Well, we made it! It’s 2018 and that means a new year full of new possibilities, dream chasing and move making. I’ve always been of the mindset that changes, no matter how big or small, can be made at any time, but I also think that there’s something to be said about heading into the new year with a clean slate and open mind. With that, I decided to reach out to 4 amazing women who are all experts in different fields (personal style, mental health, interior design, and relationships) to take part in my “new year, better you” (I’m not a fan of the “new you” saying) series. These women are all incredibly talented and knowledgeable in their given field and I am thrilled to have them guest posting during the month of January. I’m kicking off the series today with personal style as I think so many of us look to change things up in that department once January hits. I asked my friend Rebecca Jacobs to come on as my guest contributor as she’s not only one of the most stylish ladies I know but she’s one of the sweetest. Rebecca’s approach to personal style starts from the inside and she believes that your self-image comes before the pretty clothing. I’m thrilled to have Rebecca here today to share 3 ways that you can improve your personal style in 2018 and guess what? It won’t cost you a cent! So without further ado, Rebecca Jacobs…
Style is a habit. This means that a single piece you buy or what you wear one time doesn’t define you. But, that put together everything you wear and all the clothes you buy shape how others see you and—more importantly—how you see yourself.
We think style is important only sometimes, for some people—maybe at a job interview or if you’re someone who is on tv.
After working with women all over the world on their style, I can tell you that those one-off special occasion outfits are not where style is most powerful. The power of style is in strengthening our self-image and how we feel every day—and that plays out every single time you get dressed.
How have you felt in your clothes this past year? What messages have you been telling yourself about who you are each time you got dressed?
If your clothes haven’t made you feel exactly how you want to feel, and your reflection hasn’t looked like the person you want to be—now is the perfect time to change that!
We all make New Year’s Resolutions—“this year will be different” and “this is going to be the year” we tell ourselves. Girlfriend, I am no stranger to how these don’t always manifest as planned…
This year, start with your style.
Start with being able to look in the mirror and physically see yourself as the person you want to be—see yourself as the person who accomplishes all your 2018 health, career, and life goals. Because those other goals you have—you have to first believe you’re someone who is going to accomplish them. (Seeing is believing—amirite?)
Hold up—before you feel like you need to run out and buy a whole new wardrobe to change your style, let’s start with what you have right now in your closet.
Here are 3 things you can do to start creating your powerful style using the clothes you already have:
1. SHAKE UP YOUR DEFAULTS
We talked about how style is a habit, right? And like with most habits, the more we do something…the more we do something. Chances are you are wearing the same pieces and the same types of outfits day in and day out—because that is what you’re used to doing. In 2018, let’s shake up the system and challenge ourselves to wear something outside our defaults. The easiest way to do this? Change what you see.
We wear the part of our closet that we see and is easily accessible. Take those pieces you love but never wear and move them front and center in your closet. Move your jewellery out of boxes and cases, put it on display where you’ll see it every day (and be tempted to just throw on that special occasion necklace with your t-shirt and jeans!) Whatever you want to be wearing more of, put that front and center and easy to grab. Your brain will be forced to get creative when the default outfits you go to are no longer right there to grab.
2. WEAR THE CRAZY THING
Now that you’ve moved all these pieces you never wear to the front of your closet, let’s talk about how to actually wear them. Chances are a lot of them feel “too something” to wear—whether that’s too fancy for your everyday life, too sexy for daytime, too bold, too attention-grabbing. They’re not. Nothing is too anything to be wearable.
Here’s the trick: make the fancy, sexy, or bold piece your starting point and build your outfit around that. Dress the fancy blouse down with high-waisted jeans, balance the sexy camisole out with a chunky cardigan and statement necklace, play up the bold piece by pairing it with a bold lipstick.
Have some fun and experiment. When you make a piece your starting point, you can always find a way to wear it that feels good.
3. CREATE A SIGNATURE ACCESSORY
This is one of my favourite quick wins for upping your style game! Think of that woman you want to be and see if you can pick one accessory she would wear all the time and make it your new signature accessory. This could be statement earrings, a colourful necklace, T-swift-style red lipstick, or anything else you are drawn to. We’re calling it a signature accessory because you get to wear it all the time—and create a distinctive and signature style in the process!
Whether you’re running errands, staying at home, or Monday to Friday in the office—add on your signature accessory. It will become part of how you and others see yourself (and will add a bit of your personality to everything you wear!)
If you’ve been with me until now and you’re ready to commit to upping your style game this year, I want to invite you to join me in my free 5-day Ignite Your Style Challenge! It’s 5 days to reset your style habits and start loving what you wear this year. You can find out more and sign up here.
And there you have it! Now you tell me: which one of these are you going to use first to shake up your style in 2018?
Cheers to a stylish 2018!
Website: Rebecca Jacobs Style
Instagram: @Rebecca.Jacobs
YouTube: RebeccaJacobs-Style
