A New Year, A Chance for a New You (And Me)

I hope everyone had a great holiday week! You might have noticed that I did not post a blog last week. Usually, I pretend not to work when I leave town. This time, I kept my resolve and really didn't except for some emergency FedEx mishaps that needed to be dealt with. Instead, I enjoyed the last week of Max's first year with us and spent quality time with family. Sorry to all of the friends I did not call!

I'm not usually a New Year's resolution list kind of girl, but I was inspired by the lessons I've learned this last year, my first as a Mom. My first blog of 2012 questioned whether or not I would be able to practice what I'd been preaching to my Mom clients for years, not to forget to take care of themselves along the way. So before the resolutions for this year come the lessons learned from this past one.

7 Lessons Learned (In my first year as a Mom)

1. I now know it is ludicrous to tell my Mom clients to put themselves first. Instead, I work with them to make beauty and style (a big frustration for those with no time or sleep!) easy peasy!
2. Prioritize your sanity over the environment for the first few years. Don't take 10 months to be okay with paper plates, as I did. You were right, Mom!
3. If the takeout is good enough, no one cares if you didn't cook. Especially if you add a salad with homemade dressing and an exotic ingredient, such as pomegranate seeds. Luckily, I live across the street from 2 Amy's, the best Neapolitan pizza in DC!
4. Being able to walk out the door with wet hair and still look like you spent half an hour blow drying it is priceless. Spend the time and money on Keratin treatments and a good haircut. 
5. Keep shopping. Don't decide you'll buy new clothes "when you've lost the weight." Buy a new top that fits and makes you feel cute once a month as your size continually changes. It could cost $15 at H&M but inspires you to schedule a much needed night out. 
6. Don't forget about your husband! Ok, easier said than done, but a subscription to a theatre series ensures that we have a date night at least once in a while and exercise our baby brains with a little culture. 
7. Putting on concealer actually makes me feel less tired. Bright lipstick adds another hour of sleep to your face. See my beauty obsessions blog here.

Now for the Resolutions...

A New Year's Resolution List (Suggested)

1. Get a pedicure and a massage at least once a quarter. See my new favorite polish! Like Ruby Slippers for your toes...

Essie Leading Lady $8

2. Remember that I deserve the above

3. Keep spending a lot of money on my hair

4. No yoga pants unless I'm actually doing yoga

5. Do more yoga. Looking for cute yoga pants? See blog on what every girl in yoga class is wearing.

Lululemon Groove Pant New $98 

6. Spend money on important things (like the world's most expensive 1st birthday cake!)

7. Spend less money at Whole Foods by going to Trader Joe's instead

8. Accept all invitations for fun activities, regardless of how tired I am or how much work I have

9. Wear more red lipstick. Tom Ford lipstick is perfection!

Tom Ford Jasmine Rouge $48

10. Last but not least: Be grateful every minute for my beautiful family and the ability to live a life doing what I love, empowering women to feel good about themselves through fashion and style

And a bonus resolution: 

Be kind to yourself when you deviate from your list!

What Would Your Uniform Be?

One of the benefits of using a personal stylist is the amount of time you save getting dressed each and every day, not just for special occasions or date night. I tell my clients that they'll be able to get dressed in two minutes or less once they have gone through the entire styling process with me. My clients and I are able to acheive this fashion freedom by narrowing down the outfit choices to only include complete looks that work for them.  Doing so simplifies the process and provides the client confidence as they select what they'll wear for the day.

Now imagine how long it would take to get dressed if you only had one choice. Thirty seconds or less, perhaps? There are individuals who have decided that they won't waste time or energy on deciding what to wear every day, instead they just wear the same thing every day. Most of these individuals are some of the most creative in our society: fashion designers.

What might surprise you is what these designers adopt for their daily attire. For instance, Giorgio Armani makes incredible suiting but sticks to tee shirts. Of course, if you are a high end shopper, you know that Armani also makes incredible tee shirts if you are willing to spend $500 per.

Giorgio Armani

Other designers' regular garb epitomizes their style a bit more. Alexander Wang sports all black. Tom Ford rocks crisp, white button-downs and sharp but luxurious sport coats.

Alexander Wang

Tom Ford

Things get a bit more confounding when you learn that Marc Jacobs' uniform consists of a kilt, a button down shirt and a blazer. I won't even try to describe the ingredients that make up Karl Lagerfeld's uniform. I'll just show you the picture.

Marc Jacobs

Karl Lagerfeld

Of course one of the people most famous for his uniform was an architect of our lives, not our wardrobes.

Steve Jobs

So, my question to you: what would your uniform be? Post comments, please!