How to Train Yourself to Accessorize

by Sally on April 5, 2020 in the category: accessories, jewelry, shoes, tutorial

Image courtesy Nordstrom

The vast majority of my style consult clients had great clothes and fabulous ideas for outfit assembly. The vast majority of my style consult clients also struggled with jewelry and accessories. I heard so many of them say, “Oh, I don’t really wear jewelry. I don’t even own any!” Only to haul out unworn and forgotten stashes of necklaces, bangles, and earrings. Others said, “I love scarves on other people, but just can’t figure them out for me.” A few scarf tie tutorials later, and they were back in the game. I spent a lot of time illustrating how jewelry and accessories make outfits feel more complete, finished, and polished. And then I tried to reinforce the importance of incorporating them into daily dressing rituals. read more

Originally posted 2013-02-08 06:26:08.

Reader Request: Finding Quality Accessories

by Sally on March 8, 2020 in the category: accessories, jewelry, reader requests, shopping

Natalie put this request into the suggestion box:

I have seen you cover this a little but, but I would love to see some more ideas on where to get QUALITY accessories. I love the leather belts and scarves you feature, but I never find them at thrift stores, and they cost a fortune at department stores. I would love to see some of your strategies on when and where to shop for them.

Weeellll, there’s no easy answer to this one, I’m afraid. I’ve been thrifting, Etsying, DIYing, antiquing, art fair-ing, and otherwise collecting my accessories for many, many years, culling and evaluating as I go. I have some marvelous stuff now, but I’ve had some utter crap over the years, too. And it’s taken me a while to train my eye. I’m happy to share a few tips for sourcing and spotting quality accessories, but definitely hope you’ll share more suggestions in the comments, too! read more

Originally posted 2012-11-01 06:25:23.

How to Spot Versatile Jewelry and Accessories

by Sally on February 15, 2020 in the category: accessories, shopping, tutorial

How to determine if jewelry and accessories will be truly versatile and useful within your wardrobe.

Accessories can become their own little shopping rabbit hole. They’re generally fairly cheap (and can certainly be thrifted for pennies), relatively small, and can often be rationalized when clothing and shoes cannot. It can be tough to predict which items will become versatile staples, and which ones will be abandoned after a few wears. Especially since accessories are often the sartorial realm in which we branch out: We may not dress like a rocker head-to-toe, but the occasional tough-edged accessory may work its way into regular wear. read more

Originally posted 2012-08-23 06:26:51.