← Her Style Podcast | Shopping, Color Palettes, Fashion, Wardrobe, Outfits, Clothing
Her Style Podcast | Shopping, Color Palettes, Fashion, Wardrobe, Outfits, Clothing
320 | The 6 Questions That Instantly Improve Any Outfit
00:20:23
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As women, we're really good at spotting what looks amazing on someone else. I see this all the time inside my group coaching program. You can instantly notice when a friend's outfit looks put together. You can point out exactly what's working. You'll give genuine compliments like, oh my gosh, that color is so good on you. Or I love how you styled that jacket. But when it comes to yourself, everything feels a little harder to see clearly because you're not looking at yourself the same way you look at other people. You're not thinking critically. You're being critical. Being critical sounds like, this doesn't look good on me. I hate this. Why can't I get this right? But thinking critically sounds like, okay, what would make this better? What's slightly off here? What small adjustment would improve this? And that's what I wanna give you today. Because improving an outfit is almost never about changing the whole thing. It's about making tiny, intentional tweaks. But in order to do that, you have to be able to see what's going on. So today, I'm walking you through six simple questions you can ask yourself that will instantly help you improve any outfit. This isn't a checklist to make you overthink getting dressed. It's just a way to help you look at your outfits more clearly and critically so you can make quick, confident decisions and feel better in your clothes every day.
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Welcome to her style podcast, where we're all about empowering you to show up and get dressed every day with confidence.
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I'm your host, Heather Riggs, a 15
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year and counting certified image consultant and color specialist, ready to build a wardrobe and a personal style you love.
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Let's get started. Okay, friend, full disclaimer. I know you might be able to hear a really weird background noise today. I will tell you, my sweet dog, Lilo is laying right under my desk and she is going to town on a bone and she's making these really loud crunching sounds and I'm very sorry. I would normally close her out of my office during these recording sessions, but my family and I were on vacation last week and I just don't have the heart to kick her out of here. She really missed us. We missed her. And she has just wanted to be right by her side, by my feet, on my lap all day long. And so bear with us today. Apologies for any unwanted or unusual background noise. I hope that we can just learn to roll with it. So, anyway, back to the topic at hand. If you've ever stood in your closet trying on two or three different outfits, maybe even five. You know, this is a judgment free zone, and you've ended up with the proverbial clothing trash heap at the end of your try on sesh. You know exactly what I'm talking about today. And it's not that nothing works right. You just can't figure out why your outfit isn't working. And so then often what feels like the easiest thing to do is to start all over. Inevitably, that first outfit always seems to be the one that worked the best. So you gotta go dig everything out of the trash heap and put it back on. And I know this is exhausting, and trust me, I've totally been there. We all have those days and those seasons. And so today, I'm on a mission to help you simplify this, to empower you to start thinking more critically and less critically. Does that make sense? It is the same word, but it means different things. And I want you to start thinking more objectively, let's say that about your outfits so that you can solve the problem of what's not working and move on with your day instead of spiraling out. Now, before we get into the six questions that I'm going to walk you through, I just want to explain the order of these, because I do think that this is important, and it's going to help this feel simple instead of overwhelming. We're not just randomly evaluating your outfit. We want to look at it from all different angles in a way that covers the gap and that gradually stacks up. So I want to help you put on your stylist lens, not to judge yourself, but to observe what's happening a little bit more clearly. So we're going to start with the overall structure of the outfit. I want you to look at how it's sitting on your body, how the pieces are working together. Then we're going to move into what other people actually see. Where the eye goes when you look at the outfit, what stands out first. Then we're going to bring it back to you. Your style, your preferences, how you want to show up and be seen. And then we're going to finish with those four final little refinements and just give everything a confidence check before you walk out the door. So if you've ever stood in front of the mirror and thought, I don't know what's wrong, but something feels off about this, these questions are going to give you a clear path to follow instead of guessing or changing your outfit multiple times or getting frustrated and giving up altogether. Now, of course, you might Want to take some notes today? So if you haven't already, go ahead and grab a piece of paper and a pen or open up the notes app on your phone and just get ready to jot down these six cards. Questions. If there's one that really resonates with you or that you notice you tend to skip over, you might want to put a little star next to that one and make sure that you come back to that and don't skip over it next time you get dressed. Okay, so we've got six questions to go. The first one is, does this outfit feel balanced? This is where I encourage you to start every single time. Because if the shape or proportions of your outfit are feeling off, then nothing else is going to fully fix it. You can accessorize all day long, but it's not going to fix any, any imbalances in your outfit overall. And I would say this is the issue in probably 70 to 80% of the outfits that I help my clients troubleshoot. It almost always comes back to an issue around balance. And this is really about how the outfit is reading on your body. So you're going to look at things like shape, proportions, color, scale. This incorporates a lot of little aspects to it, but you want to think about, is there more visual weight in one area of the body versus another, and if so, is that working for you? And a lot of times, this is where the issue lies. You might have great pieces, and you might love everything that you're wearing individually, but if the proportions feel off even slightly, the whole outfit can look a little bit awkward or almost unfinished. For example, if you're wearing a longer, looser top with a longer, wider pant, and everything just kind of drags the eye down. Or maybe it's the opposite. Maybe you have a delicate, lightweight outfit paired with a heavy, chunky shoe that feels disconnected or adds too much visual weight. If the shape of your clothing feels too heavy, you're going to look lost in your clothing. And believe me, I see this all the time. Women trying to hide their shape in their clothes. But more often than not, that's just adding even more visual weight where you don't want it. So think about the shapes, the proportions, and the balance that you're creating in your outfit from top to bottom. The good news is this is usually the easiest thing to fix. It could look like doing a front tuck, maybe a full tuck. It could involve swapping out your shoes for something at a different scale. It could mean choosing a shorter or longer layering piece, pushing up your sleeves Sometimes that is the easiest fix in an outfit. You wouldn't believe it. Or adding a belt. Little things that shift the overall balance or read of the outfit. This is a small nuance, but it can make a massive difference in how put together you feel and how your outfit looks overall. Okay, the second question. What's the focal point of this outfit? Where does your eye go first? Because every outfit benefits from having a clear focal point. It could be a beautiful color, a statement top, a great pair of shoes. It could be the line movement and where it draws the eye. For example, if there's any draping or ruching or detailing in your outfit itself. And this is where you can start being a lot more intentional with your styling. Instead of just putting clothes on, you're going to ask, what do I actually want to highlight here? Let's not leave this up to chance. We've talked about this in other episodes recently, and it's the difference between getting dressed and styling your outfit. When we're not dressing with intention, we just put clothes on. But stylish women decide what they want you to notice so you can be strategic. We're going to use the art and science of style to direct the eye where you want it to go. As I said, my family and I were on vacation this past week, and on our way home, I noticed the most gorgeous woman in the TSA line behind us. There wasn't anything really remarkable or spectacular about her outfit itself. She was just wearing an oversized white button down blouse. She had on a pair of beige trousers and some sandals. But she had the most gorgeous choker necklace on. It elevated her entire outfit and it drew the focus right to her face. I mean, she was a beautiful woman. Her makeup and hair looked flawless. But it was funny because even my husband noticed. And without any prompting for me, he was like, oh, that woman looks really stylish. And I was like, yes, she does. And I might need to up my airport game just a little bit because she was definitely the most glamorous looking woman in that line. And it was all because of that one key focal point. Her necklace really just drew the eye in. It made a big statement. So I want you to think about those little details. If that was missing, would she have still looked beautiful? Absolutely. Would she have grabbed our attention in such a big, big way? I'm not so sure. So maybe, like her, you want to draw attention to your face. Maybe you want to highlight your waist or your legs. Your focal point, whatever it is, wherever it is, helps direct the eye exactly where you want it to go. And if there's no clear focal point or if everything's kind of competing equally, the outfit can feel a little bit flat or it can feel very scattered. So just take a neutral step back or snap a quick photo of your outfit and then ask yourself, where does my eye go first? Is that where you want to draw the attention? And if not, what can you add or adjust to redirect the focus? This is your opportunity to be strategic and to highlight your favorite features while also naturally downplaying anything you're more self conscious about. I always advise, don't focus on your perceived flaws. Instead, focus on your favorite things, and then everything else will just kind of fall to the wayside. All right, friend, the third question is, is this outfit competing with me for. For attention? So now that you've identified your focal point, we want to make sure that nothing in your outfit is overpowering you, because my feeling is that you should be the focus, not your clothes. Of course you want to wear beautiful things that capture some attention and that make you feel good or get you the compliments. But if someone looks at you, do they see you first or do they see your outfit first? The latter can happen when maybe the print that you're wearing is too bold in size or color, or your top and bottom are very high contrast. Contrast. But you have low contrast coloring. So, for example, if you're wearing a stark black and white outfit, but you have blonde hair and fair skin, you might look overpowered in that. Or there are just too many statement elements happening all at once, and we're kind of losing sight of you sometimes. The fix here is really simple. You might just want to remove one thing or tone something down or swap in a more neutral piece to let everything breathe a little bit. I also love the idea of using your makeup here too. So if you're wearing something bold, like a bright color or a really strong print, and you're feeling a little lost or washed out, it might not be that the outfit's a problem. It just might be that your face needs to have a little bit more presence so that you can stand up alongside that powerful look. So you might want to try adding a bold lip color or maybe some more definition around your eyes, something that helps you stand out within the outfit that can make such a big difference. So this is where you're gonna start to notice that compliments will shift from. Your dress is amazing to. You look amazing. I know that's a very different feeling, and it's a subtle nuance but it's really powerful when you start hearing compliments on how you look before you hear compliments on what you're wearing. Because even if you have a creative or a dramatic style, we don't want your outfit to have more personality than you do. I always want what you wear to compliment you, to highlight your best, and to bring the focus to you. Okay, the fourth question is, does this feel like me and how I want to show up today? We've always got to come back to the psychology piece because it's not just about how great your outfit looks. It's about does it support you in what you practically need to do that day and the goals that you have for how you want to be perceived. So this one is all about your identity check. You can have an outfit that technically looks great, but if it doesn't feel like you, it's still going to feel off. And you've probably had that experience where you wore something that looked great on paper, but you just kept adjusting it all day or you didn't feel fully comfortable or like yourself in it. Maybe you saw a similar outfit on someone else and you thought it looked phenomenal. And then on you, it doesn't quite translate and you're trying to force it to work. But these are the outfits that you end up second guessing or regretting wearing after you leave the house. So this is where your style keywords really come into play. And this is where I want you to think about how it is that you want to feel. What do you have going on on your calendar for the day? What does your day actually look like? And what kind of outfit is going to work best for those occasions? And then, of course, how do you want to be perceived by other people? And this isn't necessarily to cater to others, but to make sure that you're making the right and best possible impression in a way that aligns with your personal style and how you want to feel. So all of those elements really need to come together in order for your outfit to be the best it possibly can and to fully support you. Maybe you want to feel relaxed or chic or confident or approachable. And if your outfit doesn't align with that, even if it's cute, even if it's on trend, you're probably not going to feel your best in it. So this question helps bring everything back to you, because again, the goal isn't just to look good, it's to feel like the best version of yourself in what you're wearing. The fifth question is, what's adding interest to this look. And this is what takes an outfit from fine to finished. Because sometimes an outfit technically works, but it just feels a little bit flat, a little bit forgettable, like it's fine. No one's offended here, but no one's going to be impressed either. And I want you to think about maybe a really simple jeans and T shirt outfit. It's not wrong. But compare that to the same outfit with a great belt, a cool necklace, maybe a vintage jacket or a more intentional shoe, and suddenly it's feeling really well styled. Like the woman I saw at the airport. Her outfit you could have copy pasted onto anyone. There was nothing really remarkable about it. But she added that necklace and the finishing touches of her hair and makeup, and she looked beyond flawless. And interest doesn't mean that you need to add a bunch of things. It just means there's something intentional happening there. Again, it could be a pop of color. Maybe it's a mix of textures, a layer that was missing and really just kicks it up a notch, or an accessory. Sometimes it's as simple as adding a necklace, switching your shoes, or throwing on another layer. You don't necessarily need a lot more. You just need something that gives the outfit a little bit of life. And then the final question is, would I feel confident being seen in this? This is your last check. Because at the end of the day, the best outfit is the one that you feel good and confident in. So think about running into someone you know, being out and about all day, seeing a photo of yourself later. Even if you are working from home and you have no meetings and you have no plans to see anyone, if you got that last minute call for something fun to go do, or if you had to go pick your kid up from school, would you be able to run out the door and feel confident and feel like yourself? If the answer is no, it doesn't necessarily mean that you need to change your whole outfit. Sometimes the outfit itself is fine. It might just be how you're presenting yourself within it. So that could look like taking an extra second to finish styling your hair or adding a little makeup. I always say, even if I'm in sweats on a Saturday morning, if I put on a little concealer and a great lip color, I feel like a complete, completely different person. Nothing about the outfit changed, but everything about how I feel in it does. Maybe it's taking a second to steam the wrinkles out of your clothes or to clean up your shoes. If you got some scuff marks going on and you haven't attended to that in a little while. Or it could just mean grabbing the cute purse instead of the practical one that takes your outfit to the next level. It's those finishing touches that signal I showed up for myself today. I feel good in what I'm wearing. I can present myself with confidence, and I can move on with my day without second guessing what I'm wearing. So I don't want you to overlook that piece of it. And, friend, here is the best part of all of this. You don't have to run through all six questions every single time you get dressed. Sometimes just one of these is going to solve the problem for you. So you might look in the mirror and realize, oh, this is just really imbalanced. I need to switch my shoes or add another layer up top. Or this outfit's fine. It just needs a little bit more interest. So I'm gonna reach for the colorful necklace instead of the metallic one. Or I actually like this. I just don't feel put together yet. So I'm gonna add a swipe of my favorite lip color or put a little color on my cheeks, and that's it. That's your tweak right there. And instead of spiraling and changing your entire outfit five times, you can make one small, intentional shift and move on with your day. This does not need to be complicated. It doesn't need to take you a long time. But the more you practice asking yourself these kinds of question, easier it becomes to see your outfits more clearly. Let me read them off to you one more time. The first one is, does this outfit feel balanced? Number two, what's the focal point here? Is that working for you? Is it not? What do you need to shift there? Number three, is this outfit competing with me for attention? Do you need to tone up your appearance or tone it down? Number four, does this feel like me? And how I want to show up today? Five, what's adding interest to this look? And number six, would I feel confident being seen in this? You can also come up with your own list of questions too. This is not an exhaustive list. It's just one that I feel like really well, touches all the different areas that you probably want to think about before you leave the house. Now, one of our collective members has been challenging herself with the question, what can I put together that I would want to take a photo of and add to my Pinterest outfit library? That question and others like it have been making her so much more intentional with how she styles her everyday outfits. And it has been amazing to see her confidence as her own best stylist really growing as a result of that. I'm telling you, those small, intentional changes make a huge difference. Because getting dressed isn't about being perfect, it's really about being intentional. And when you learn how to look at your outfits with a more objective and thoughtful lens instead of a critical one, you will start to trust yourself and your abilities as a stylist a whole lot more. And that is when getting dressed actually starts to feel easier, lighter, and a lot more fun. I hope this served you in such a big way today, friend. Make sure that you join me back here next week because we're gonna take
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this a step further and talk about
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what to do when you are bored with all of those beautiful things that you bought in your wardrobe. So we will tackle why new clothes feel exciting when you buy them, but somehow lose that magic really quickly. So we're gonna dive into that in our next conversation on Tuesday. I can can't wait to see you back here then.
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Thank you for listening to today's episode. If you want to stop copying everyone else's style and start dialing in your own swoon worthy signature look, head over to take my free 5 minute personal style quiz which you can find at the link in the show notes. If you've enjoyed our time together, please be sure to rate, review and subscribe to her style podcast so you never miss an episode. Finally, I invite you to make this a two way conversation and send me a DM over on Instagram eatherigstyle to let me know how I can best support you on your style journey. I'm always here for you in style and service. Until next time.