Fashion

Dressing for Success in a Down Economy

By Nicola Ruiz, Forbes.com

With unemployment on the rise, upgrading your officewear might help you hold on to your job.

"It is so important to upgrade the work wardrobe, especially in difficult times," says Scotti Gaylord, director of sales and marketing for Adrian Jules, a Rochester, N.Y.-based made-to-measure tailor. "Hanging on to older garments reinforces the sense of austerity. ... When a gentleman invests in new attire, the message is very clear: He [and the company] is healthy and confident."

Perhaps the most important upgrade is the suit. While you may not receive frowns in a 10-year-old suit, you will most likely get compliments when you upgrade to a modern style. Today's contemporary suits, such as the two-button, side-vented silhouettes by Adrian Jules, are less boxy than what was offered in the past with less excess fabric to make you look slimmer and more youthful.

For women, power dressing has never been easier. Feminine yet work-appropriate looks peppered the runways this spring. Pretty, structured skirt suits, high-waisted, wide-legged trousers and belted dresses by designers like Akris Punto and Michael Kors will be hitting the stores this fall.

Bag It
A serious "work bag" is another opportunity to make a statement. Women know this and often rotate their bags with the seasons. Men have a tendency to cling to a backpack or
beat-up briefcase. They'd be better off opting for a classic textured-leather messenger bag that will take one seamlessly from the office to the weekend, thanks to interior pockets for paper work, a cellphone, business cards and pens.

When "casual Friday" comes around, some make the dreadful mistake of thinking it's Saturday morning. The jeans that you wear to work should not be the same ones you wear to walk the dog and mow the lawn. Men should try dark and dressy washes in a stretch fabric with a medium rise. Women can play it safe with a bootcut unfaded stretch denim pair with no whiskers, abrasions or distressing.

Extras, Extras
Finally, wear accessories. While the last thing on, they are often the first thing noticed and shouldn't be an afterthought.

Men's accessories, such as a watch and belt, should be kept minimal. If you plan to purchase only one accessory, make it a pair of great cufflinks. In today's business casual environment, the shirt has become the "jacket," which allows you to show some personal style. Rolled-up cuffs often look sloppy. French cuffed shirts with beautiful cufflinks, however, look professional, and add the perfect finish to a quality shirt.

"It used to be that 25 percent of shirts sold in stores were French cuffs and 75 percent were regular barrel cuffs, but now with the popularity of cufflinks, that number has flipped," says
jewelry designer Robin Rotenier. "Men have so few opportunities to accessorize; cufflinks are really the only place where a man can tell something about his personality, hobbies or sense of humor."

For women, statement jewelry is a must-have and can transform and immediately upgrade an outfit. Unlike men, whose options are restricted, women can tastefully go big and bold and can choose between a ring, bracelet, necklace, earrings or even a broach. The best part is that you don't need any other jewelry — just let the one eye-catching piece take the spotlight.

Joan Hornig, a New York-based jewelry designer and Wall Street veteran, knows a thing or two about jewelry in the workplace.

"Wearing the right jewelry shows a woman knows quality and she is not afraid to show it," she says. "It sends a powerful message that she has taken the time to prepare and understands the value of completing things — dotting her I's and crossing her T's. It shows she can communicate good judgment."

Save Money On Clothing

By Jill Cooper www.TipHero.com

It’s that time of year when everyone is thinking about fall wardrobes or kids' back to school clothes. We get so many questions about how to save on groceries but very few about how to save on clothes, even though many people spend two or three times as much per month on clothes than they do on their groceries.

I was talking to a woman recently who was bemoaning the fact she had just lost her job and didn’t know what she was going to do for medical insurance. Then she started talking about how much she loved her clothes and couldn’t give up buying them. She had a large collection of shoes, purses and tops. She owned over 150 pairs of pants. It hadn’t even dawned on her that if she had taken the money she had spent on all those clothes she could have easily paid for many years worth of insurance.

It’s time we start rethinking our clothing budgets. Try these tips to save some money on your clothing budget:

1.Stop shopping for clothes because of the “high” it gives you. When you use shopping as a drug, you no longer think rationally about how much money you're spending.
2.Stop shopping for clothes because it builds your self esteem. Yes, clothes do make us feel good about ourselves and there is nothing wrong with that, but you don’t need 150 pairs of pants to do that. Shopping for self esteem is trying to fix an emotional problem with a physical solution and that will get you nowhere. That makes as much sense as discovering that your car ran out of gas and trying to solve the problem by washing it to try and make it run again. You’re working on the wrong problem.
3.Plan your family’s wardrobes. Don't just buy a cute top and take it home hoping you’ll find something to go with it. If you need a suit jacket, get one you can wear to the office or that you can wear casually with jeans. Do you really need five pairs of black pants? Instead of buying another pair of black pants, why not buy a white blouse that will go with that pair of pants and skirt that you already have but that don't match anything else?
4.Take care of the clothes that you do have:

◦If things aren’t dirty, wear them again. The less you wash things the longer they last. (Of course I don’t mean underwear.)
◦Hang up the clothes you can wear again when you take them off. So many kids and adults just drop their clothes on the floor when they take them off and later throw them in the laundry so they don’t have to hang them up. Not only does this cause you twice as much work, It puts unnecessary wear and tear on your clothes.

5.Learn basic sewing. Don’t get rid of that shirt because it is missing a button. Don't throw out your daughters jeans because they have a hole. Take two minutes to sew a button on the shirt or an applique on the jeans. (Yes, it really does take two minutes to sew on a button. Time yourself next time. You'll be surprised.)
6.Use the clothes you do have well. If jeans have a hole that can’t be fixed then have the kids wear them for play clothes or cut them off for shorts. If that dress of yours is getting outdated, take out the shoulder pads or add shoulder pads (depending on the style),or take up or let down the hem. Update your outfits with different accessories
7.Hang clothes on the line or rack to dry when possible. Dryers create a lot more wear and tear on the fabrics and usually destroy all elastic.

I do live in the real world and know that most people, like me, love clothes so I’m not saying don't ever buy anything new. If you’re serious about controlling your spending or reducing debt then don’t let your clothes shopping get out of control.

Remember: Stop buying clothes to satisfy your emotional needs. This will save you not only money, but also time, energy and the stress of taking care of all the clutter those extra clothes will cause.

How to Save on Clothing Basics

Experts offer smart strategies for finding deals on everything from tights to tees.

by Maura Kelly

1Search clearance sections. Type “clearance” into the search field of a retailer’s website. Hanes.com and Jockey.com, for instance, regularly offer discounts of 50 percent on bras, panties, and tights. Hue.com, known for its legwear and lingerie, has a clearance section that offers many items for nearly half price.
2Register with shopittome.com. Check off your size, favorite brands (choose from 537 labels, such as Ann Taylor and Levi’s), and clothing preferences (dresses, denim) and you’ll receive a weekly or daily e-mail alerting you to online sales.
3Get a store credit card. Certain big retailers give special discounts to cardholders. Kohl’s sends out 30 percent off coupons four times a year, Gap cardholders get 10 percent off the first Tuesday of the month, and American Eagle gives 20 percent off on your birthday.
4Log on before you hit the stores. About to head out to Nordstrom (or Bloomingdale’s or Lord & Taylor)? Go to the store’s site first to look for specials, like unadvertised in-store sales and buy-one-get-one-free offers. You may also find printable coupons you can take with you.
5Time shopping to coincide with sales. Gap and Banana Republic, for instance, both mark down midweek. Shop on Wednesday and you’ll find a large selection of sale items. Ask favorite stores about their policies.
6Tip: Before you place an online order, look for discount codes at retailmenot.com and mybargainbuddy.com.

The Experts

1Kim Danger is a family-savings expert for coupons.com.
2Karen Hoxmeier runs the site MyBargainBuddy.com.
3Helen Malani is the chief shopping authority for the search engine Shopzilla.
4Jaci Rae is the author of Shop for a Day with Jaci Rae (North Shore Records, $26. amazon.com).