how to save in style (work in progress)

Lately, I have been looking around for new clothes. I threw away about 3/5th of my clothes when I moved to Arizona last January. It was great to downsize my wardrobe, but greatly limited my choices to dress up appropriately. My old pants are going to be converted to quilts. *hint-hint!*

With the styles and prices out there, I find Old Navy ideal. Last night, I have bought a belt, cargo shorts and a striped long sleeve shirt. I still have more to shop for: pants, work shirts, blazer and socks. I am in the mood to buy hats and 2 pairs of shoes.

If you want to save money, buy a t-shirt from Old Navy for 5 bucks. They'll give you a $10 off 50 bucks purchase coupon and a survey. Once you fill their survey out, you'll get a secret word and qualify for a 10% off discount. The $10 off coupon is good only for September.

What style would work for you? Well, you need to take into consideration: your skin tone and color, hair color and style, body shape, whether or not you wear eyeglasses, and your willingness to try different looks. You can get a new look and still be your true self. Dressing better does wonders for our personal self-esteem.

First, let's look at your skin tone and color. Avon used to have this test that will tell you what colors work for you. When I had my skin test, I found out my skin tone is warm. They have cool, lukewarm and other levels. Some places have color charts for comparison and contrast in appearance. Study how colors go well with your skin tone and color. I'll add links here since I am posting from my sidekick.

Second, your hair color and style can be changed, but not as often as you would do with clothes! Decide whether you want to keep the same color or highlight. If you do decide to color your hair, do not do from-the-bottle jobs! Too often, I see people have brassy, frizzy and dull hair because they messed up on their bottle jobs. If you get your hair colored at a professional place, they can fix any errors with your hair at no additional charges. You'll be happier with the results.

Take pictures of people's hairstyles that you like. Remember to follow the shape of your face and head because some styles won't work with some shapes. Clip pictures from magazines and make a page of hairstyles you like. When you make your decision, show it to your hairstylist and ask if he/she can do it. I never have high expectations whenever I go get a haircut, because I almost never get 100% what I wanted. Getting that cleaned-up look is more important.

body shape, whether or not you wear eyeglasses, and your willingness to try different looks.. Cont. Still writing..