At last Spring is here, I even have a few daffodils out in my garden. Oh what a joy to look out the kitchen window to see some colour in the garden it really does lift your spirits. The same can be said when you look inside your wardrobe. It is time to ditch the darker colours you have worn over the winter and move towards the brighter colours of spring.
If you really struggle to give up the black and like to look as if you are in continual mourning I would urge you to try and at least inject a little bit of colour with some costume jewellery or a scarf. Would you paint your bedroom black with a black carpet and black bedding, probably not. Would it make you feel good? I don't think so. Yet so many women still cling to their black clothes.
Whenever I ask a woman dressed in black why she wears it so much the answer is always the same. 'It is slimming' But is it? Take a look at these boxes. Which box are your eyes drawn to?
Still think black is a good colour to hide the parts of your body you don't like?
Old habits die hard and yes there are times when black is the most appropriate colour to wear, but as you wander round the shops during the next few weeks please look at other alternatives such as navy or charcoal grey. You may be surprised at how good you look in these colours.
Spring clean your wardrobe
I was at a lunch for business women recently and sat next to a woman who said she had 35 garments in her wardrobe that still had the price tags on them and had never been worn. (Yes you know who you are) I suggested she needed to declutter her wardrobe but she said with three children, working and running a business she was too busy.
Do you know what is inside your wardrobe? The more clutter you have in your wardrobe the less likely you are to sort it out, but it only takes an afternoon. Take the phone off the hook, send the kids out with their father or to friends and set aside 3 hours to get to grips with what is hiding in your wardrobe. For advice on how to do this check out www.whatcaniwear.com and click on Top Tips.
There really is no sense in keeping clothes you never wear they just take up space and make it harder for you to find anything you like. You then end up making impulse buys because you have no idea what you really need and so the circle continues. Think about the amount of clothes you have that you have only worn once or twice. How much money have you wasted?
Give to Oxfam and save some money at the same time
Oxfam will give you a £5 Marks & Spencer voucher for your unwanted clothes if your bag contains at least one item that was purchased from Marks & Spencer. You can use the voucher when you spend over £35 in the store on clothes, beauty products or home products. For more information go to:
https://www.oxfam.org.uk/donate/shops/marksandspencer.html
How to keep the moths at bay
It is almost time to put your winter woollens away, but how do you store them without the moths getting at them?
www.totalwardrobecare.co.uk has all the answers with plenty of tips and advice on how to store your clothes. This cotton storage bag will keep the moths out and store 2-3 jumpers. It costs £15.
They also sell a range of products to help you have a moth free wardrobe including the essential oil container on the right which can be hung in your wardrobe. You put your essential oil inside and it will release a pleasant aroma for up to 4 months. The container is £3 or for £15 you can buy a years supply containing 3 bottles of essential oil and a container.
It is not only your wardrobe you need to spring clean. When did you last clear out your chest of drawers? To keep your clothes smelling fresh pop in a lavender bag.
A really unique idea is this greetings card from www.lovefromflo.com which comes with a detachable lavender bag. It costs £3.99 and there are other fragrances in the range. They are all designed and hand made by Dawn Critchley who did all the fabulous illustrations on my website. www.whatcaniwear.com
Singing in the rain
I fell in love with the trench coat as a
teenager when I had a blue one pretty much the same as the one in the picture which is from Marks & Spencer and is £59. www.marksandspencer.com I find them just so very useful. They are light to wear yet keep out the chilly winds that are around this time of year.
This season you are spoiled for choice when it comes to colour. From coral to lemon and green to red it is wonderful to see so much colour hanging on the rails.
If you need a mac to wear to work or prefer a more conservative look Principles do a neutral and navy trench coat at £79.50 www.principles.co.uk
I saw a woman wearing this at the station and she really did look smart. It appears grey in the picture with a black trim but it is more a honey colour with a navy trim.
Could you wear these heels?
Last month I wrote about how it had been suggested that women should wear heels of 2 inches or more to be successful at work and in business. I could not help but laugh when I saw the shoes that Victoria Beckham wore recently on a day out with her boys to Universal Studios.
She has taken this idea to a new level. Perhaps she always wanted to be a ballerina. Whatever the reason she deserves a medal for sheer grit and determination to stay upright.
As to them being suitable attire for a day out with the kids, well that's another story.
What I am Loving this Month
I was wandering around the beauty counters at the House of Fraser in Birmingham when I came across the Korres range of beauty products. Korres is a Greek company that use herbs and natural ingredients in their products and no parabens.
The sales assistant was very helpful and I ended up buying a bronzer that is adding just a hint of warmth to my pale face. She also gave me 5 samples of different products to try out. It was like getting a goodie bag from a party.
One of the samples was the Sunflower and Vitamin F shampoo which I absolutely love. It has improved the condition of my hair no end. My hair is quite fine and I am always looking at ways to add volume. This shampoo although actually for coloured hair has also added more volume to my locks and made my hair easier to style.
At around £9.00 a bottle it is not cheap but as your hair is the one outfit you never take off I feel it is money well spent. You can buy the Korres range online from www.bathandunwind.com or at larger department stores.
Quote of the month
Whether you are a mother or a daughter or both I hope you have a lovely day on the 22nd.
'Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible'
Marion C. Garretty
And finally
I was thrilled to discover that Heather at the WIRE network www.wireuk.org has chosen my website to focus on this month. Here is what she has to say about it.
'I don’t need any excuse to look through the Rural Marketplace and spend money! I came across Lilians’ website while looking for another members listing and what a find!
The logo caught my eye first so I had to click and explore! It is a fantastic website, easy to use and full of great tips. I really liked the ‘where you like to shop’ which is an array of recommended websites from Lilians’ avid followers – it was great to see other WiRE members here which made it the perfect listing for me! I have signed up for the newsletter so can’t wait to receive that!
It’s definitely worth a look . . . . or two!!!
My aim is to create a website that showcases companies who really do care about their customers and who offer fantastic service and quality products. Some I have used myself but there are a lot more out there. If you have a favourite website where you buy clothes, accessories, make-up or skincare products please let me know. My e-mail is lilian@whatcaniwear.com
Many thanks.
Lilian
For more tips and advice see www.whatcaniwear.com
Recycle Your Bra
Most of us have one if not more bras we never wear. Now you can do something amazing with them and save a life by helping to raise money for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. To find out what to do with your unwanted bras log onto
www.lingerieplease.co.uk where you will find out more infromation on what to do to help.
For those of you who watched the BBC 2
series 'Mary, Queen of Shops' she is coming back with a new 3 part series called,
'Mary, Queen of Charity Shops' which will be aired sometime in late spring.
Her ambition this series is to transform the image of charity shops and to turn the hardworking volunteers into clued up retail experts.
I find her own choice of outfits a bit bizzare at times but this lady knows everything there is to know about retail and how to attract customers. Well worth watching.
Last Updated: January 14, 2010