Shopping as Exercise

Katy Bowman is a national and international health expert, educating people on how the body works. She is a biomedical scientist who, through her years of study and practice, is convinced that wearing high heel shoes is very detrimental to a woman's overall health. She likes clothing and dressing well (in flats!), and is the director of the Restorative Exercise Institute.

One of her recent blog posts gives useful, reasonable advice on how to stay in shape during this holiday season. Yes, you can actually stay in shape by shopping! Take her advice seriously: She is wise!

"Hues"

There are so many beautiful colors in the stores and on the street these days. Bill Cunningham from the New York Times captures these vibrant hues in one of his recent "On the Street" videos. Enjoy!

Sweater Care

What a relief it is to learn there is someone more compulsive than I am when it comes to caring for fine sweaters. Lloyd Boston, an elegant and knowledgeable clothing guru, made a very helpful video, showing how to hand wash your sweaters. I love the part about wrapping each one in tissue before storing it at the end of the season. I don't even go that far!

P.S. These ridiculously warm days provide the ideal outdoor drying environment for your sweaters.

The Great Tim Gunn

Oh, I love Tim Gunn. He is so dapper, so smart, so articulate, and gracious. He was interviewed by Patt Morrison in the Op-Ed section of the LA Times this past Sunday. Here are some highlights:

"I don't care what you [fashion designers] design as long as your client can get into a taxi. t That eliminates a lot of the ridiculousness and float-in-a-parade [designs]."

"I cannot wrap my brain around the ubiquity of Crocs. They're horrible! If we all succumbed to the comfort trap, to dress as if we never got out of bed--then we should never get out of bed."

He received this comment about Project Runway from the mother of a 9-year old: "The show teaches young people how important qualities of character are: It teaches you hard work pays off, that cheaters never prosper, that it's better to play nicely with others than to be a diva."

Gunn is humble and thoughtful throughout the interview. His book, "A Guide to Quality, Taste, & Style" is hugely instructive.

To Slip or Not to Slip

I was at a department store recently, trying on a form fitting knit dress. Viewing myself in the 3-way mirror revealed my need for a slip. So I asked the young salesgirl if she could fetch me one from the adjacent lingerie department. She looked at me as if I'd asked her to get me a hot dog. I repeated my request, but she still seemed perplexed. Taking matters into my own hands, I walked over to the lingerie department, asked a knowledgeable salesperson where the slips were located, found an appropriate one, put it on, and then asked salesperson #1 if she noticed a difference. She replied, "Yeah, you don't look so bumpy." Nice.

Today I read a post which thoroughly covers the ins and outs of slip wearing. Thank you, Diana!

Well-Groomed

Being well-groomed means you are taking care of yourself. You do not need to wear the latest, most expensive clothing to be well-groomed. Instead, you simply need to pay attention to the small details, such as keeping your nails trimmed and neat looking (no chipped polish!). Other signs of a well-groomed person are healthy-looking hair in a nicely maintained style, clothing that fits and does not have loose, dangling threads, holes (unless they are meant to be there, such as those in hip jeans this season), pilling, or yellow underarm stains.

To me, Gwen Stefani epitomizes a well-groomed woman. Her hair is always flawlessly colored and styled, her makeup is neat, her clothing, though oftentimes wild and cutting-edge, suits her figure perfectly. She never looks sloppy or thrown together. She looks confident and appears to love clothes and getting dressed up. When Gwen is photographed on casual days with her family, you can see that she has still taken the time to put herself together.

As I said before, being well-groomed shows you care about and respect yourself. So take some time to attend to those little details, like Gwen does!

Models

Today I was in my car, listening to "Talk of the Nation" on the radio and wishing I could chime in. The subject was the September issue of Glamour magazine, which "features a model who is considered plus-sized. Cindi Lieve, the editor-in-chief of the magazine, and Washington Post fashion editor Robin Givhan examine whether or not the fashion industry is 'sizing up.'"

The fashion editors had a lot to say about the size of models, and how that has changed over the decades. Listeners called in and had a range of opinions. I was happy to hear how many of them urged the editors to feature more "regular" sized women and to hear some of the callers and the editors express an emphasis on healthy bodies, regardless of size. Will this kind of discussion gain momentum and lead to designers create wonderful clothing for American women, whose average size is 14?

Go here to listen to the story.

Sequins!

I've been a fan of sequins for years. Someday I hope to purchase a sequin sheath dress though I cannot imagine what occasion will call for it. Sequined clothing just says, "I am fun and when you wear me you will have a good time."

Journalist Melissa Magsaysay from the LA Times suggests great ways to wear sequins in her most recent article. The outfits she describes and shows do not scream 1970s Vegas. On the contrary, the looks can be worn during the day! I also like the accessories featured in the photographs. Fun, fun, fun!

HItting the Stores

This weekend my closest friend and most reliable shopping companion was in town. We had a super time exploring La Cumbre and Paseo Nuevo Malls. I showed great restraint by only purchasing one item: a black cardigan from J. Crew (I know! What a surprise).

My friend returned some items and purchased 3 pairs of shoes. She is a serial returner, so I know she will not keep all of them. A shoe epiphany she shared with me was simple yet profound: there is no shoe that will work with every kind of outfit, for every occasion. So, while you may not need 10 pairs of black shoes, you do need a different shoe for wearing with a pencil skirt and wearing with casual jeans. She has given up finding "the shoe" and I applaud her.