Seven Things You Can Do NOW to Look Well-Groomed Without Spending a Dime!Written by Renu Dalal-Jain
Fashion magazines target people every day with lists and charts telling them latest trends and techniques to look better, skinnier, smarter, where to buy hippest clothes or latest shoes! If you’re a woman, you are probably bombarded more often than you like, and if you’re a man, you may not get information that you really want to know! Due to glut of information available, most people know obvious things to do to look elegant or well groomed, such as getting a good haircut or wearing certain brand name clothes. However, this may lead people to overlook some simple, basic things that can be done RIGHT NOW to add that subtle flair and polish to your everyday look!Renu Dalal-Jain, a certified image consultant and owner of Flair Consulting in Philadelphia, PA, works with men and women to help them put their best personal face forward in social or corporate settings. She maintains that there are seven essential things any man or women can do, and often overlook, to help them present a well-groomed, neat, and elegant appearance to world! And all this without spending a dime! 1)Keep your skin and lips well conditioned. Ashy knees, flaky skin and chapped lips do not look nice, and will make your skin look old and tired. This is especially important in colder weather. If you wear lipstick, it is imperative that you keep your lips moist, because chapped lips are even more apparent under color. Keep lip balm in your car and your bedside table and apply it whenever you get in car and before going to bed at night. 2)Make sure your nails are well shaped and all a similar length. Nothing says you don’t care like ragged nails or nails that are different lengths! (Ladies, I know you worked hard to grow those nails but just because only one broke, you shouldn’t think nobody would notice!) If you polish your nails, keep your everyday color one shade brighter than your skin-tone. This looks professional and clean and makes your hands look elegant, especially if you wear rings. If you like brighter colors make sure you repair chipped polish right away! Chips in bright polish are extremely noticeable and make you look sloppy. 3)Make sure your clothes and accessories are in a similar color family – don’t wear shades of beige or brown clothing with black shoes or a white belt. As a rule of thumb, make sure your belt, shoes, and watchstrap are in same color family. Sometimes a strikingly different purse or shoes can make a statement, but it has to be well planned. The article in question must be of good quality and in good condition, since you want people to notice it.
| | Five Simple Ways to Organize Your Closet Today!Written by Renu Dalal-Jain
Do you have an overstuffed, bulging closet (or two) full of clothes, and yet wear same three or four outfits repeatedly? Do you have few clothes and despair every time you put something on because you know it just does not look quite right? Would you like to be able to wear EVERYTHING you have in your closet? And know that you look good every time you do?Renu Dalal-Jain, a certified image consultant and owner of Flair Consulting in Philadelphia, PA, works with men and women to help them put their best personal face forward in social or corporate settings. Renu teaches her clients how to organize their closets and shop smart so that they always have right clothes to wear for right occasion. Renu teaches five easy steps that you can follow today to organize your closet so that you can understand what you have and what you need to purchase to complete your wardrobe! FIRST – Prepare! Set aside at least three to four hours for task, and make sure you have access to a full-length mirror. Wear neutral undergarments, as you will be trying on everything you own. All hangers should be of same size and type (all plastic, or all wooden) and made for specific clothing items – top/dress hanger, pant hanger, etc. This will save you precious space in your closet. Hangers.com is a wonderful website (www.hangers.com) that sells all types of hangers at less than one dollar apiece. SECOND – get organized! Dump your entire closet out onto floor of your bedroom and be brutal with yourself. Those bell-bottoms from 1973 – get rid of them! The shoe with broken heel that you never got around to fixing… gone! You will be surprised at how much you can get rid of, and how little you really need it. One rule of thumb that Renu always use is that if you haven’t used it in at least one year, YOU DON’T NEED IT. Some of you might think, “Well, it’s got sentimental value – I have to keep that old sweater that I got in fifth-grade band camp!” Well everyone understands sentimental value but it doesn’t belong in your closet. Put it in a box with your scrapbooks and old photos and put it in attic. Now you will have room for key things that you are always going to wear, and always going to feel good about. Wear clothes that make you feel radiant, not reasonable! THIRD – Divide what you have kept of your wardrobe, into business, casual and evening wear. And if you are one of lucky ones who actually got that long-promised Caribbean vacation, make a section for vacation/resort wear. By organizing your clothes this way, you will know what section to turn to in a snap. When you are dividing your wardrobe, pay attention to your “comfort zones”… do you wear only black slacks and sweaters to office? Do you have sixteen white button-down shirts? Make notes for yourself so that when you next go shopping, you are aware of what your comfort zone is, and resist purchases within that zone. Stepping outside your comfort zone will help you expand your wardrobe and experiment with other styles.
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