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Is style something you are born with? I think I am missing the gene!

sheeplady

I'll Lock Up
Bartender
Messages
4,479
Location
Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, USA
I think one of the keys for me has been easing into it, as other ladies have said. You have to find out what you like for yourself.

Practice doing your hair on days that you stay home (so if it is a disaster you don't have the stress of leaving the house with it horrible AND you can learn to do it fast enough to actually get it done in the morning). Start gradually with the makeup, and experiment. I actually wear about 12 different colors of lipstick throughout the year with different things, but to settle on those colors I must have tried nearly every one in the store. To get to those 12 colors it took 2 years, and let's just say that most of the colors I bought were so bad on me that they didn't get worn out of the house. Also check these things under different kinds of lighting, it can drastically change the way makeup looks.

One trick that has helped me to pick out outfits is to throw everything for a single season (skirts, pants, sweaters, and blouses) into a pile on the floor or the bed. Then I match by color and texture, pulling things out as I go and hanging them together, and then recording what is stranded without a "mate." This tells me what I still need. (It can also tell you lots about what colors you like and what colors you need, especially if your pile is all one color :) ). It can really help you to think outside the box for putting your clothes together. If you always wear x with y, try to see if you can find something else to wear x with in your pile.
 

Amy Jeanne

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,852
Location
Colorado
It feels a little scary to change my look - not because of what I will think of it but more what other people will say as they are used to me looking dull and not really having a style. Perhaps it gets easier the more you do it. I hope so! Anything that boosts my confidence is a good thing.

I am going to research the era and style so that I have a really good idea of what I like and what I think will suit me.

I have pulled out my books from the era (I bought the charm books when I was working on getting confidence and improving my posture) and in a charity shop on the way home I found The 1950's Look. Super excited as it was on my wish list!

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The charm type books have chapters on make up and hair which I never looked at before. So glad I kept them!

Yeay!! Those books look great! Much like the ones I started out with! Also, if you happen to stumble upon REAL women's magazines from the 1950s -- SNATCH THEM UP! (if they are in your price range, of course!) I even recommend "wordy" ones. Read them and you'll start THINKING vintage!
 

pin_up_pixie

New in Town
Messages
46
Location
Nor Cal, east bay
A great book to get and read is The Fashion File by Janie Bryant. She is the costume designer on Mad Men. It's a mix of modern and vintage inspiration, but is a wonderful "beginners guide" to building a wardrobe and finding your style. And like the other ladies said, start small and practice the look. Soon it'll be second nature.
 

angeljenny

A-List Customer
Messages
339
Location
England
I love those books! So charming and cute. The bits about ideal weight and measurements are scary though!

I will put the Mad Men book on my wish list as I have seen a few episodes and love the clothes!
 

angeljenny

A-List Customer
Messages
339
Location
England
Yeay!! Those books look great! Much like the ones I started out with! Also, if you happen to stumble upon REAL women's magazines from the 1950s -- SNATCH THEM UP! (if they are in your price range, of course!) I even recommend "wordy" ones. Read them and you'll start THINKING vintage!

There are quite a few magazines on eBay - some look so interesting! Not sure how I would store them though as I would hate to damage them!

I tend to have a quite old fashioned mind set anyway and my Grandparents think I am too traditional.
 

Hey_Laaaaaady!

Familiar Face
Messages
55
Location
somewhere between 1947-1951
I would suggest first figuring out which colors look best on you (have you tried "Color Me Beautiful"?) and then basing an entire color scheme on that. In example, I am an "autumn" so that means I only wear reds, oranges, golds, greens, browns & turquoises. I chose the "base" color for my season (brown/sometimes tan) and got shoes, purses, and bottoms in that base color (or a combination of brown and other fall colors). Since all of the other colors in my scheme go with brown, I can mix and match endlessly! I love this idea because I know I will always look good in the colors that flatter me.

This also helps with shopping--you can pick out things you know will go with the majority of your tops or bottoms because you have a general color scheme.

Other base colors include black, tan, navy or white, depending on what looks good on you.

Or you can just choose one color to wear all the time, and accent it with other things. One lady I know wears nothing but black and white, but she has accessories in pink and yellow and green...fruity colors! And she always looks well-put-together. (Personally, I'm not sure if I could stand wearing the same colors always, though.)

Did all that make sense? I hope so. This is what I did in my modern wardrobe; however, I am only now switching over to vintage so we'll see how it goes. Vintage may be harder. :)

Edit: Just wanted to add a real-life example: I have a skirt with a wild floral print on it that has green, brown, orange, turquoise and red. I have about five different tops in my wardrobe that I can wear with it, because they are all autumn-colored, and they each make the skirt look a different way. :)
 
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angeljenny

A-List Customer
Messages
339
Location
England
I read about Colour Me Beautiful but couldn't figure out which season I was! I think I am a Winter although maybe I might be a Summer.

I am sure I saw a Colour Me Beautiful book in the supermarket the other day - might have to have a closer look.

I do need to get my wardrobe organised though as it is very random!
 

Veronica

New in Town
Messages
44
Location
Nantes, France
As a beginner ( and also a post-goth-who lived in black for years ) I look for classics : pencil skirt, black dress, grey cardi, white blouse...
My very own rules are : 3 colors and/or two print max, simple but perfect cuts, all the fun in the accessories...
Lucky me, my season (winter) includes my favorites colors...
For example : black dress, black stockings & shoes, red cardi + cherries printed bag + cherries strass hairpin (the trick : the red of the cardi has to match the red of the bag)
Take your time and keep your money for THE piece of wardrobe you really need...and enjoy ^^
 

jessesgirl08

One of the Regulars
Messages
172
Location
azusa, ca
I agree with everyone here, its like anything else if you feel comfortable you will feel confident and if you are confident you will feel beautiful. Since starting to dress vintage/vintage inspired two years ago i have found that my style has evolved and become more me. At first i was following inspiration and trying things out and some were a hit and some were a miss but I now know what is ME. I will never be the type that can wear a poofy skirt or flouncy dress or bow and ribbons (which is beautiful when worn by the right girl) but I am much more a pedal pushers, pencil skirt, nautical, tiki inspired, halter top, wiggle dress kinda girl and i would have never found that out if i didnt try. So just go for it. :D

by the way Tishkaminx....I am cataloguing my clothes as we speak.;)
 

angeljenny

A-List Customer
Messages
339
Location
England
I so want to catalogue my clothes! Scared of what I will find hiding at the back of the wardrobe.

I bought the Colour Me Beautiful book today and it doesn't have seasons in it but I am Clear and Cool which is pretty good as my favourite colours are in the selection that suit me! So excited to build a wardrobe of clothes that all suit me.
 

ferula98

New in Town
Messages
20
Location
london
I think style is all about inspiration and courage. That said i do think i have a few tips for putting an outfit together,
Try to find one item that you love as a starting point and work around it. Put the item on and start to think about colours that would go with it and matching or juxtaposing the style. For example a floaty skirt with a more structured blouse to stop it all looking too flouncy or matching structured trousers with a structured collared top.
Inspiration, inspiration, inspiration... we all learn through repetition and copying so try to find some images or watch some styled films that you love and copy them as best as you can. For the courage to wear certain pieces i always find it helps to pretend to be the person in the image or the film that you are copying. Its quite fun to play at being one of your favourite caracters. You'll soon find that the compliments start rolling in and your confidence will grow.
Good luck darlings

Flair in a ladys boudoir
http://jessicalouisegladstone.blogspot.com/
 

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