Leaving an Impression

We leave you with a two-part article, one from Rachel and one from Christine, continuing from this issue's theme of making a statement.

Statement Focal Points by Rachel Nachmias

A portion of this article excerpted from The Curated Wardrobe

Each woman’s style, and hence her way of building outfits, is unique. But to make it easier, I have broken down the core parts of an outfit that can be applied to create any effect. Every outfit should have basics, a statement focal point, a finishing piece, and basic accessories. Most of my clients come to me wearing outfits that are missing some of these parts, which tends to mean their outfits look unfinished, bland, or both. Since you, like most of my clients, probably have a good understanding of what basics are and have a closet full of them, I’ll skip on ahead.

Almost universally, my clients are missing statement focal points in their outfits. Every outfit, like any other artistic composition, needs a place for the viewer’s eye to go. When the eye meanders without a stopping point, it struggles to bring the whole composition into focus—which is an artsy way of saying that it gets bored. A statement focal point can be any part of the outfit, from a blouse to a pair of earrings or even shoes, it just has to have the power to draw the eye. One trick I like to use for a quick wardrobe boost is to use jewelry this way, (hence the topic of this issue) since it can be worn with lots of outfits that may be lacking a focal point. What will qualify as a statement focal point will vary depending on your physical design and your style, but in general, these pieces tend to have a color, pattern, design detail, material, or larger scale that stands out. Simple, neutral, solid pieces in common fabrics don’t tend to draw the eye (those pieces would be basics).

This issue is packed with examples of pieces that qualify as a statement focal point, but I find identifying these pieces on one's own (especially relative to one's personal style and physical design) is something that can be hard to learn, so allow me to break it out a bit further. A small catalog of illustrations of these concepts can be found here: https://hueandstripe.com/catalog/116H&SteLQ

Color

Color is one of the easiest ways to create a focal point, but it's also dependent on the type of color and the overall color composition of the outfit. A color piece becomes a focal point when it is more eye-catching than the other elements at play. The most typical reason this happens is due to some form of contrast (where it is critical to remember that contrast is relative to the innate contrast level of your palette). Value contrast (i.e. a bright silver necklace on a black dress) can be used this way, but more commonly it is some form of color contrast that is used.

A more colorful choice from a particular palette against a neutral ground is one of the easiest techniques to employ, though interesting effects can also be created by playing warm against cool, even for the true seasons who each have purple and blue as well as red and yellow in their palettes. In any composition, warmer objective hues like red and yellow (more from Christine on red in a moment) tend to come forward most, something to keep in mind if your style involves a lot of multicolor effects. 

Design detail

Detail can be defined as "complexity of shape", meaning that there is more complexity to the design than the bare minimum necessary to construct the garment and be able to take it on and off. This might be something as simple as oversize or contrasting buttons, or as over the top as a giant ruffle, depending on your image archetype and personal expression of said archetype. Detail does not need to be structural in any way, as is the case for example with a beaded applique.

Material

Fabrics can have a tremendous effect on how predominant a particular item is in the composition.  Some textures and finishes draw the eye more than others - an oversize coat in a smooth black wool might feel very basic, while the same in goat hair would be a statement. It's not just rugged textures that can have this eye-catching effect, as reflectivity can hugely affect a garment's power to draw the eye (one of many reasons why jewelry is such an easy item to use in this way). Certain sheer textures can also have this effect, as can a wide array of other fabrics that diverge from the norm of smooth, flat and opaque.

Scale

Probably the simplest method of all of creating importance in a piece is to just make it bigger. Of course, it should be noted that scale is relative, so in order for this to work, the object in question must be large relative to the person wearing it, to the other objects in the composition, or than that type of object would normally be, or very likely more than one of these factors. 

Pattern

Pattern is an excellent way to create a focal point, but not ALL patterned items are focal points. A scarf with a soft monochrome watercolor print might not be enough to draw the eye, and some women even enjoy wearing more than one pattern at once, in which case one will have to be more dominant. I've left this one for last, because what makes a pattern a focal point can be a combination of any of the elements previously mentioned.

As with color, contrast is one way patterns become more prominent in the composition, but not the only qualifying factor. Shape is also at play - we tend to focus better on shapes with crisper lines, so more graphic prints will tend to pull focus more. Of course, this goes hand in hand with scale, as defined above, where larger patterns tend to have more impact. 

Finally, there is one last thing to mention here, which is motif. Recognizable motifs, which can be as basic as flowers or as esoteric as dinosaurs, tend to draw the eye more than abstract ones. It's human nature to want to look at an assembly of shapes and pick out flora, fauna, and other familiar objects. So a blouse with little birds catches the eye more than little dots. This is especially true when the motif is instantly recognizable yet unusual in context, as it would be if we made our little birds into little eyes. 

Depending on your unique factors - season, body type, preferences, lifestyle, age, etc. some of these tools will work better for you and others not at all. You might employ one approach all the time, or vary it day by day. But if you change one thing about your outfits, make it this. Statement focal pieces have the most power of any outfit component to communicate something about you to the world, so they represent a huge opportunity for you to express yourself and define how you want to be seen. 

Make a Statement with Undertone

By Christine Scaman

Undertone is a concept that we hear about often, related to many aspects of appearance. With cosmetics, it usually refers to the warm-neutral-cool base of foundation.

If there were only one meaning, there would be no confusion. Although we often see (and I have used) red for Winters, blue for Summers, yellow for Springs, and orange for Autumns, these may be better referred to as core colours for those applications that use colour energy for well-being and healing.

Today, I think of colour analysis undertone as the colour in the base layer of skin, where the blood flows through the capillaries. The colour will be some variation of red and probably moves through a range for people within a Season. Whether the red colour is a result of humans having different colours of blood or it is the red seen through the filter of the other pigments in the overlying skin, and even the walls of the blood vessels, is unknown to me, but it is true that every type of colouring (Season) has a range of reds.

Instead of a pinning down a single red, which may not be possible, or even exist, the best use of undertone may be as a gradient. When we wear these colours, the viewer senses the energy and alignment. They create visual excitement, as red always does, and have a powerful capacity to improve our appearance.

Harmony is another word with more than one interpretation. It has one meaning, which is overall agreement, but we may agree or disagree about when it is achieved or when it becomes disturbed.  Colour analysts are taught how to measure its effects and appearance, but there is always the component of how colour feels to each one of us. People within a Season share the same reactions to colour and they paint their own artistry on top.

Variations of the same flavor or scent widen our experience of how to world could be, still sharing what the flavor or scent have in common. Few cooks are putting banana into tomato basil soup and I don’t see orange and camel in anybody’s True Summer Pinterest boards. The system is here to give us structure; we know where we fit and can explore our territory safely. Our coaches, who might be our colour analysts and friends in our Season groups, guide us to discover our colours in a supported way.

Over time, all of us here have come to realize the intelligent compromises that shopping requires. Few items are perfect in every way and nor do they need to be. We have so many layers in our beings that the average person within a Season barely exists. Shopping can be a quest, a frustration, a game, and a simple appreciation for visual beauty.

When an item hits the bull’s eye in all of its colours, we recognize harmony, the sense of global peace or agreement. We might find it in different colours and combinations, but in general, humans share much more than they differ in how colour energy is felt. As always when presented with the opinions of others, our job is to check in with ourselves and decide if we feel the same way, and if not, then how do we feel.

Below, the four panels present an idea for the gradients that might belong to the 12 Seasons. The colours are far from absolute and are suggested as a more practical, and perhaps realistic, way of thinking about undertone, instead of a theoretical concept that is so confined as to be of little use.

Gradients of light to dark ranges could be overlaid on the reds, and many other gradients too, as colour and human beings acquire complexity. I stayed in the medium ranges to keep the darkness levels similar to that of blood and be easier to compare.

Following that is a link to a catalog showing necklaces that might illustrate an undertone colour especially well, or feels harmonious in its colours to my eyes and energy, or illustrates the Season especially well or unusually, along with some informal conversation between friends. But don’t take my word it. Use the pictures as a springboard to discover your own feelings and opinion.

https://hueandstripe.com/catalog/112H&Sp0iS

Closing Signature/STYLE

As we bring Signature/STYLE to a close, we would like to extend our sincere thanks to you, our readers.  I hope that we have learned from one another as we saw colour and style through one another’s eyes.

The lists of email addresses will be deleted on January 30, 2018, as will the entire account.  There will be no record of the names and email addresses on our subscriber lists.

Sometimes A Sandal is Just a Sandal

Most readers will have reached a point in their style journey where they become aware that style is much more than knowing whether to wear this t-shirt or that one for the best effect. Understanding the fine points of Season and Image Archetype is one thing, putting them into practice in our actual lives is another. By far the most common question I receive from analyzed clients is about this. It can sound a few different ways, but some of the most popular versions are these:

“I get why I’m this type but it just doesn’t feel like me.”

“I love my archetype and I see how it flatters me, but it’s just not practical.”

“I love my archetype and I see how it flatters me, but no one else I know dresses like this and I feel weird being the only one.”

“I just feel so unfeminine, am I really THAT yang/dark/severe?”

“I just feel so fussy, am I really THAT yin/cutesy/light?”

And so on and so forth. I’m sure there are dozens of lenses we could use to examine this phenomenon, but whenever I am looking to investigate human motivation, which is the source of our idealized self-images, I turn to the enneagram. The enneagram is an incredibly layered and deep system, which sadly is only familiar to most people in the form of very oversimplified quizzes if at all. It would be impossible for me to explore in one article all of the nuance that the enneagram can explain when it comes to what works and doesn’t work for certain individuals as far as their image goes. So today, I would like to examine just the most primal level, namely the Instinctual Subtypes (also called variants by some schools).

When most people think of enneagram, they think of their type number, 1, 2, 3, etc and sometimes of their “wing” i.e. 1w2 vs 1w9, a leaning towards one of the types to either side, which is certainly a major piece of the puzzle. (If you don’t know the enneagram at all, I highly suggest watching this education tv series to get a basic understanding and maximum value out of this article) Instincts, however, are even more dominant in our personalities. To quote my enneagram teacher, Katherine Fauvre:

“The personality is made up of the primal needs, the ego and the higher essential qualities. The instinct as the most primal aspect of the personality is dominant and always in charge of the defense system. Type and Tritype are secondary to the instinctual stacking.”

Everything we encounter filters through this defense system, and most certainly our personal style and way of dressing does. How we are perceived by others and how our bodies feel in our clothing are important when it comes to assessing potential threats. Despite modern living conditions afforded to likely every one of the readers here, we are all hardwired to constantly scan for threats, as we inherited our brains from our ancestors who needed to be sure they didn’t get eaten by lions on a regular basis to survive.

The three instinct are know in the enneagram world as self-preserving, social, and sexual (sometimes also called 1-to-1), and it’s important to note that we all can, and need to, use all three. However, we have a preferred order in which we use them, and our top choice is the one we tend to “overuse”. This overuse is something we can temper with awareness, but the tendency will always be with us and will always color our experience.

If you have the self-preserving instinct, you focus primarily on your own physical survival, and on the availability of resources such as food, shelter, money, energy and time. If you have the social instinct, you focus on belonging to the group and your role, identity and status within the group as a means of survival. If you have the sexual instinct, you focus on creating deep intimate bonds with a special someone and on what is needed to attract that special someone as a means of survival. It’s likely that you may relate to more than one or all of these at times, but one is always dominant. It may help to think about which of these arenas is most likely to cause you to behave badly. I can also recommend taking the relevant test at enneagram.net.

Depending on your combination of instinct type and Image Archetype, you may experience different types of friction (or, more rarely, none at all). It is my belief that there is always a way to express both, but it may require some thinking outside the stereotypical box. In this article, I will explore the different combinations and show examples using this issue’s topic item, sandals.

The Self-Preserving Instinct

The self-preserving Instinctual Subtypes focus on “survival, safety, security, and a sense of well-being”. (Katherine Fauve, Enneagram Instinctual Subtypes, p17) The unconscious belief of the type is “I am my body”, so the physical status of the body, and the resources needed to maintain that status, are always top priorities. As such, concerns such as comfort, practicality and durability must always be met for this type to feel at home in their clothing. I’m reminded of one of my all-time favorite scenes from The Office:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_SucqP2XHY

For all of us, comfort matters at some threshold, but for the self-preserving person being comfortable and free to move subconsciously feels like a matter of life and death. I have had clients agree to work together only on the condition I wouldn’t force them into uncomfortable shoes! It’s important to note that these threats, as for all Instincts, are real or imagined, so even shoes that simply look uncomfortable or impractical can trigger distress. There is a down-to-earth and grounded quality to her, and she usually prefers Natural clothing the most, though her attraction to simple, traditional and subdued clothing may also mean that the aesthetic of Classic appeals.

The Self-Preserving Dramatic

YangD shoe: http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/naturalizer-fae-sandal-women/4549425?origin=category-personalizedsort&fashioncolor=BEIGE%20LEATHER Beige Leather SSu or any Su; Blk leather any W; Blue leather SA SSu ; Pink Leather SA TA

This woman usually sees herself as a Natural before analysis, though depending on type and tritype she may enjoy the exceptional quality of the Dramatic types, and yet comfort is still king. Self-pres Instincts eye shoes without sturdy soles and a visible amount of cushioning and support with suspicion, so those are non-negotiables. This style of shoe, which attaches securely to the ankle and doesn’t flip or flop while walking also tends to be preferred, as she is always concerned with whether a shoe will inhibit her ability to move freely and without thought to what is on her feet. Despite these qualities, this shoe retains a modern sleekness and a sci-fi quality, like a shoe for climbing a mountain from the world of Logan’s Run.

The Self-Preserving Natural

Yin N Sandal:

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/kork-ease-myrna-2-0-cork-wedge-sandal-women/3914555?origin=category-personalizedsort&fashioncolor=DENIM%20FABRIC&cm_mmc=Linkshare-_-partner-_-10-_-1&siteId=je6NUbpObpQ-2prMo_rkkIffL1Fi8sUmfQ In Black Suede for Darks, Black Leather for any winter, Blue Leather for Light Spring, Grey Patent for Bright Spring, Light Grey Suede for Soft Autumn, Natural Patent for Dark Autumn, Orange Leather for True and Light Spring, Rust Leather for True Autumn, and Soft Gold Metallic for Light Summer.

This is the most common instinct among Naturals, perhaps even more so than being the most common instinct in the population at large. They usually feel quite comfortable in their type, though for some the relative flash and impracticality of certain more boho items in these types is enough to make her ill at ease and not line up with her self-image. She will tend most often to choose that within the type which is simple, clean, unfussy and practical. The above sandal is a good example of the direction her aesthetic preferences tend to veer in, in addition to ticking the boxes laid out in the Dramatic section above with regards to comfort and ease of movement.

The Self-Preserving Classic

YangC sandal: http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/born-tegal-sandal-women/4507416?origin=category-personalizedsort&fashioncolor=RED%20LEATHER Red leather TA ; Brown Suede SA ; Grey leather LSu; Pink Leather TSu TW ; Turq leather TSu

Though she often admires classic styles, she generally has questions about how exactly to manage her needs while dressing in more tailored styles. I suggest a two-pronged approach, which on the one hand involves adjusting one’s perception to discern the difference between “comfortable” and “comfortable-looking” and on the other hand involves finding places to stealthily insert more comfortable elements into one’s wardrobe. This shoe maintains a reasonable degree of elegance and composure, while being very much designed for the sort of long walks self-preserving types like to remain prepared for.

The Self-Preserving Gamine

YangG shoe: https://www.modcloth.com/shop/shoes-sandals/flatform-performance-leather-sandal/10081386.html?cgid=shoes_sandals_148&dwvar_10081386_color=WHT White TW BW; Blk Darks ; Cherry Darks

Like all self preserving types, she would have liked to be a Natural, but she sees that something isn’t working with those clothes. Natural clothes can look like they’d be more comfortable than they actually are because of the disconnect in scale on this woman. She usually doesn’t mind being quirky, except when it interferes with practical concerns. Fortunately when it comes to footwear, a little chunkiness can be used to great effect for both gamine types to juxtapose against more delicate elements of an outfit in an unexpected way. Here, a shoe that looks like you could climb mountains for the next 30 years that still reads and trendy and fun.

The Self-Preserving Romantic

YinR sandal: http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/lamour-des-pieds-brenn-ankle-strap-sandal-women/4059232?origin=category-personalizedsort&fashioncolor=BLACK%20SUEDE  Blk W; Cognac SA TA ; Scarlet DA

I don’t see this woman a lot but when I do, she usually would have much preferred to be a natural, or anything less fussy. Footwear is one thing self-preserving types tend to be most sensitive to, so it becomes necessary to find styles that meet their standards of practicality while still being able to make logical outfits with the type of clothing which is flattering to her. These sandals would definitely work for other yin types, but overall they have a subtle retro quality with a heart-shaped toe that would look pretty and normal among other Romantic items.

The Social Instinct

The social Instinctual Subtypes focus on “people, recognition, popularity, honor, status and social acceptance”. (Katherine Fauve, Enneagram Instinctual Subtypes, p19) The unconscious belief of the type is “I am my group”, so a sense of belonging and status within the group, are always top priorities. As such, concerns such as fitting in and playing their role within the community must always be met for this type to feel at home in their clothing.

For all of us, feeling included matters at some threshold, but for the social person looking appropriate and appearing as part of their group subconsciously feels like a matter of life and death. This can be the hardest subtype to identify, because depending on the group they are a part of, they may prioritize very different things - i.e. a client who lives in Seattle vs NYC.  It’s important to note that these threats, as for all Instincts, are real or imagined, so even clothes that seem like they could cause exclusion from the group can trigger distress, whether or not that is true. She is friendly, considerate and self-sacrificing, and as mentioned she may look wildly different depending on her social environment, however a common theme is an attraction to status symbols, which may mean Classic items like a strand of pearls or something else entirely.

The Social Dramatic

YinD Sandal: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MF71FQD?tag=viglink27870-20 Ivory for Lights, Black for any Winter, Rose Gold for Brights, and Silver for True and Light Summer and the Brights.

Concerns among social instinct types of these IAs can be myriad for the reasons mentioned previously, but numbering among them might be looking bizarre or garish. (Another very common concern is “being too dressed up” and drawing commentary, the remedy for which might look similar to that which was outlined for the self-preserving types.) This shoe does glitz and glamour in a way that remains polished and contained and relatively familiar, in a sense that it would feel at home in any country club.

The Social Natural

YinN shoe: http://www.asos.com/au/asos/asos-farlorn-leather-plaited-sandals/prd/6944365?iid=6944365&clr=Silver&SearchQuery=&cid=17170&pgesize=36&pge=3&totalstyles=462&gridsize=3&gridrow=9&gridcolumn=2 for the social instinct, also YinC  ; brush silver n tan, any 5 Su, lo C for W (N would overlook tan sole)

The social instinct type in these IAs may fear looking messy, sloppy or inappropriate. I have a visceral memory of a particular Natural client of this subtype who began to cry as I read off the guidelines for her type, fearing that she would be doomed to looking like a surfer who had just washed up on shore. She almost never cares for bohemian looks unless that’s what everyone around her is wearing (for example, a lot of women in the health coaching profession feel pressured to look hippy-ish). This shoe could easily be worn by YinC as well, but most importantly is subtle enough in it’s natural detailing to easily blend with a more contemporary, less artsy take on the type.

The Social Classic

YinC sandal: http://www.asos.com/au/faith/faith-jenson-embellished-flat-sandals/prd/7705398?iid=7705398&clr=Silver&SearchQuery=&cid=17170&pgesize=36&pge=2&totalstyles=463&gridsize=3&gridrow=6&gridcolumn=3 v pretty seashells and lt tan LSp BSp

She is usually happy enough to be a classic, which at face value seems to be perhaps the type with the most innate connection to the idea of having status, however her inherent aversion to low status within the group can mean that she fears being too boring in certain iterations of the classic types, especially if she is under 40. If her peer group is having fun dressing up for a party, she definitely doesn’t want to be the only one looking stodgy and traditional. She can often be attracted to gamine styles, or what she might perceive to be gamine styles, like the above. Which is not to say a gamine couldn’t wear these shoes, but simply that when paired with a simple outfit one little detail like this would be highly apropo for summer in general or especially any occasion for which the seashells would be thematic.

The Social Gamine

YinG Sandal: http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/tory-burch-melody-sandal-women/4597756?origin=category-personalizedsort&fashioncolor=NANTUCKET%20RED%20%2F%20%2F%20NAVY%20SEA Nantucket red Brights;  Navy LSu SSu DW

This gamine tends to be apprehensive of standing out or looking strange, and tends to swing her style more towards classic with a playful twist, perhaps with a bit of a preppy aesthetic. There are exceptions but she tends to be the most comfortable with cutesy, especially if the sexual instinct is last in her stacking order. Not necessarily a bad thing, but she does still need to exaggerate things just a little more than a classic would, and suits having a little more going on. This sandal takes the idea of a preppy sandal with a pearl button and blows up the scale and adds an animated print - relatively subtle, but the animated proportions do make a difference on her. Of course, styling would also be key with these. Something like a second, different print like a polka dot somewhere in the outfit and plenty of graphic contrast would keep this in her realm.

The Social Romantic

YangR slide: http://us.topshop.com/en/tsus/product/kara-pointed-flat-mules-6582161 grey, any winter

More than being too flashy, the social instinct Romantic tends to be more concerned with being too sexy for her role; i.e. too sexy for a mom picking up her kids, too sexy for her age, etc. She is drawn to classic but doesn’t like how it looks on her, and often even more drawn to gamine because it satisfies her need for detail without triggering her fear of being inappropriate. A reasonable remedy might be to balance the vavavoom of these types with a healthy dollop of sophistication, as in the shoe above. Together with a beautiful, feminine blouse and a pair of well-fitted jeans, they would look mature and sophisticated anywhere.

The Sexual Instinct

The Sexual Instinctual Subtypes focus on “intimacy, pair bonding, chemistry and one-to-one relationships”. (Katherine Fauve, Enneagram Instinctual Subtypes, p21) The unconscious belief of the type is “I am my relationship”, so a sense of closeness and twinship with a “special someone”, are always top priorities. As such, concerns such as feeling feminine and attractive and standing out must always be met for this type to feel at home in their clothing.

For all of us, intimacy matters at some threshold, but for the sexual instinct person feeling attractive, feminine and unique subconsciously feels like a matter of life and death. It’s important to note that these threats, as for all Instincts, are real or imagined, so even clothes that seem like they might make them undesirable can trigger distress, whether or not that is true. There is a sensual and intense quality to her and she is often attracted to Romantic styles or anything overtly sexy, flashy or glamorous, like a peacock displaying its feathers.

The Sexual Dramatic

YangD Sandal: http://www.asos.com/au/prettylittlething/prettylittlething-strappy-sandal/prd/7907832?iid=7907832&clr=Black&cid=17170&pgesize=36&pge=0&totalstyles=466&gridsize=3&gridrow=12&gridcolumn=2&utm_source=Affiliate&utm_medium=LinkShare&utm_content=USNetwork.1&utm_campaign=je6NUbpObpQ&link=10&promo=324006&source=linkshare&MID=35719&affid=2135&channelref=Affiliate&pubref=je6NUbpObpQ&siteID=je6NUbpObpQ-r1jCLjdq9tGI7nWg7SlQsg Any Winter and Bright Spring

She is usually quite thrilled to be a Dramatic type, and it can be quite healing for her to understand her own version of sexy, which is so much more effective than trying to shoehorn herself into Romantic clothes (often she will think YangR but can’t seem to make it work). If she is Yang D she will need to see that her choices extend beyond the realm of androgynous tailoring. Here, a shoe that is modernist and minimal, but also definitely unique and sexy in the Dramatic’s signature way.

The Sexual Natural

YinN Sandal: http://www.asos.com/au/asos/asos-finland-wide-fit-leather-coin-flat-sandals/prd/7503512?iid=7503512&clr=Black&SearchQuery=&cid=17170&pgesize=36&pge=2&totalstyles=463&gridsize=3&gridrow=9&gridcolumn=2 For any Winter

Probably the rarest instinct in Naturals, though I have been told the same holds true for the general population. Like most sexual types she can have a propensity to self-identify as a Romantic. At times, she is deeply upset to learn she’s a Natural, particularly when she sees herself as a woman who wears pinup bombshell styles, but there are many sexual instinct Naturals who readily embrace and are have always been attracted to the more raw, earthy sensuality of these types. While social Naturals may be gutted not to be a Classic type, these women often express that as their greatest fear. Some clothes in these types can lean too rugged and practical for this woman, who needs some kind of glamour. Here, a shoe that has the flavor of the courtesan, in a way that we may think of as Romantic (and indeed, she could wear them in the right context), but suits her beautifully. (And, a wonderful find for Ns with wide feet, as is not uncommon)

The Sexual Classic

YinC shoe: https://www.amazon.com/Badgley-Mischka-Womens-Tate-Sandal/dp/B01MF71E2R/ref=pd_sbs_309_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01MF71E2R&pd_rd_r=RM1YZYS3349W4ATARHGA&pd_rd_w=2c2i1&pd_rd_wg=hMvqc&refRID=RM1YZYS3349W4ATARHGA Platino Lights, Silver TSu; Strawberry DW BW; Ivory SA maybe LSU

When she hears mink and diamonds, she does relate to being a Classic, but like other types, she is drawn to something more overtly feminine. As a more medium person, she often underestimates how much yin in design elements she could actually balance, which is definitely not none, even for YangC. Classic need not mean Brooks Brothers unless you want it to, and for the sexual subtypes it probably shouldn’t. A more European flair, something like French or Italian Chic is apropo. An example above of how YinC could do more embellishment, something this woman craves, particularly nice for evening.

The Sexual Gamine

YangG Sandal: http://us.asos.com/asos/asos-freeman-jelly-gladiator-flat-sandals/prd/7707266?iid=7707266&clr=Black&SearchQuery=&cid=4172&pgesize=36&pge=1&totalstyles=614&gridsize=3&gridrow=1&gridcolumn=3

While the abundance of design detail and opportunities for unique and flashy styles appeal to this woman, she fears being too childish. This is perhaps common to all gamines, but her specific motivation is that *too* young skews distinctly unsexy just as much as too stodgy or old fashioned might. Done right, gamine clothes can be as sophisticated as any, and have a witty kind of appeal that’s unique to her. Here, a sandal that emphasizes bare legs, especially when paired with the short skirts that suit her to create a look that is most definitely alluring.

The Sexual Romantic

YangR shoe: http://www.asos.com/au/asos/asos-fiddly-suede-tie-leg-corsage-flat-sandals/prd/7504174?iid=7504174&clr=Taupe&SearchQuery=&cid=17170&pgesize=36&pge=6&totalstyles=481&gridsize=3&gridrow=8&gridcolumn=3&utm_source=Affiliate&utm_medium=LinkShare&utm_content=USNetwork.1&utm_campaign=je6NUbpObpQ&link=10&promo=324006&source=linkshare&MID=35719&affid=2135&channelref=Affiliate&pubref=je6NUbpObpQ&siteID=je6NUbpObpQ-HRgYxRM6NVAMmLJ4XT1Evg For Soft Seasons

This woman already knows she’s probably a Romantic before she comes in for the appointment. One could choose almost any of the shoes for this issue to please this woman, but this is a great example of her type of thing. It’s definitely sexy and it really says “look at me”, which is much more important to her than practicality. Self-pres would be asking “how long could that flower possibly last…”, she’s less prone to worry. It’s worth noting that she can sometimes have a propensity to overfill her wardrobe with flashy pieces and then struggle to make outfits or have anything to wear in her daily life. As with all combinations, seeking more balance would serve her well.

I hope this was helpful for you in understanding the relationship between your defense mechanisms and your type. As with anything, simply by being aware of these things, we can start to have more power over them.

Living with and Loving your Season and Image Archetype

If you're here right now, it's probably because you've invested in learning your season and your image archetype. There's no two ways about it, these are powerful tools for transformation that can save you years of agony in trying to find what works. But knowing what works is one thing, living with it is quite another. 

I often hear from clients for whom the honeymoon period of joyfully celebrating their newfound knowledge has ended as they face the reality of implementation. And to be honest, for many who wished for a different outcome, it never even started. 

Unfortunately, this reality causes plenty of women to run backwards to the delightfully naive stage of searching, sometimes indefinitely. Literally every week I talk to women who are struggling to break out of the paralysis of perpetual searching. Plenty of them could use some new information, but all of them need to change one important thing to create what they desire: their mind. In this issue, I would like to offer you three tools that have helped me to change my own mind, and consequently, my experience. 

1. Recognize Selective Attention

Take a moment to look around the room and make a mental tally of all of the red things you can find. Be sure to count them carefully and not to miss any.... good.

Now, how many blue things did you spot? 

It's human nature to selectively focus on certain aspects of our reality to the exclusion of others not because they're non existent or even unimportant but because there's just too much information relative to time needed to process it. This was an important survival mechanism for our ancestors, and likely continues to be. But sometimes, it sells is short. 

Recently a client asked me to create a detailed explanation of the casual mom version of her IA. She just couldn't seem to figure it out. And let me tell you, this is a bright, capable woman, but she didn't notice that there was already plenty of information available to her to answer this question. 

The reason she didn't is because she has been focusing on the thought that she didn't know how to do it, and so her mind obediently gathered all the evidence to support that thought. I could tell her the answer until the cows come home, and it wouldn't do much except prove that *I* know it. 

I've said it a hundred times but insight without action means nothing. I'm an image consultant, not a psychic. I can give you guidelines but I cant predict exactly what's going to work for your life, your preferences and etc. And no matter how much information you get, you still have to use it to see a result. 

Next time you find yourself stuck spinning your wheels, Ask yourself "If I did know, what would the answer be?" You can also find many free meditations online to ask your future self who has already solved the problem how she did it. Once you have an idea, take action. Whether it works or not you learn something. By testing your own hypotheses, you develop you own internal compass and sense of knowing. 

2. Become a Heat Seeking Missile

As we learned above, when we frame our situation as a statement about what's missing, we inevitably prove ourselves right. So if the thought is, "Whenever I dress YangN, I feel unprofessional", you will continue to prove that thought instead of solving the problem. 

It's not that there isn't tension there to be resolved, there probably is, but the best way to move the ball forward isn't to restate the problem, but to frame it as a question. A good format is something like "How can I X without/while Y?" I.e. How can I express my YangN physicality while still feeling professional? 

Curiosity and problem solving are in our nature as human beings. As soon as you ask the question, you become a heat seeking missile for the answer. I challenge you NOT to come away with at least 3 solutions to try. Again, not everything you try will work, but you will be on a trajectory towards the solution rather than the problem. 

3. Change One Little Word

I catch myself doing this all the time... I'm coming out of the gym and mentally groaning that I HAVE to go pick up dinner. Immediately, I'm thinking about how my legs hurt after all those squats and how cold it is... and completely missing how awesome the situation is. 

Now, whenever I notice myself doing this, I just change one little word and repeat it back - "I GET to go pick up dinner." It may seem little but I promise you this trick is magic. As soon as we make a statement, our mind comes up with supporting evidence even if we don't quite believe the statement yet. When I shift that one statement in my mind about dinner from obligation to gratitude, I see how fortunate I truly am. 

I get to walk through a pretty part of town I'm rarely in otherwise. I get to breathe fresh air into my lungs. I get to just go pick up a healthy dinner that I don't even have to cook, truly an incredible privilege few will experience, let alone every Thursday. I'm basically the luckiest girl in the world. 

I can't tell you how often, even without drama in the moment, a client tells me she HAS to wear such and such a lipstick color or length of skirt now that she knows her season and/or archetype. We can all be guilty of acting like we are the prisoners of these tools instead of the lucky recipients of them. The truth is that you don't have to do anything. But you do GET to do it. Your mind will fill in that blank, but whenever I think this way about my own IA and season, I remember how lucky I am to have this information, and from there how fortunate I must be to have such freedom of choice of what to wear and purchasing power to acquire it. 

If you're struggling with your IA or your season, this is a place to start. At the end of the day, these tools might not be the answer for you. But if you've come this far, I urge you to see if you can't approach them with an attitude of openness, curiosity, and gratitude before you decide what they can do for you. Or perhaps, what you can do for yourself with them. 

The ball is always in your court. 

Choosing Flattering Necklines

Last December, we wrote about how different face shapes choose earrings, which many folks found helpful. Many readers asked for further information on how to use the face types to choose other garment elements effectively. While it is true that there are a few other areas where the face shape and feature shapes are the primary concern (sunglasses and hairstyle come to mind) as soon as we move downward we must also integrate information from the body, which introduces almost limitless variability. Here, I will attempt to provide a basic guide to sorting out what works for you as an individual. 

In order to broach this topic, we must first name the factors that come into play. We know that physical features such as the length of one's legs and the width of one's hips most certainly factor into determining one's Image Archetype, but probably those things are not so important in selecting a neckline. So what is? Mainly, design qualities of the face, jawline, and upper torso, and a bit of the overall scale and most prominent shapes of the person. Specifically:

1. The size of the face - small, medium, large (both relative to the body and objectively). As a general rule, larger faces need a bigger opening and smaller faces need a smaller opening. 

2. The width of the face - wide, narrow, or balanced. As a general rule, wider faces require a wider, more open neckline, and narrower faces require a narrower, more closed neckline. 

3. The structure of the face - I find it helpful to think in terms of how exaggerated peaks and valleys are in the facial bone structure, which can vary from very high peaks and low valleys to soft rolling bunny hills. As a general rule, more structured faces with higher peaks and valleys will tolerate more rigidity in necklines and higher necklines, while less structured faces look better next to softer necklines with more space between the jawline and the top of the neckline.

4. The shape of the jawline - pointed, square, tapered, round, etc. Repeating this shape is usually flattering, conflicting shapes can be less so.

5. The overall face shape and the shapes present in the face - Ovals, circles, triangles, rectangles, squares, etc. These often provide more variety of options that work equally well as the above, or provide more detail about the very best shapes.

6. The length of the neck - long, medium, short (both proportionately and objectively). Longer necks allow for higher rising necklines without crowding the face, shorter necks need more room to be built into the neckline.

7. The width of the shoulders - broad, medium, narrow. Broader shoulders require more openness and width in a neckline, while narrower shoulders may be overwhelmed by overly wide or open necks.

8. The width of the ribcage - broad, medium, narrow. Similar to shoulders, the width of the ribcage can effect the scale and substance of the upper torso, which in turn will require necklines to be adjusted proportionately. 

9. The fullness and set of the bust - full, medium, or small and set wide, narrow, low, or high. Full bustlines typically require more openness to necklines, while smaller ones may be more flattered by a smaller opening. A lower set to a bustline may necessitate a lower neckline, while a higher set bust may render very low necks impractical. 

10. The overall scale and most prominent shapes in the person - large, medium, small, etc. These can add additional modification to the shapes that are wearable for an individual and the most flattering scale of the neckline. 

If you're like many people, you may be getting some conflicting information from these factors. I think the best way for me to explain how to make sense of that information is by talking through a few examples. 

Let's look at YinD Sofia Vergara. 

Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images Entertainment / Getty Images

Sofia has a medium-large face (though proportionate to her body), and it is relatively wide, just a little less wide than it is long. So thus far, she seems to need a medium-large and wide neckline. However, Sofia's face has a fair amount of structure, with some projection of the cheekbones, jawline, and nose that create medium-high peaks and valleys and may allow for some variant of a higher or stiffer neckline. She also has a basically pointed jawline which tapers in significantly from the cheekbone, which may allow her to tolerate more narrowness depending on what we discover as we go. Her face has mostly triangles and some circles. So just from her face alone we can see that there will probably be both angular and rounded shapes that flatter her. 

Sofia's neck is fairly medium in length, so it's unlikely that we are going to get extra room for extension upwards there. Her shoulders are medium-broad, somewhat wide objectively but relatively proportionate to her, so again, probably still looking for more openness and width. Her rib cage seems somewhat similarly proportioned to her shoulders, so not much change there. Her bustline is full, and in my opinion set relatively high (look at the distance between her collarbones and her cleavage). So overall another vote towards lower and more open necklines. In general she is large scale (though I wouldn't say extra-large) and mostly a mix of bold angles and bold round shapes, so anything too small scale won't suit her, including certain neckline effects. 

The vast majority of Sofia's feature seems to be asking for a neckline which is both deep and wide and doesn't crowd her face, or make her look broad or bulky through the upper torso. She seems to be able to wear both angles and rounded shapes well, providing the angles are wide. A sort of wide V may be her most ideal shape because it provides the right amount of openness and repeats her jawline. She does, however have some structure to her face, which may allow for some mitigated upwards movement in a neckline, such as a collared blouse worn open or a turtleneck with an open keyhole. Very closed in necklines like jewel neck or narrow ones like a split neck will not be as effective. 

While these guidelines fit relatively neatly with generic guidelines for YinD, the ultimate determination is made individually. Some YinDs may wear necklines that will not work on her well, while others will wear those that do work on her poorly. Rather like lipsticks within a season, our level of sensitivity around faces is very high. 

Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images Entertainment / Getty Images

Next let's look at YangG Samira Wiley. 

Her face is small, both objectively and somewhat proportionately. It's somewhat narrow proportionate to how long it is and objectively. Probably when she tries glasses they are often too wide to fit. Samira's face has a more flat and soft topography, though the angle and projection of her jawline add some structure. Like Sofia her jawline is pointed, but it is much narrower and sharper. Her face is mostly linear shapes and triangles but with a bit of roundedness to the tip of her nose and her mouth. Based on her face alone, I would expect her to best suit smaller openings, though perhaps not moving too much upwards in mostly angular, but also some round shapes. 

Moving on to her upper torso, we find that Samira's neck is somewhat long proportionately. Her shoulders are somewhat broad proportionately though medium-narrow objectively (she is especially narrow though the torso and hip in bone structure). Her ribcage doesn't seem wide but I can't see that it's especially narrow proportionately. She isn't particularly busty, and the set of her bust seems relatively average. At 5'3" and being relatively narrow in bone structure, her overall scale is small (though not extra small). Her body lines are mostly linear. 

Factoring in both face and body, Samira overwhelmingly suits smaller neckline openings with more narrowness, using either rounded or angular shapes, such as jewel neck or short V-necks. Her long neck and structured jawline permit a small amount of upward movement, perhaps as a small collar or abbreviated funnel neck. She should avoid wide open necklines and overly soft necklines like open cowls and also overly deep necklines such as a plunging V shape which will overwhelm the size of her face. 

Like Sofia, these guidelines are largely consistent with generic YangG guidelines with some individual variation to be expected. 

Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images Entertainment / Getty Images

Finally, we'll look at YinN Ming-Na Wen.

Ming-Na's face is medium-large and somewhat proportionately large. It is definitely longer than it is wide but not narrow. Her facial topography is relatively flat towards the center, but becomes somewhat more sculpted at the edges through the cheekbones and jawline. Her jawline is a wide softened square. Her overall face shape is a softened rectangle and the shapes in her face are a mixture of softened angles and round shapes, and the features are somewhat widely set. Based on face alone I would expect her to suit necklines with a moderate amount of openness and some width in rounded shapes and softened angles. 

Ming-Na has a neck of average length, and shoulders that are somewhat proportionately broad. She has a broad rib cage and a bustline which is medium-small and set somewhat wide and low. Ming-Na is medium scale and her body lines are mainly soft angles with some curves. Her body lines slightly enhance her ability to balance more depth and openness. In general she suits best moderate to slightly large neckline openings with some width and depth in rounded and softly angular shapes. She does not as a general rule suit very narrow openings or necklines that rise upwards. 

Compared to some YinNs, Ming-Na can handle slightly more structure and more moderate opening size due to having moderately less softness to her face and fullness in the bustline than some in this type, but most choices would be similar to others of her type. 

Hopefully this sheds some light on how choosing necklines relates both to your image archetype and to you as an individual. As Christine would say, use these tools to help you follow your own blueprint. 

Competent Not Cookie-Cutter

We expend a lot of energy in the profession of Personal Color & Image Analysis helping women gain the confidence to look like themselves rather than a pale imitation of anyone else. Most often, I feel the obstacles in this arena are more internal than external. What we feel is impossible and will never work in our lives turns out to be no problem at all once we take that first leap of faith. But what about the rest of the time? There are, in fact, some instances when we must step very carefully around the “rules” and one of the most anxiety-inducing examples has got to be the job interview.

When our financial security and career development among other very huge things are riding on an interviewer’s assessment of how we line up with a checklist, temptation can ride high to run to the safety of Ann Taylor. If we do seek advice, what we get back is extremely discouraging (for example: this stylecaster article). Be conservative, wear neutrals, and don’t try and be clever about it is essentially the message. Which begs the question, is that really the only solution?

Those who know me or have read along to their fourth or eighth issue will inevitably guess that I find this a bit unsatisfying. As it happens, I do believe this is one situation where you must to the larger degree do what must be done. If the interview calls for a suit, you’d best be wearing one. At the same time, I question the efficacy of wearing the most obvious rendition of whatever the expected attire may be.

Sensate creature that I am, I always try to picture the practical example, so let’s say it’s me going on the interview. If I were to wear the outfit described and pictured in the linked article for say, the tech company interview, I’m fairly certain I would more readily be offered some spare change to catch the bus home than a position with the company. My rule is, if it doesn’t do what it says on the tin, stop doing it. So let’s talk about solutions that might actually work.

Before I get on to the images, I do want to offer the caveat that, if you're looking for advice from someone with 20 years experience in corporate human relations, that's certainly not me. That said, I feel that when people with this type of experience are asked what they look for in the appearance of a candidate, they report what they think they probably do as opposed to what they actually do. As human beings we tend to believe we make decisions based on rational criteria such as how appropriate and professional we thought the candidates choice of footwear was or not, and instead we tend to choose based on much more subjective and impulsive measures, such as how drawn to the candidate we felt or how solid of a connection we made. As ever, I believe that a true expression will always connect you better with other human beings than a checklist. 

We will start by imagining two scenarios for each type. The first will be a more formal interview scenario, probably the more common one for most positions, though how strict the formality is may vary depending on what the dress code will actually be once you are working for the employer. The second is for the informal interview, essentially for something like a tech company where showing up in a suit would make you look tone deaf to the company culture. As a bonus, these second examples will be very useful for the type of workplace where it is acceptable for employees to wear jeans some or all of the time, even if it's not quite as informal as Apple or Google, not to mention occasions such as a parent teacher conference. 

You may also like to notice that virtually every item here save a couple of very simple skirts was sourced either from the past 7 issues of Signature/STYLE, or from Christine and Jorunn's very helpful articles on choosing jeans for the seasons. 

ROMANTIC

Left: True Summer Yin Romantic for a Formal Interview; Right: Bright Winter Yin Romantic for an Informal Interview

The right suit for Yin Romantic is almost never the most common style, but this one is pretty ideal. The skirt is rarely the issue, though she may need to buy it in a larger size than the jacket and have it tailored if she is very full through the hip and thighs. Many blazers either have too much sharpness around the neck or an overly closed in neckline for her and/or a boxy shape that is very widening to her curvy and compact figure. A portrait collar and peplum style bodice are not the only options but they certainly are choices that take less adjustment in tailoring to make work. It is worth mentioning for women of all types that if you are going to interview in a suit or will need to wear one to work regularly (if you are an investment banker or trial attorney, this is you), you should expect to tailor the suit and work that into your budget. No man expects a suit to work without tailoring and nor should you.

I would suggest to wear a very simple camisole or shell underneath this suit style which is fitted to the body and has a rounded, open neckline but covers just to the top of the cleavage with nothing showing but not higher. Contrary to popular opinion, I do personally believe that a small bit of cleavage is not a problem for most workplaces in the case that it's more flattering than the alternative, however in the case of the interview it may be best to take that element out of the equation.  At any rate, this suit is meant to be worn buttoned  with the jacket on and isn't cut to put any top with volume to it underneath, which may be the case for many of the best suits for the R types. In my opinion, a sling back pump or flat is fine, but I would avoid an open toe. Sheer hosiery can be worn or not at your discretion. Of course, you could also choose a simple round toe pump 3" or less or a flat, but take care as depending on the cut of these shoes they can become quite frumpy looking even on this woman. 

Advice that is given across the board to professional women is to wear neutrals. I have instead chosen a color for each of these woman which is so intuitive on her that it doesn't read as inappropriately colorful and yet is more enhancing and expressive on her than a neutral might be. Neither of these outfits is especially detailed otherwise so I feel color helps keep them from falling over the line into too much plainness. An alternative would be to wear color as a smaller accessory block, or to employ pattern, texture or other detailing to prevent looking like you just came off the line at the the corporate drone factory. 

The right business casual outfit is arguably somewhat more difficult for this woman, as the culture of the these companies is often laid back to the extreme, an aesthetic which doesn't suit her especially well. That said, the best approach may be to wear something quite simple which is flattering to the body shape and simply does not distort her. In contrast to most interviews, where you will dress up more than you usually would after being hired, this woman may dress up a bit less just to show that she gets what this company is about. Later, you can wear a dress. 

Left: Dark Autumn Yang Romantic for a Formal Interview; Right: True Spring Yang Romantic for an Informal Interview

The Yang Romantic is sharper and edgier than her Yin counterpart, which means looking conservative is not as easy but looking powerful comes relatively naturally. There is some argument as to how necessary it is to have a literal suit (meaning the jacket and bottom are cut from the exact same fabric) even in some of the most formal fields. This is probably an area where women have far more wiggle room than men. There would be some interviews where this jacket with the stripes could not be used and a solid one of similar cut would be a much better choice. In other fields, the version with the stripes adds a feeling of a woman who is modern, forward-thinking and able to take risks, not to mention savvy enough to know what works for her. Your professional appearance is like your business card in that it's as much a mistake to make it too conservative as it is to make it too edgy, particularly if you work in a field where innovation is a factor. 

Jewelry for both types here is more towards the smaller end of the scale and more restrained. However, you'll notice I've not suddenly started choosing single stone studs. I feel dangles are still appropriate as long as they are not so jingly or large scale as to be distracting. 

GAMINE

Left: Dark Winter Yin Gamine for a Formal Interview; Right: Soft Autumn Yin Gamine for an Informal Interview

In dressing professionally, gamines have the great asset of looking excellent in tailoring. The primary issues to tackle for business formal are that the scale of tailored suits can often be too large, and the design activity is relatively low, which can result in looking frumpy. For the Yin Gamine, I went towards the more creative end of Business formal, and I believe that in most cases it would be no problem to wear this outfit, with a high likelihood of getting a better response than when wearing something very mundane and oversize. The length of the skirt may seem shocking, but remember that on most gamines it will appear a couple inches longer. A trick to maintain the correct skirt proportion without drawing attention to the legs is to wear a very opaque tight the same color as the skirt. Not unlike the Romantic types who are also often somewhat small scale, compacted and curvy, YinG may often do best when tailored items fit slim to the body (without, of course being too tight). Excess fabric is to be avoided, it will only look messy and widen you. 

In the case of the business casual interview, I really feel that this woman will present much better in a jacket than in a cardigan 90% of the time. Cardigans are often just too long and too floppy, and just generally underwhelming. The exception may be one that is more or less like a knitted jacket. It should go without saying that one would need to wear a camisole under the blouse pictured. The lacy-ness could be forgone in favor of something simpler if she prefers, but many YinGs really suit a combination of crisp tailoring and a bit of fussiness, which on them looks very high-end. 

Left: Soft Summer Yang Gamine for a Formal Interview; Right: Light Spring Yang Gamine for an Informal Interview

Probably Yang Gamines are sitting there scratching their heads over this one, but hear me out. I felt that for Gamines the more creative approach to being tailored and professional was relatively obvious, while she may feel very unsure of what to wear if she is interviewing somewhere very very conservative and formal. I liked this suit because the proportions are really good, both in terms of the length, the slimness of the body, and the light weight of the lapel. If you really must be far more reserved than would be optimally flattering, at very least make choices that do not distort your proportions. Still, accessories and a really great hairstyle can make all the difference in how well this woman comes across in this outfit. 

As with the Romantic choices, I used very automatic colors in the casual choices, but this time I did show neutral-only choices for business Formal. In the same way this suit would not create distortion on a gamine but might not be the most exciting, the correct neutrals for your season will work much the same way. If you prefer to wear mainly neutrals, I highly suggest picking up a neutral collection, as it is very hard to know what you're looking for from the fan alone. 

For jewelry, I have kept with the theme of choosing small scale, relatively more simple pieces, which also does not mean (if you are a gamine) that you suddenly start wearing basic pearl studs. 

CLASSIC

Left: True Winter Yin Classic for a Formal Interview; Right: Bright Spring Yin Classic for an Informal Interview

It probably goes without saying that Classics need to adjust "the rules" of dressing professionally the least in order to make it work for her, which is still not to say she doesn't need to adjust them at all, especially depending on her season. Worth noting is that fit and quality is incredibly important on this woman. In general, as clothing gets simpler, these things become more noticeable. 

Yin Classic often sees herself as more old-fashioned and softer than she truly is. In a business scenario dressing so may be greatly ineffective in conveying competency and an ability to keep up with the times. While it is important to be mindful of the hardness of collar shapes, the right amount of taper into the waist, and length, she is absolutely not flattered by separates that are excessively drapey, flowery or soft structured. She could, however, choose a cardigan for the casual scenario, but I chose instead to show a jacket, which I think she would choose less easily on her own, but could be very successful. 

Left: True Autumn Yang Classic for a Formal Interview; Right: Light Summer Yang Classic for an Informal Interview

Just as Yin Classic dresses softer and more doily than she is, Yang Classic can tend to dress more like a Yin Classic with the yin turned down a bit. Whenever we dress more yin than we are, the result can be that we look older and less feminine than we otherwise could. In the business formal example, there is a little more of a feeling of drama. I didn't choose a blouse but something the same color as the skirt would be fantastic to continue the longer lines established by the jacket. Of course, if you are a shorter YangC you may wish to add drama another way, for example by adding sharpness to hems, lapels, shoes, and so on. 

For the business casual outfit, I decided to do a variation on the outfit suggested in the original article, as I felt that a Yang Classic with a fair amount of natural yang in a summer influenced season would be the most likely to be flattered by this idea of an outfit. What I always find interesting is that most things that bear the claim of being universally flattering, actually only work for a very specific group of people, or sometimes no one. 

NATURAL

Left: Bright Spring Yin Natural for a Formal Interview; Right: Soft Summer Yin Natural for an Informal Interview

One of the greatest leaps in understanding how to dress effectively as a Natural type with a professional career is to understand the difference between clothing that has a relaxed attitude and clothing that is appropriate for casual occasions. These things of course have something in common, but the latter category of clothing is neither exclusively for Naturals nor does it encompass everything they can ever wear effectively. Clothing with a relaxed attitude is a somewhat abstract category, but it definitely tends to include clothing which has simple cuts and easy fabrics that flow and permit movement, and a freedom from unnecessarily fussy detail. Still, it can be easy to go overboard when interpreting what that means. In the example above, I've chosen a jacket made of crepe which has no lapel, and a coordinating skirt made of a knit material with a blouse with an open neckline. While it has some important differences from the classic variations above, it is still polished and professional with the added bonus of relief from the feeling that we are looking at a woman wearing a straight jacket, or one whose clothing doesn't fit correctly. I believe that this would be appropriate for all but the very most formal interviews, and perhaps could work well there also with a simple pump instead of a flat and a solid blouse. 

Naturals so frequently wear cuts of clothing that are saggier than they need to be in solid neutral color fabrics and the result is unsurprisingly underwhelming. I have chosen to include a print despite the common advice to wear solids in most of these looks because I believe that Naturals are so much more enhanced when there is a print or a texture in play than without. At risk of sounding like a broken record, it may be as much of a mistake to look entirely unremarkable as it is to bend the rules too much. 

Left: Dark Winter Yang Natural for a Formal Interview; Right: Soft Autumn Yang Natural for an Informal Interview

Yang Natural is perhaps the woman who more than any other type, has amazing potential to wear a suit effectively, but in practice doesn't. Often she either avoids them at all costs or chooses one which is radically wrong for her (Yin Classic is a perennial favorite of my YangN clients) and wonders why it doesn't work. Yang as she is, it should be no surprise that her suit looks a lot like our idea of a suit. the main problems she usually bumps into is that many choices are too small scale (which relative to her can just mean too medium) and too controlled. I often use the visual of letting the classic's suit let out a big breath and relax it's shoulders. On a woman whose body has a wider range of motion than many, the clothes need to be able to follow along in order to avoid being distracting. In many senses, thinking about how to dress appropriately for a professional situation is an extreme exercise in finding our own normal. We're asking ourselves, what could I wear that would not require the interviewer to have to think about it? 

DRAMATIC

Left: Bright Winter Yin Dramatic for a Formal Interview; Right: True Spring Yin Dramatic for an Informal Interview

There are some big similarities in the kinds of challenges that Yin Dramatic faces in dressing for these occasions with those described above for Yang Natural, the main difference being that Classic works just a bit better for her, I think probably because like all Dramatics there is a certain rigidity to her. Anecdotally, I find a lot of Yin Dramatics achieving big time in business. Like the YangN, they can be surprisingly good in suits despite their curves. Their long verticals mean that they are far from an overgrown Romantic when it comes to what works on their body types or not.

That said, I really like the above blazer which both elongates and gives waist definition, though it may be one of the formal choices shown that is again, best for when just a tiny bit of creativity will be tolerated. I decided to use the entire suit because I really like the visual of a long column of color even though the cut of the pant is probably not ideal (long blazers and cropped pants seems to be the thing right now, probably a tough proportion to wear for most). Whether you choose to wear a different colored blouse or not it will still be effective that way, though I really do like the white. As with the Romantic types, for this occasion, choose a silk tank that covers just to the top of the cleavage and not higher or lower. Dramatics become tremendously more powerful when their appearance is consolidated into one major statement than broken down into little bits and bobs, which is what makes these looks so effective from my perspective.

Left: True Summer Yang Dramatic for a Formal Interview; Right: Dark Autumn Yang Dramatic for an Informal Interview

When we think of the original 80's "dress for success" movement, of course we think of the power suit. In fact, for the Yang Dramatic, it's not a bad idea. This is a woman who, in what effectively look like a man's suit, comes across as a feminine force to be reckoned with. What I like about the suit on the left is that while we tend to think of YangD as clothing from another planet, it's so normal. And while there would of course be more exciting choices for her, this one has a beautiful elongated silhouette with sharp points to keep it from looking mumsy. My only complaint is that the skirt isn't a bit longer, though in the grand scheme of things it's probably not the end of the world. I chose a top that would add a subtle bit of futurism to the look without being overwhelming, though a solid button down could be used. As with the YinD outfits, these looks create a solid column of color that elongates her and makes a bold statement without needing to be over the top. What I like most about these Dramatic collages is, I was able to create the effect without using any clothing that was especially "weird". Often the complain is that it's such an out there style or is really impractical and the truth is that only really applies to the most cartoon versions of these IAs. 

Just Put Your Lips Together and Blow: Sex Appeal for the 10 Archetypes

“I think- and I’m sure all switched on girls will agree with me- that sex appeal has absolutely Number One priority.” - Mary Quant

Mary Quant is one of my all-time favorite (and I think most underrated) designers. Still, I admit, the first time I read this quote, I nearly threw her book across the room. Anything that gets you that riled up is worth thinking about, and so I have, and in doing so have come to more or less agree, though perhaps for different reasons (who can say?).

When I met Christine, or even perhaps before when I started reading her work, I started to become aware through her discussion of color analysis of the importance of biological signals in getting dressed. These are important because they were handed down to us by evolution and they don’t need to be taught. We instinctively understand that if someone’s lips are purple and their face very pale, they are probably very cold or perhaps have lost blood. Conversely a person whose face is very sallow might have a fever or be about to be sick to their stomach. Nature tuned us into what to another species would surely be very subtle differences in appearance for one very simple reason- survival. And while most likely if you are reading this, you will surely be enjoying life in the developed world away from the constant burden of continuing to exist, your mind is still wired to interpret these signals the same way.

Each member of a species has two main jobs to ensure survival. 1. As much as possible, stay alive as an individual, and 2. Procreate. In the language of biology, sex (and also when, where, how, and with whom) is not so much a moral issue as just a fact. It is in our DNA to define an adult human in his or her prime as one who is capable of procreation. Notice I did not say necessarily willing, or available at any time, but just capable. Also worthy of note that women are as aware of these signals as men, albeit maybe slightly less intensely. In modern societies, much of this is communicated through clothing choice (as well as makeup and hair).

There are two kinds of species members who are not in the aforementioned category- those who are too young, and those who are too old. I’ve already spoken about projecting an overly young impression on my blog. On the other side of the coin, if we dress in a way that says “I’m done with sex forever” that might read on a very instinctual level as “I’m out to pasture”.

I’m of the opinion that understanding that sex appeal is an important part of a healthy adult appearance doesn’t mean we need to parade our body parts around at all times. Clearly that would not be practical or appropriate. What I would suggest instead, is that in order to maintain sex appeal, we need to have two basic goals, dressing our body shape to best effect, and exuding the type of psychological allure which is natural and believable for each particular woman (and man, but they’re not readers here).

Dressing the body shape to best effect is the subject of probably hundreds of books, blog posts, & etc. and the primary goal of most style systems. The best approach is a subject of debate, but in my experience, the central tenet should be “go with what you’ve got”. If you are long and lean, wear long and lean style, and if you are short and curvy, wear short and curvy styles, for example. I do not suggest trying to create optical illusions with your clothing to convince onlookers that your body is something other than what it is, for the very simple reason that it doesn’t work. We can all see you, and to think otherwise is to suffer from an unproductive delusion. The only significant change you can make to your perceived body shape with clothing is to add bulk, by way of piling on excess fabric. Often this is done unwittingly with the intention of “covering up” an area the woman believes is a problem, but whether or not we agree about the area in question, this strategy typically has the opposite effect intended. Pile fabric onto your large rear, and I promise you it will look larger. Following this strategy requires a good working knowledge of one’s own body, which is not something I can impart to you here, though many readers will have discussed this matter more in detail with me at their PIA.

As for the second goal, just knowing your image archetype is one of the most powerful things you can do to understand your own allure. It’s something that is very hard to see on our own, as we are each a picture that is forever inside our own frame. It may seem that some IAs have more sex appeal than others, but that just isn’t so. The incredibly creative human mind can experience desire from an infinitely diverse pool of motivations. This is contrary to the image painted by modern media of a very shallow pool of limited desire-inducing qualities that are virtually impossible to achieve (especially all at once). Certainly Hollywood studios of the past were not perfect in that regard, but I find a lot of inspiration there in explaining the appeal of each of the archetypes.

For instance, whenever I think of the appeal of a Dramatic type, I can’t help but think of Lauren Bacall. In her best roles, she was mysterious, dangerous, and powerful. When commenters talk about her, they describe her as a “woman who knew what she wanted and exactly how to get it”. We are at her mercy, playing by her rules, and nobody said she would play nice.  Watch her here, and see if you can pick up the relationship between the lines she’s saying and her physical presence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kv2K62fTXIs

Nothing about her is softened, and every bit softer we could try to make her would be less and less sexy, because that isn’t her kind of appeal. Often the Yin Dramatic has the mistaken impression that she is sort of a large scale Romantic. While it is true that she will also blend in some of the appeal of the Romantic, she is first and foremost a Dramatic type and will need to express the same thrilling boldness in order to invoke her kind of desirability.

Natural types have an appeal which is most definitely centered in the body, what might be called sensuality. It may not be necessary to show the body (though it often feels very normal and not at all risque or tawdry when they do), but we must feel a sense of freedom around the body of a Natural. Like the Dramatic types, the yang quality of their appeal is more outward moving (charisma) than inward moving (magnetism), but it’s definitely softer, lacking the red alert of the Dramatic. Naturals are approachable, yet still unhindered by maintaining the status quo. Demonstrated by Jane Fonda here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7euiG3tT2R8 Like Lauren above, she’s in control of the situation, but it’s light, playful even, certainly not dangerous. We’ve come off of the knife’s edge and we can let our guard down. The feeling is happy and relaxed, and she feels like someone we could know. That kind of openness to connection is precisely the Natural’s appeal.

The Classic is not effective at conveying the kind of overt sex appeal that comes from showing the body, and consequently they are often perceived as just not being sexy. Watch Grace Kelly here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsBXV8i_ZLM Christine may have summarized the appeal best when she said "you have to earn it". The obvious ways of creating sex appeal look cheap next to her. On the other hand saying "by appointment only" is different than saying "closed for business". Classic is the language of wealth. In the clip above, Grace conveys that in under two minutes, and is able to do so because the message from her physicality, her manner, and her dress align. Men (or anyone) will want her because being with her is aspirational and exclusive, like belonging to one of those country clubs where you have to wait for someone to die and then really impress a bunch of people just for the privilege of paying 5 figures a year to belong.

Like the Classic type, Gamine woman often feel themselves ill at ease in the kind of magazine-sexy clothes that center around being very revealing. Her appeal is much more kittenish, like a game of cat and mouse that goes on forever. No one does kittenish better than Audrey, of course.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Wd2aS7pegE Hopefully you can imagine how a neckline cut down to there would only be a distraction from what’s really so enchanting - her youthful aura, and air of cheeky rebellion. Being around the Gamine woman is exciting and inspiring because of her electric energy and irreverence. Her appeal is “catch me if you can”, and we inevitably want to.

Finally, the Romantic. It seems almost redundant to talk about what her kind of sex appeal is, and the focus here with clients tends to be more on how she avoids being nothing more than that. In her case what’s important is to balance her sex appeal with softness. Watch Marilyn here, there’s no denying she is sexy, but it’s not because she’s forcing it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWwSEM5lI-U The Romantic diminishes her appeal with sharpness as much as the Dramatic does with softness. At best it will feel strict and at worst tawdry. Simply dressing to flatter her figure is sufficient.

When looking at movie characters for reference, it is important to note that what we are trying to do is to capture that essence in clothing, not to be any one particular way as people. I have put together a catalog to demonstrate how to translate these concepts into clothing for each archetype. While we all contain multitudes and are many different things to many different people, we have only one physical body.

Plus Size Shopping for the 10 Image Archetypes

"Will my weight change my Image Archetype?"

This is the question women ask about Personal Image Analysis more often than any other. While I'm not going to go into excessive detail about why here (since it's been covered elsewhere), I will say that any IA can and does contain Plus Size women, and that weight will not change your IA but it might change (a bit) how you wear your IA. Of course, Plus Size is not a body type, and Plus Size women are as diverse in shape as straight size women, so there is no one size fits all recommendation I can offer. However, there are a few specific things that may need to shift that come to mind when I think about dressing a woman who wears a larger size across the different IAs. Below, a link to a plus size catalog of blouses for all IAs, and some thoughts.

http://hueandstripe.com/catalog/116H&SgCNr

1. Scale

Each Image Archetype has a certain scale associated with it, however if the woman is larger as in larger dress size, this may need to shift a bit. In the case of the largest scale types, D, YinD, and YangN, not much will change. For the others, you want to be sure to keep things in proportion to you. That doesn't mean if you are a plus-size YinC, you start wearing basketball sized florals. The print should still not feel oversize for her, since overly exaggerated styles don't suit her. On the other hand, some very dainty prints that would feel normal on her straight sized counterpart might feel too dinky. In prints, the "repeat" refers to the element which is repeated over and over. There are many different repeat structures, but see if you can feel out the element that is the main building block of the print, and see how many times it repeats. If a print needs to repeat a dizzying number of times to get across you, the repeat may be too small. Things like handbags may also be a concern. While a straight size YinG may need to carry a very tiny bag just to not have it look oversized on her, a plus size woman of this type may find that a more medium bag is appropriate in scale next to her body.

Conversely, certain other scale elements of the Plus Size woman's look won't change. One key thing is length. DO NOT I repeat, DO NOT get into the trap of making things longer, especially if you are both plus size and 5'4 and under. because your height has not changed as compared to your straight size counterpart, the length of the things you wear (jackets, skirts, tops, etc) also should not change. Wearing clothing that is too shapeless and too long is the petite plus-size woman's all too well beaten path to dowdiness. Also, while many plus-size retailers seem to pack the shelves with jumbo jewelry, this may not be right for you. Jewelry should be in scale with your facial features, which probably don't shift too much with weight gain or loss. Necklaces and bracelets may potentially scale up a bit, but take care not to exceed the stylistic goals of your IA in doing so.

2. Volume

As I already hinted at above, the Plus Size retailer loves to produce tent-like moomoo garments, I can only sadly assume because Plus Size woman buy them. Only by not buying them and buying something else instead can we teach the garment industry to behave better. Let's play a game. Imagine I gave you a 20 oz bottle of coke, and told you you had to cover it in fabric from midway between the cap and the label to midway between the label and the bottom of the bottle. The caveat is, you have to try to add the LEAST apparent mass possible. How would you do this? The solution is obvious. You use the least fabric possible.

Now you're saying "But Rachel the coke bottle is just smooth and hard and I'm not". Ok, right, I know. But the point of the exercise was to get you to acknowledge what you already know - padding yourself with a ton of fabric will only add mass. And typically the Plus Size woman is the one who least want to add mass, and yet goes about it trying to look less Plus Size by drowning herself in fabric. Straight size women do this too, for particular body parts, the bottom being a common one. The objective then, can only be to add the least fabric possible (and particularly in certain areas) while still giving a little bit of "forgiveness" for lumps and bumps. Don't go overboard with that last part. I suggest you adopt my "people know what you look like" principle. When you are standing before me, if you have a belly, love handles, or padded thighs, or whatever other feature you might like to hide, I know. And not just me, everyone else, too. And that's fine. You are not obligated to anyone to not have those features, and no matter your lifestyle some of them may never go away. And you can't hide them anyway, because we can see you. Clothing "illusions" don't work.

3. Waist Definition

This one really depends on the individual. Basically, I just wanted to note that depending on how adipose tissue distributes on your individual body and how much there is, some women might feel better defining less or more than her straight size counterpart in the same IA. For example, a YangN who becomes quite busty and full through the hips when overweight may want to choose garments that are a little less free flowing around the waist. On the other hand, the YinN who has lost waist definition with weight gain may feel more flattered by garments that don't have a specific waist point. There is a tendency to overemphasize waist definition as the deciding factor on Yin vs Yang typing and the truth is there's more to it. Perhaps the most important thing to keep in mind is that any one given guideline is much less important than what you are trying to communicate through your clothes.

On behalf of us both, thank you so much for subscribing to Signature/STYLE for our first year. We hope you have enjoyed it and learned a lot, and look forward to searching for more beautiful things for you to wear next year. Please keep an eye on our blogs for details about resubscribing.