We’re flying home from Vancouver at this very moment, so I’m writing this post from 28,000 feet on the way to San Francisco. Last night we took ourselves out to a rather informal dinner at a Thai restaurant across the False Creek from Vancouver’s famed Granville Island. The food was both spicy and delicious, and the view of Granville Island, on a chilly Victoria Day, was pleasant and made the meal that much more pleasant.
Until…
It’s that time of year again as my fellow image colleagues from around the world and I congregate for an annual confab to learn from and with one another. This year, the annual conference takes us to Vancouver, British Columbia, a cosmopolitan city with strong Asian influences in a country that prides itself on being mannerly in the English tradition. Yet, with all this looming excitement, on many a colleague’s Facebook personal pages, the question rages on, “What should I wear to the conference?”
Today is quite a red letter day! It marks the debut of my brand spanking new website and the day Metro Silicon Valley published its annual style edition. Flip to page 21, and literally, in red letters, the question is posed: What is Valley Style?
Writer Jessica Fromm conducted an in-depth interview with me on this complex question, one that I’ve been figuring out since moving here several years ago. When it comes to Silicon Valley style, there really are no simple, easy answers. Far more people living in Silicon Valley come from elsewhere and the work culture of work-hard-and-long-hours transmits into the ethos of the region’s subconscious style.
Spring 2010 may well rate a “10” for the first time in ages because, regardless of your sources for fashion insight, your eyesight is all it may take to agree. I always take the time to research and read, and study and scrutinize the fashion offerings each season. Just what is the pulse of the season? Who’ll wear the new trends? Each season is a wonder, a pulse of social conscience as measured by the designer community.
A recent string of suicides by young people bullied by their peers has become a hot news topic. Each story is heartbreaking. It’s hard imagining a young person ending his or her life prematurely. Rather, this behavior is a cry out for help; only they can’t receive the help when it arrives. The kids have taken their lives, all because they were bullied.
Last week a writer contacted me because he wanted to interview an image consultant about men’s proper body grooming habits. He provided the name of the website where the interview would be published along with a list of intended questions. I was prepared to give an interview worthy of my reputation as a men’s image expert.
I thought it would be fun to share my analysis of the 82nd Academy Award red carpet successes and failures. I created categories for the winners, and a group of the losers. See if you agree. [photos: Women’s Wear Daily]
When it feels like something is “off” inside you, there’s nothing better than embracing yourself with your favorite things. I wish I could claim this is an original idea, but I owe the original inspiration to an experience I had at age three.
If you need proof that how you dress affects your performance and perception, look at how this year’s Olympic challengers have made their wardrobe choices a focal point of their performance and perception.
In over twenty years of helping clients develop their personal style [wow, that’s a long time!] I have come to appreciate the chief reasons clients decide to develop their image. There is a quiet power that comes from experiencing a whole new sense of self.