• Your personality
• Your degree of self-awareness
• Your attitudes
• Your social background
• Your level of self-esteem
• Your associations
• Your intentions
• Your financial circumstances

These things are subconsciously determined from your clothes. What you wear, how you wear them, their quality and how well you wear them. So if a professional representation is what you want to visually portray,  then it is important to get it right the first time. The adage “you never get a second chance to make a first impression” certainly rings true for professional image. In addition to that, psychologists tell us we make these judgments and assessments in less than a minute!

Take a moment to think about the image presented by Colin and Cheryl in their first guise and then how different we may think of them in their second guise after a professional makeover. The only element of change about them is their appearance and yet in the first guise we may make all kinds of dispersions about them.

By appreciating the messages your clothes are sending out  about you and realizing that you are in control of those messages you will have made the first step towards achieving your professional image.

Whether we like it or not people who care about their appearance are seen to be more credible and capable than those who don’t care. A well dressed and groomed woman will be seen to have a higher level of intelligence and motivation plus a higher level self-esteem and confidence. She will also be assumed to be more likely to care about, value and be capable of taking on tasks and managing other people than someone who is poorly groomed.

Remember, judgments are made about people based on the professional image they display as a result of appearance and behavior. This occurs even before the individual’s level of competence or performance is determined. In the words of Lauren Morgan Roberts “If you are not managing your own professional image, others are.”

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They say even Audrey Hepburn had issues with her legs and knees. Givenchy knew how to dress Audrey in such a way we didn’t even notice. In fact Audrey Hepburn remains at the top when it comes to icons of style along with women like Princess Dianna and Jackie Onassis. While such women may have innate style, would they have achieved their true visual potential if they had not been guided by a personal stylist?

Some fortunate individuals are born with good taste and style; they have a natural sense of colour and design. Many of us are not so lucky or naturally gifted. We learn what we can from those who influence us in our lives, from magazines or simply by trial and error. Which is why in so many cases we end up with a wardrobe full of clothes but “we have nothing to wear”! That’s why a personal stylist is worth the investment.

Before a stylist dresses an individual they consider the following:-

• Colouring
• Fit
• Lifestyle
• Personal dressing style
• Occupation
• Available budget
• Available time
• Shopping know-how
• Wardrobe organization
• Co-ordination skills
• Accessory know-how

Under their tuition they will help you to develop a style that reconciles with what suits your height, shape and age from what’s currently in fashion and to understand which looks are appropriate for which occasions. You will learn to co-ordinate colours, patterns and which fabrics drape well on your body shape. The gaining of this knowledge will give you the confidence to become creative with your wardrobe. Then dressing will become a pleasure and shopping a dream.

Karen Before A Personal Stylist

Karen After A Personal Stylist

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It is said that we wear 20% of our wardrobes 80% of the time. That translates to thousands of our hard earned dollars spent and wasted on clothes we don’t wear. The evidence is right there in your wardrobe. There they are, all those poor orphan garments hanging unworn and unloved, most of them clutching invisible ‘guilty tags” to make you feel bad.

We’ve all at some time hit the shops in a mad passion to buy something new that will make us look terrific. With money in our pockets or a credit card handy, we’ve all scoured the shops for hours for that special little number, only to return home empty handed or even worse, with that item that smacks of ‘this will have to do’ to quench our desire to buy something. As a result our wardrobes contain only a few items that make us feel good, and so we wear these most of the time. Shopping becomes a chore, success is a matter of luck and finding items that make us look great seems to get more difficult with each passing year. With all this to consider you really cannot afford not to enlist the services of a personal shopper!

Not only will a personal shopper ultimately save you a fortune, but with their trained eye will also be able to choose items for you based on their judgment and understanding of your colouring, body shape and proportions, your lifestyle and your personality style. Garments are carefully selected to harmoniously mix and match with each other and to go with what is already in your wardrobe.

So all the work is done for you !

Consider hiring a personal shopper as an investment in you even if your clothing dollar is limited. It makes good sense to spend money on someone that knows what they doing and who will ultimately achieve for you a wardrobe of clothes that really work for YOU.

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In order that the changes are successful in the  medium to long term, the personal stylist needs to learn some important aspects about the client. First and foremost they must know and understand the social and professional life of the client. If the new image is to endure, it needs to support and complement the client’s lifestyle, otherwise the changes will be transitory and quite meaningless.

Another important consideration is the style personality of the individual. We each have a way of dressing that communicates to the world our values, our interests, our inner self.  Our style personality will very often determine how people interpret, value and respond to us.  For many people it is almost instinctive and a result of who we are and where we come from. For example, if you are someone who loves the outdoors, enjoys participating in sports, has an athletic figure and has better things to do than spend time on make-up and acrylic nails, you probably have a relaxed, casual style personality. On the other hand if you have an eye for detail, love geometric  patterns, bold colours, are tall and statuesque and in a position of authority, chances are your style personality is dramatic. Other personality types include romantic, alluring, classic, elegant and innovative. A personal stylist is adept at analysing someone’s style personality as well as helping a client to develop and enhance it further.

One of the final considerations but certainly not the least is the physical attributes of the client. This includes their horizontal and vertical proportions, physical fitness and tone, significant features such as a sway back or broad shoulders, their face shape, neck length and colouring.

Once all these considerations have been taken into account, a personal stylist is ready to start the transformation process. The first step is creating the perfect make-up that will enhance the client’s colouring and face shape while suiting her style personality and lifestyle. The next step in the process is choosing a fabulous hairstyle and if necessary, colour. When these things are done, then it’s time to hit the shops and find the clothes that beautifully reflect the personality style of the client and at the same time flatter her face and figure. This often involves educating people in the current trends and how to make them work for the individual. Accessorising frequently plays an important part in this, because its shoes, handbags, jewellery and belts that truly create the total look. They are also brilliant tools for updating someone’s image and expressing their style.

So, the role of a personal stylist is quite complex but if you are looking to revamp your image, reinvent yourself or discover your visual potential, they are well worth the investment.

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If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then you would love the help of a professional image consultant who offers personal shopping as one of their services. A personal shopper is very adept at working out your physical proportions and colouring so that she can quickly identify styles and hues that will look fabulous on you. A personal shopper is also very aware that your style personality and lifestyle have to be considered and they can asses these very quickly also.

Knowing where to find the perfect garment to suit your requirements is another valuable skill that a personal shopper has in her repertoire. They are familiar with the labels, designers and stores. They know who makes for women with a romantic, feminine style. They know where to find the perfect outfit for someone who loves classic quality or edgy and innovative or casual and laid back.  Being able to hone in quickly is such a bonus. Not only does it save on shoe leather, but it saves time; and that’s a commodity so many of us lack these days.

Objectivity is another positive trait in the personal shopper’s favour. Unlike boutique owners who have an agenda to move product (and that’s not a criticism, after all it’s their livelihood) the personal shopper has only one vested interest – YOU! Her agenda is to find you clothes that you love and that look fabulous on you. If one store doesn’t have what you need, then she moves on – with you in tow.

It’s also great to have the practical assistance of someone holding your bags, finding you a dressing room, changing sizes, looking for the shop assistant and later the cash register.  Shopping can be very tiring, so the spare pair of hands a personal shopper offers is a real treat.

She’ll also be very good at keeping track mentally of your purchases and seeing the wonderful possibilities of combining different purchases in different ways. And when there’s a gap, she’ll be quick to recognise it. Too often we come home from a day at the mall with something that we’ve bought only to realise that we have no shoes, bag, jewellery or scarf to go with it. So then this new purchase hangs there till you have a chance to rectify the situation. A personal shopper excels in creating entire outfits in one shopping trip.

If you hate shopping, and many women do, you might actually find that you learn to love it after a professional shows you how.

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Many women relate to wearing 20% of their wardrobe 80% of the time. The evidence is right there. All those poor orphan garments hanging there unworn and unloved.

Why we lose our way:

1. We are influenced by the likes and dislikes of others
2. We are not taught anything about our own body shape and how to dress it
3. Fashion is constantly changing
4. We age and become unsure of our style
5. Our body changes shape four times over our lifetime
6. We lose and gain weight
7. Our lifestyle and values change

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A Profile of

“Absolutely Fabulous Image Consultancy”

Michele Gillett and Sharron-Del Wakely

Michele and Sharron-Del are qualified Image Consultants expertly trained by The Australian Image Company, one of the world’s most respected image organisations.

They each have 20 years experience in the beauty and image business and showing people how to dress to look and feel fabulous. They have mentored and trained men and women from diverse backgrounds, ranging from socially disadvantaged young people through to professionals in executive positions.

They love working with the power of line, design and colour to transform the way people dress, accessorise and shop. Many people and especially women, wear 20% of their wardrobe 80% of the time and thereby waste a great deal of money on clothes that don’t get worn. With the right information they can change their buying habits so that they develop a wardrobe that is effective and fabulous.

“Absolutely Fabulous Image” offers consultations, seminars and workshops for individuals and business organisations. Michele and Sharron-Del know the importance of a great first impression. An individual’s character, personality and credibility is partially assessed on the basis of their personal presentation. It can deny or create opportunities. Knowing how to dress at times, is serious business.

It is crucial in today’s rapid paced and competitive world that an individual creates a positive first impression. It also needs to be remembered that the professional image of any organisation is the collective visual image of its people. This image can enhance or undermine the success of that organisation.

Our Passion

Giving people the skills and confidence to know how to dress so they can look and feel absolutely fabulous every day.

Call then now to find  out more about their services.

Tel:  02 9542 3042

Mobile:   0409 914 583

Email: michele.abfab@gmail.com

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