Pick Clothes That Convey Message You Want to Send, Consultants Say
In her casual mustard-colored suit, matching beads and belt, Jennifer Melles does not look in need of a fashion make over.
Yet she has come to Brea Mall in search of a new style, participating in a wardrobe workshop with image consultants Diane Parente and Alyce Parsons, authors of “Universal Style--Dress for Who You Are and What You Want.”
“I’d like to be elegant,” Melles tells the duo, sitting at a table set up in the center of the mall.
“OK, let’s play,” Parente says.
Immediately the two consultants jump up from the table and begin sifting through a rack of clothing and accessories they had gathered from stores throughout the mall. Off comes Melles’ casual jacket for a more classically tailored olive blazer with a wide, black belt.
“We’re going to pretend this matches your skirt,” Parsons says.
Parente finds a barrette to tack up the loose tendrils of Melles’ French twist, giving her a smoother hair style.
“I wonder if we have earrings that could make her less sporty?” Parsons asks. She finds the perfect pair on the earlobes of a bystander. Melles’ gold-hoop earrings are quickly replaced by large button-style ones.
Within minutes, the consultants have transformed Melles’ sporty look into a streamlined, elegant style.
“I look so different--it’s nice,” says Melles, peering into a hand mirror. “The earrings are really big. I probably wouldn’t have picked them myself. But they look very good. I’m happy.”
Parente and Parsons have developed a fashion philosophy based on the notion that clothes convey distinct messages about the wearer.
Put on a loose blouse with a lace collar, and you’ll be seen as caring, warm and nurturing, goes their theory. Don a double-breasted blazer, and you’ll be seen as responsible and reliable--ready to do battle in the board room.
In their new “Universal Style” book, unveiled at the mall, they have outlined seven fashion styles--sporty, feminine, dramatic, traditional, alluring, creative and elegant--that reflect different aspects of one’s personality.
“Every style has a message,” Parsons says. “You want clothes that say what you want them to say.”
A woman who dresses in a feminine style, for instance, gives off a non-threatening message that makes others feel at ease, according to the authors. She favors full and flowing skirts, dresses with detailed collars and shoulders and loose-fitting, modest tops.
To illustrate the look, the experts point out a mall executive wearing a lace collar over her pink blouse and pleated navy skirt.
By contrast, one who favors the alluring style likes clothes that don’t hide or conceal the body.
“Make it tight,” Parente suggests. “Donna Karan has given the look credibility.” Karan’s leggings and body suits are examples of the alluring style.
Still, “it’s not a great business look,” Parente warns.
Parsons and Parente say clothes should match one’s profession and goals as well as personality. An interior designer, for instance, should develop a creative style that combines clothes in a nonconforming way to demonstrate her artistic instincts.
“We have to dress very dramatic,” Parsons says. The dramatic style, which projects a bold and confident image, calls for clothes with exaggerated color contrast and asymmetric or architectural designs, such as jackets with wide shoulders and over-scaled lapels coupled with narrow skirts.
Both women wore black and white tunic-style knit dresses to the workshop, but subtle differences in their dramatic attire gave clues to their personalities.
Parsons sported a cream and black-knit tunic dress with pearl button earrings. The dress originally had wide, loose sleeves which she had altered for a more fitted look.
“The elegant style is a really pared-down, clean look,” she says. “You need to get rid of extra details.”
In keeping with the sporty style, Parente wore a looser knit dress with a long, flowing cardigan that had big pockets.
Every woman has two or three styles she can combine for an individual look, say the authors.
“Some women aren’t sure what they want their clothes to say about them,” Parsons says. “Style is determined by how you spend your time, your personality, your goals and priorities.”
Most err by mixing up too many conflicting styles. They’ll wear a sporty suit with creative earrings and elegant shoes.
“Or they dress on one note so it’s monotonous. The clothing doesn’t capture all of the woman,” Parsons says.
“Most businesswomen dress too safe,” Parente adds. “They can keep the suit but change their earrings, shoes and top and give their outfit a little more spunk.”
Parsons, who lives in Saratoga, Calif., and Parente, who lives in Marin, Calif., met eight years ago through an image consulting association. Together they have trained image consultants and their Universal Style concept evolved from their work. Their book will be used at community colleges, including Saddleback and Orange Coast.
The two have trained more than 100 merchant sales associates at Brea Mall to implement their ideas long after they’ve returned to their Northern California homes.
By studying a shopper’s style, merchants can pick up valuable clues about what types of clothes she might buy and how she shops, Parsons says.
“When a sporty woman comes in, they’ll know to give her lots of choices. Sporty women want to get in and out of there fast,” she says. “A feminine woman will be much more ponderous. She might spend a couple of hours in the store. Once the merchants know that, they’ll leave them alone.”
About 50 stores in the mall have adopted the Universal Style program, and Parente and Parsons have charted out which of those stores cater to distinct styles. At Ann Taylor, for example, the pair found sporty, traditional and elegant styles, while at Bebe they found alluring, creative and dramatic looks.
A calendar of events and a Universal Style directory of participating merchants can be found at the mall’s information booth in Center Court. The mall will provide a free personal shopping service through Sept. 30 with Kathryn Hasan, a personal shopper who uses the Universal Style concept.
Kathryn Bold is a regular contributor to Orange County View.
