stunningly cute and stylish for a young mom. 
And, to the right, another look that she calls “something in between”.
In my view, my sister has always super photogenic and fabulous. Pop over, take a look at her pictures, and share your suggestions.
And be thinking about joining us in blogging our comebacks!
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Blogging My Own Comeback: The Before Pictures
After the input started coming in on this post, I mentioned to my husband that I had never in my life before thought a moment about needing to correct for having a long face, to which he replied that when he looked at these pictures, they didn’t look to him like my face. I have since adjusted the sizing.
We all hate the typical “makeover mugshot” before photos, right?
So I tried to smile for these and pose as naturally as possible. I’m wearing normal daily makeup. I’m not going to be taking modeling classes between now and the end of this project, and all the photos will be taken by one family member or another. These are my reading glasses.
I forgot my jewelry. Normally, there’s a rather unique anniversary ring keeping my wedding band company. And I haven’t had a manicure or a pedicure for several weeks (more about that week after next according the Comeback Calendar). Neither can I see well enough to pluck my eyebrows properly.
Today’s weight: 133 lbs. (Better than I was expecting.)
This is the moment for honesty. Do you have suggestions?
(Just for fun: Christopher Hopkins’ Makeover Gallery and Good Housekeeping Look Five Years Younger Makeovers.)
