dress to express
I am just back from two inspiring exhibitions in Frankfurt: Jil Sanders and Jean Michel Basquiat. What inspired me? First, I saw both these shows on THE SAME DAY which is a miracle for me. Normally, I would never plan two retrospectives back to back because I would find it simply exhausting. One of my signature strengths is an appreciation for art and beauty, and I need a lot of time to take in one picture, to reflect on the color, shape and lines and think about what the artist wanted to say. So at the the Louvre I have to carefully choose a few pictures, otherwise I would be kaput! Fortunately, both Frankfurt exhibitions were so beautifully curated...they were stress free for me. The all black setting of the Basquiat exhibition had a edgy street-vibe that highlighted his unique talent, story, life force and energy. Jil Sanders, on the other hand, was in a clean elegant white space, minimally tailored to reflect her design philosophy. Even though it was my second exhibition of the day, I came out of the retrospective refreshed and impressed! And amazed by the curator's ability to bring to life the essence of the designer and artist. How skilfully each person's story was revealed.... by editing a monumental amount of work and reducing it to essential signature pieces. What does all the have to do with wardrobe? You want your wardrobe to do exactly the same as the curation of these exhibitions did for me: energise, inspire and refresh you! Not overwhelm you with a mammoth retrospective. I mean, really, when you open your closet you do you want an homage to a lifetime of over-shopping and collecting? Filled with every bad buy and items you never wear?
curating a clear wardrobe vision ensures you bring all your signature strengths to life. without vision you retreat into your comfort zone and a beautiful and powerful part of you is never expressed.
Because not only does curating a vision make it easier to deal with your closet space, it makes it easier to articulate who you are and what you stand for. This was the case for a former client of mine. This wonderful woman was a manger of a large international team, but suffered because she wasn't seen, heard and valued. The primary strength she defaulted to at meetings and Q and A's was kindness. Of course, she had many other strengths but because she hadn't clearly identified them she defaulted to Ms Nice as it was her comfort zone. She did this verbally and visually. Identifying her other core strengths was transformational and empowered her to express what she had always wanted to...The Intellectual Cosmopolitan. The Intellectual Archetype communicated vision through minimal, no fuss, craftsmanship. It gave her the permission she had always secretly desired to indulge in fewer but quality pieces with luxurious fabrics, expressing her leadership skills through executive presence. The Cosmopolitan articulated urban simplicity through refined but casually basic everyday items that allowed her approachable nature and kindness to remain visible. With her vision in place my client understood that she had the first piece of a roadmap that would keep her on track and ensure getting dressed for special events and daily business was a joy. Life became easer when her message was seen, heard and valued. And she got to express exactly that which she had been secretly aspiring to all these years. How can you ensure that your vision is fully expressing your potential?
Step. 1 Identify your combination of signature character strengths
appreciation of beauty and excellence, bravery, creativity, curiosity, fairness, forgiveness, gratitude, honesty, hope humility, humour, judgement, kindness, leadership, love, love of learning, perseverance, perspective, prudence, self-regulation, social intelligence, spirituality
Take the free signature character strengths test at https://www.viacharacter.org
2. Understand your rational and emotional keywords
clarify what you want in your vision: with Jil Sanders we see that it is minimal, black, orange, blush, sculptured, architectural, modern, clean, strong, craftsmanship, luxury
3. Choose photos that represent your vision
This ensures you don't fall down a Pinterest hole are guided by your keywords towards a goal that has been clearly defined.
4. Identify your style archetypes
The Aesthete, The Visionary, The Queen Boss, The Artist, The Diva, The Rebel, The Intellectual, The Natural, The Goddess
These four steps can transform how you view presenting your signature strengths. Perhaps this post is all you needed to get your vision in place. But if you struggling to find a wardrobe vision on your own then drop me a line and let's chat.
