How to Follow Your Own Fashion Advice

When you feel a little wobbly in the world of fashion, it's hard to know how to proceed in putting together a wardrobe that's uniquely you.

You may be tempted to just give up. But, if you do, that's the message you'll be sending to the world. "I give up on dressing." And people will wonder what else you've given up on. Doing a good job? Caring about other people? Paying attention to details?

We tend to assume that the outer person reflects the inner person, whether it's true or not. So, if you care about what your appearance is saying about you, it's critical to learn how to create the style and wardrobe that tells the world who you truly are. Here are some things to consider:

Which colors make you come alive and which make you fade into the surroundings?

This process calls for comparison. Compare reds with other reds. Blues with blues. Greens with greens. Comparing a red top with a green one won't give you the information you want. Note if brown or black is better on you. Can you really do stark full spectrum white, or is off-white the winner?

Check out styles.

You're looking for clothes that make your body look balanced. That means your shoulders and hips look about the same width. Your legs and torso look about the same length. If you weren't born with a balanced body, clothes can give you the illusion of balance. Is your neck a little short? What makes it look longer? Don't have a waist? Create one or camouflage it.

Take a couple of hours to do the following experiment: Go clothes "looking" by yourself.

This is not a shopping trip. It's a play date on your own. You're going to try to understand what works and what doesn't. You're not going to buy anything. Choose some clothes you love the looks of and try them on in the dressing room. Don't even pay attention to price. But really pay attention to what looks great, what looks mediocre, what looks truly awful.

Don't listen to the salespeople. Listen only to yourself.

There's no pressure because you won't be spending any money. In fact, if YOU recognize that something looks absolutely fabulous on you, fills a need in your wardrobe, and you can afford it, you can put it on hold and dream about it overnight. But this is a day to avoid impulsiveness that you might regret. You want to stay open to the process, so you'll want to do it again.

Give yourself a time limit and stick to it.

Just do this as long as it's fun or interesting to you. You're simply educating yourself. And, please don't get discouraged if you don't find anything you think looks wonderful. Sometimes there will be tons of clothes in the stores that suit you and sometimes there won't be many. Just make some notes about what you've learned, and keep them as a reference. You're building a portfolio of information about you.

Do this experiment a few times and you'll have a better understanding of what you want in your closet and on your body.

You'll start feeling great in your clothes because they work for you, and that will reflect in your attitude and behavior. Don't believe that? Just try it. You've got nothing to lose and everything to gain.