How many times have you looked at fashion magazines or style shows and wished for clothing with designer labels? Wish no more my bargain hunting ladies of high fashion!

I am going to let you in on something some of you may know but others have yet to find out about. My close friends smile when I wear a new outfit because they know by now where I shop. Yes I shop from television and proudly say I have labels with a pedigree. Bradly Bayou, Dennis Basso , George Simeton Cloe Dao , Clinton Kelly, and Nolan Miller, to name just a few. Three of my favorite handbag designers are Stone Mountain, Kathy Vanzeeland and Maxx of New York. Jewlery designers include Joan Rivers, Nolan Miller, Judith Ripka, and RLM Studios.

What makes shopping from television so attractive to me? Its very simple. First, I know its going to fit if you have been honest measuring yourself. How many times have you gone into a mainstream store and taken in several items in the same size only to be disappointed because some just don’t fit? QVC has all its designers cut to the same size chart. Second, I have thirty days to try the outfit on with my own accessories and foundation garments to make sure I like it. Third, they come to my door. No hunting for parking spaces or worrying about being accosted in the parking lot.

Buying things from television just makes sense to me.Think about it. They may have 500 sometimes as many as 30,000 of one item but the shows are nationwide. What is the chance of meeting someone with the same outfit? Not much!

Plug into shopping electronically and I am sure you will get a charge out of it!

Tweet This Post

Today as I was thinking of what to post, I thought I would add in some antidotes about my travels to becoming a confident woman of style and fashion.

One true story happened on Christmas around the time I was six or seven. Living in the mountains of North Carolina, the weather is often so cold that Christmas was the time of year for a new coat. Well this time I got what my little heart perceived as the most beautiful coat in the whole world. It was chocolate brown with a striped brown and white scarf. The hood was lined in fur. As I left out for Sunday school, I admired myself in every window I passed. After church I went to put on my coat and lo and behold I had gained weight. Yes I knew that concept as I had been put on my first diet at five years old.

The walk home was so slow and hard as I cried all the way home. My poor mother could not get me to tell her what was wrong. I could not eat a bite. I just sat quietly with tears running down my face. Then there was a knock at our door. Standing there was one of my schoolmates dressed in an all too familiar coat that was at least two sizes too big for her. As our six year old brains processed what had happened, we both started to giggle. Now my tears were for joy of having MY coat back. I didn’t even care that she had one like me. My feet could hardly keep from doing the holy roller happy dance.

Tweet This Post

Only coming into fashion for women during World War 1 for work purposes, pants are now acceptable apparel for everyday. This is one of the most abused pieces of clothing around. To paraphrase Johnny Corcoran, “if the pants don’t fit, the wearer should quit (wearing them)!”

How many times have you watched a women walk by stuffed in pants too tight or ill fitting to be on the street? Well let me tell my sisters of all sizes. Just because a designer or manufacturer makes something in your size it does not mean its appropriate for your body type. Pants can be tricky. They have to fit at the waist. No gaping in the back. We do not need to see your Victoria Secret thongs. If you are lucky enough to have large hips and a small waist, buy the pants to fit the hips but invest in a little tailoring to customize them to fit you.

This raises another area that needs careful attention. Too short a rise will create the deeded muffin tops. Good for Sara Lee, but bad on any size female. Too long a rise will be uncomfortable and give you the old lady look. The thigh area is one place where fitting can make or break a pair of pants.

Heavy thighs should not be stuffed into the skinny pants and skinny thighs need less material so as not look as if they are lost in them. Each year fashion designers will tell you what the “in” thing is, but women who dress well, will go with what is their best look. Also the type of shoe can dictate what your pants length should be.

There are pants in all lengths, including shorts. We should burn the short shorts, but most women can wear some type, if the length is appropeiate for their size and age. Capris and cropped pants are not good for short, full figured women. They cut the legs off and make them look dumpy.

A good pair of pants can make or break an outfit. They can also make for a long day if they don’t fit well. Don’t do the crime of buying pants that make you look and feel bad. Clothes should be an extension of your personality and not a billboard letting the world know that you should have checked the mirror before you left home!

Tweet This Post