Livng and Loving it: Unsolicited for fashion advice

I am the last person who should be giving fashion advice. In fact, my good friend Min Atek will tell you that I was a hard one to teach fashion back in the day, seeing that I always settled for the simplest and most comfortable things. It is not like I am way better now but who says you need to be an expert to give advice?

So, if you are like me who likes to play safe, you could try the following things to help you pick an outfit that will leave you feeling comfortable and happy.

Try the thing on
It should be obvious that you need to try something on to ensure it is the perfect fit. But many of us don’t. We pick a size-14 shirt because it is our size. Only to get home and the shoulders are too big or the waist area too tight. As human beings we are constantly changing in size, height and erm, width. One is rarely the same size throughout their lifetime. You might have been a size 12 before the babies came. You then get pregnant, put on weight and dump some clothes. A year later, you look like you have gone back to size 12. But you might not have. You could actually be size 14. So when you go out to buy some clothes, especially if you are paying handsomely for them, try them on even if you have to do so in a weird dark corner of the shop. It saves you the disappointment when you get home.

Go with a trusted friend
This person needs to be honest (but not rude. Nothing is as annoying as someone who ruins a fun shopping evening with comments bordering on insult). They should be able to tell you that your tummy pops out or that the skirt is too short. They should also know your taste. If you are not the kind who loves all shades bright, they should not insist that you buy a sunflower yellow top with deep purple trousers to go with. It might look nice then, but if yellow is the least of your favourite colours, you will put that top on about twice a year which will be a pity because in two years time, you might have changed sizes.

Try your clothes on every now and then
Another good friend, Betty, would tell me of how she and her sisters would on boring weekends, get out all the clothes they had from the wardrobe, lay them out and try them on. To make it more interesting, they would create a catwalk and model to loud music, laughter and fun. I have taken a leaf and nowadays do the same now and again.
The difference is that there is no music or cat walking and I do it by myself otherwise the little girl will keep saying I look smart with every outfit and I might be deceived! I realise that actually that blue and white shirt does go rather nicely with the blue skirt that I had put away a long time ago and practically forgotten about. And that A skirts work better for me than pencil ones. And that I do not look too bad with yellow.

Listen to people
Finally, listen to what people have to say. If many people have commented that you look good in trousers, it is most likely true. So go on and buy yourself some. Good (not wacky or outrageous) fashion goes away in making your day brighter.

cbeyanga@ug.nationmedia.com