Diane Parente, AICI, CIP

The Dress is a wonderful, easy piece to add to your winter wardrobe, especially for the Holiday season.

The dress is so easy! It is the core of a pulled together look. The right dress will make a woman look great and feel terrific every time she puts the dress on.

The dress is also amazingly diverse. It can be dressed up with evening accessories, turned business under a suit Jacket and pumps and play on the weekend with boots and a boyfriend sweater. A great dress will stand alone for a great look or work with other pieces as part of an ensemble.

Use the dress in a look that suits your style best to create a great style.

• For a classic look, try a structured dress with a patent leather belt and shoes!
• Layers are a very fashion forward and great to keep the chill off. Try layering luxurious pieces over luxurious pieces like a beaded cashmere cardigan over a velvet or satin dress.

To create a festive feel with your Holiday Dress, Look for details that have a Special quality to them:

• Sparkle is a fun way to create a holiday feel to your clothing. The trick is to not over do the sparkle Rich fabrics like velvet, satin, or or even paten and metallic leather have a “special” air to them.
• A bit of lace is feminine and has a dressy look that works well with black satin or a metallic, and can be easily winterized with opaque tights and knits.
• Nothing says the winter holiday traditions more than red plaid or candy cane stripes. But beware, these are bold looks, so treat them with care and use these festive prints in moderation. For a more updated look try this year’s winter florals in red.

Trends for this Season:

Winter Florals, Purple, Brights, Black & White, metallic, velvet, brocade, Embellished Necklines, Bubble Hemlines

Please visit my website for top tips and style recommendations that will help you select the best outfits for this holiday season.

Social Functions
By Diane Parente, AICI CIP

Every professional attends a variety of social business functions during the year, whether an office party, conference dinner dance, or cocktail reception for important clients. What you wear to these events can be challenging. You want to look special, but also have an air of professionalism.

Your professional image always needs to reflect you and your company. The mistake many women make is to have two different personalities, conservative business and daring evening. You want to avoid garments that are too outrageous or alluring, staying instead with tasteful dinner dresses, dressier suits, and pantsuits. Many businesses continue to discuss business even during a social function.

Generally, after-five refers to business attire slightly altered for evening by adding higher heeled shoes, drop earrings and freshening your makeup and hair. Occasionally you may prefer to wear dressier clothing, substituting a colorful dressier top and a distinct belt and shoes. Dinner dresses, suits or dressy pantsuits are appropriate for most formal occasions that are labeled black tie. One suggestion is a basic black dinner dress in wool crepe with a modest scoop neckline worn with a slightly fitted jacket and expensive looking jewelry. You can substitute any darker color for black. Hemlines can be longer for more formal occasions. If in doubt as to what is appropriate, contact the hostess to ask what she will be wearing and take your cue from her.