In an effort to repurpose and recycle our wardrobes, it gives me great pleasure to officially invite all youlookfabbers to our first official Seattle Clothing Swap. It will be held on Saturday 21 February from 10.30am to noon. Read this forum post for further details on how to participate. See you there!

It’s just a month and a half into the New Year and time to check in on those fashion and style resolutions. Hopefully, you’ve had an opportunity to follow through on some of them. I’ll go first:

• To have regular facials: I’ve had two this year and the next one is booked. Well done Angie.
• To add more knitwear to my wardrobe: I picked up two fancy knits and two basic layering turtle necks on sale. Not very exciting but it was a solid attempt. I’ll continue pursuing this resolution in Autumn.
• To add more skirts to my wardrobe: I’ve purchased three skirts, all of which were on sale. One is a seasonless, high-waisted denim skirt which will comfortably take me through to Spring and Summer. A nice bit of extra bang for my fashion buck.
• To wear my cocktail rings: I started wearing my pearl ring at night. The others are still hibernating but I’m getting there.

I have also made a concerted effort to become more of a bargain shopper. Even though I battle to find items in my size on sale, I managed to pick up those basic layering turtle necks at Banana Republic for $12 each. Unbelievable. I’d also like to extend a special thanks to the forum for helping me find items in my size at reduced prices. Your sale finding abilities are unprecedented.

Look back at your resolution list and tell us how you’re doing. If you haven’t managed to make headway, let us know how we can help.

I seem to have created the impression that “black is not a YLF colour”. Let me set the record straight. It absolutely is. I love black and own many black pieces (like this dress and this biker jacket). So do many of my clients.

I don’t think our wardrobes function well without black pieces and some items look better in black than in any other colour. That being said, I’m not an unconditional advocate of black because it isn’t flop proof.

• Some people wear black well. Others don’t. People who don’t look good in black might prefer brown, grey, ink blue or white as “their black”.
• Falling back on black tops time and time again without adding a contrasting colour to your ensemble is dangerous. This is what I call the black rut and it is just too somber. Angelina Jolie is infamous for being in a black rut, but that has changed recently. She’s incorporating other neutrals and colour into her style mix and in my opinion looks much better for it.
• Wearing black from head-to-toe is hard to pull off. It can look stunning when the outfit is textured, but most of the time it’s a risk.

I do not mean to discourage you from purchasing black wardrobe items. They can be fab. Just ensure that black works for you, stay out of the rut, and incorporate texture when you wear it from head to toe.

This item has wafted in and out fashion for decades and we’ve probably all had one at some point. Now more than ever I’m finding the perfect denim jacket an indispensable wardrobe item and have started to encourage most of my clients to get one.

It’s an extremely effective casual cover-up for dresses and skirt ensembles (remember these formulas?). Casual cover-ups like cardigans are sweet and stylish, but a sassy little denim jacket adds easy-going spunk. It’s the perfect way to dress down a dressy frock or skirt. The contrast of the two looks is especially appealing.

You’re after a tailored and relatively short denim jacket. It won’t look cheeky if it’s long and roomy. The back has to be streamlined too. Both dark and light washes will work (dark washes are smart casual whereas lighter washes are casual) and there is room for both in your wardrobe. You also don’t need to stick to the original “Levis Strauss” styling if you’d prefer something else, like a biker or blazer look. I highly recommend a bit of stretch for extra comfort.

Don’t underestimate the power of altering a denim jacket. I have a Diesel denim jacket that’s 10 years old and it looks exactly like the bluefly style (top left above). It is dark denim, stretchy and superbly made. But it was roomy so I had it tailored for $45 about 18 months ago and now it’s perfect. It was money well spent because I’ll have it forever.

Go get a denim jacket if you don’t have one already. I’m declaring it an edgy and versatile item for all body types and age groups. I have clients approaching 70 who are looking sensational in streamlined denim jackets. You can’t go wrong.

An assortment of denim jackets: the “original” denim jacket look, biker styles, faded options, cleaner lines, darker washes, super cropped versions and everything in-between. You’ll pick one up for a song if you look hard enough.

This one is particularly adorable.

The largest clothing manufacturer in the United States has taken fashion advertising to another level. Over the years, it has made a point of posing models in highly provocative and overtly sexual positions for its advertising campaigns. Nudity is fine too, and the retailer even went as far as hiring porn stars to showcase a new range of underwear and socks at the end of 2008. I’ve never seen anything quite like it.

The controversy goes beyond risqué advertising. American Apparel CEO Dov Charney has been accused of sexual harassment, and the company is reportedly being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Take a look at these eye-catching American apparel ads (warning: this may not be safe for work) and let’s hear your thoughts on this very controversial form of marketing. I’m sure you have a lot to say.

It’s “boyfriend” everything at the moment. First the cardigan and now the jeans, thanks to Katie Holmes and her stylist. With the new “boyfriend jean” the shape of denim has expanded beyond the four main silhouettes (skinny, straight, boot cut and wide-leg) for 2009.

Boyfriend jeans are supposed to look baggy, worn and distressed, although some versions are less so. The style is usually rolled up at the hem and worn with heels for a final feminine touch. The look reminds me a little of when us gals wore men’s Levis 501’s in the 80’s. Baggy crotches, turned up hems and belted waistbands were so in back then. The look has been revived and updated. Celebrities in Hollywood are all over the trend.

The style can be adorable worn with flats or a small heel on a preteen and teenager. They seem like an arty, hip and cool expression for that age group. Cute (don’t shoot me, Mums). But for anyone older I vote for giving this trend a miss. Maybe I’m getting old, but I am so over ripped jeans of any description. It’s not a stylish look. How do you vote?

Clothes swap parties are great, but unless there are items in your size and to your liking, you will come home empty handed. Ideally you need to find a person or group of people with a compatible style and size (or size they used to be). The forum members found just that and in the spirit of saving money and the environment by repurposing current wardrobe orphans, they started successfully swapping clothes, footwear, handbags and accessories with each other for free.

It all started when forum member Tanya received a pair of jeans in the wrong rinse and offered to send them to forum member Maya. Maya ended up paying Tanya for this particular swap because the jeans were brand new. But the incident sparked a recycling trend in the forum that is gathering momentum.

Our YLF gathering in Manhattan was no exception. Here are some of the swaps we did:

• Tanya had several ill-fitting blouses that she brought for Maya.
• Maya brought Swann Flats for me because they were too large and fell off her feet when she walked. I’ve been trying to triplicate these but my size was sold out, so I really scored.
• Laura brought a jacket for Tanya (it was too tight on her) and a coral sweater for Maya. She also brought me a pretty black skirt that will fit well when I’ve had it altered at the side seams.
• I brought Tanya a scarf that worked better with her skin tone than mine. I brought Maya a vegan yellow sling bag and my first white watch. I also passed along a funky necklace to Laura because I’m a pearl gal at heart.

It was a stylish, cost saving and win-win situation for all. Not to mention fabulous fun. Laura wore her “new” necklace that evening and on the plane back home (I love it). Tanya sported her scarf next work day. Maya instantly used her yellow tote and wore her white watch on the way out of the restaurant. It’ll be a while before I can go sockless and wear ballet flats, but I’ve been prancing around in my new peds at home.

Give clothes swapping a try with friends and family. Alternatively, post your items on the forum and it won’t be long before you’ll have takers and receive treasures in return.

Swapping in Manhattan. Sign up to the forum today to start participating in the fun online.

Today’s post about the shopping part of our fabulous Manhattan gathering was written by arty and colourful New Jersey native and ex-Manhattan resident Maya, a long time YLF supporter and cherished forum member.

Angie was in Manhattan last week and met with a few forum members for a day of eating and shopping. Most of us were seeing each other for the first time, but there were no awkward moments and the entire day was a tremendous success. After breakfast, we immediately hit the dazzling array of shops in Soho. It was bitterly cold, but we bundled up in our hats, boots, and gloves for a stroll down Broadway.

Our first stop was H&M, where I found plenty of gems: a waistcoat, a fuchsia blazer, and a sweet printed trapeze top. Angie had me try on the waistcoat over the trapeze top and I was over the moon. I probably wouldn’t have picked up these pieces on my own, thinking that they wouldn’t work together. The lesson I took from this is to try EVERYTHING. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

At breakfast, Laura showed us a beautiful Tory Burch top that had unfortunately become a wardrobe orphan. This is where Angie’s talent really came through. Laura tried on the blouse on in the H&M fitting room. Angie borrowed a few accessories from me and Tanya, and totally transformed it from unwearable to fantastic! It was quite a treat to see her at work, doing what she does best and breathing new life into something that almost made the trash pile. Laura looked amazing in a skinny belt and a short, chunky necklace.

Our next stops were Uniqlo, Mango, Zara and Ann Fontaine. Angie came away with an adorable gray jumper dress, while Tanya found a beautiful ruffle blouse and purple umbrella (umbrellas are accessories too!).

Our last stop for the day was a Macy’s in midtown that I generally avoid at all costs. This is the world’s largest department store building, covering an entire city block. Navigating through this labyrinth can be an overwhelming experience, but it became less painful with an army of supporters and a specific goal in mind: to find dresses for Laura! Laura suddenly went from having no options to having too many! Eventually she narrowed them down to three amazing dresses.

On the way out, a black knit biker jacket was spotted in a medium on the wrong rack, but it was too big. Eventually Angie tracked it down in my size and I was over the moon once more. I had to return the fuchsia blazer to H&M to get it, but this was the statement piece of a lifetime and I don’t regret the trade-off one bit. It was a fabulous end to a fabulous day.

A year ago, I would have never imagined myself doing something like this. I actually dislike shopping, and my social circle is mostly people my age who are pretty similar to me. Despite that, I felt perfectly comfortable and at ease with the ladies of YLF, and I had a lot of fun shopping with them! We are different in many ways, but we had a marvelous time and were all able to find something to take home and love. We hit every price point from H&M to Ann Fontaine, with all different bodies, lifestyles, and ages. If there is one thing to take away from this experience, it’s that style truly is for everyone! If you get a chance to attend a YLF gathering, drop whatever plans you might otherwise have and do it! It was an unforgettable and amazing experience that I hope to replicate again soon!

Today’s post on the recent YLF gathering in Manhattan was written by uber-stylish forum member Tanya. A Euro native who lives in Boston, Tanya travelled to NYC to grace us with her fabulous presence and kind persona once again. What a treat!

The YLF gathering in New York City was absolutely incredible! The meeting felt intimate since there were only five of us: Angie, Maya, Laura, me and my wonderful, long-time friend who lives in Manhattan (she chose to stay out of the photos but participated in all of the activities). Maya was the coordinator and she chose a great restaurant in Soho called Balthazar. Laura, my friend and I all met up with Angie at her hotel and caught a cab to the restaurant where Maya was meeting us. Unfortunately she was delayed because of the bad weather but managed to catch up with us fairly quickly.

The weather was freezing and required proper winter clothing. Despite that, the style quotient was amazing! Compliments were flying over our table. We all wore jeans and boots, some skinnies tucked into tall boots and some bootcut jeans worn over shorter boots. Angie wore an amazing black turtleneck and even prettier biker jacket. Laura was sizzling in a sparkly sweater and gorgeous necklace. Maya looked lovely in a beautiful fitted black jacket over a funky tee. I wore my favorite grey boyfriend cardigan over a ruffled black blouse. We braved the weather and took turns quickly dashing out outside sans outerwear to have our photos taken by Greg, who joined us towards the end of the brunch to capture our ensembles for the blog.

The food was wonderful. We all chose either waffles or egg dishes. The conversation was very easy, as if we had known each other forever. Strangely enough, we didn’t talk much about clothes and fashion. Instead, we mainly discussed our lives, careers and plans for the future. We touched on the difficult subject of dressing for women in science and my friend was very interested in a detailed description of what Angie does as a fashion stylist.

Around noon we got to call forum member Inge in Belgium to wish her a happy birthday and “meet” her over the phone, which made an already great event even better. The activities continued with a big swap fest and even bigger shopping expedition till the early evening, but you will have to stay tuned to hear about that later in the week.

It was such a delight to meet Maya and Laura, spend some time with my old friend, and see Angie and Greg for the second time. I feel truly blessed to be a part of the YLF community which allows me to meet such amazing and inspiring women from all over the world. If there is a YLF meeting in your vicinity, don’t miss it. This was my second one and I am now addicted. I will definitely try to attend other gatherings that are reasonably close to my home in Boston.

Finally, I would like to thank Angie and Greg for creating a warm and inviting place online, and all the YLF members for making it what it is. I hope to meet more of you at future gatherings!

Greg and I are big on city walking and we knew that we would spend a lot of time outdoors braving arctic temperatures on the streets of Manhattan. We hardly took public transport and averaged a 100 blocks a day of walking for eight days straight. I feel the cold extremely quickly, but enjoyed every minute of it because I was bundled up and ready for the cold. I dressed smart casually every day, erring on the casual side for wet, slushy days, and on the smarter side for business meeting days.

• Bottoms: I wore dark- and medium-wash skinny jeans tucked into knee-high boots on most days. For extra warmth, I snuck a pair of thick opaque tights underneath my jeans and cozy socks. On my smarter days I wore a pencil skirt with patterned black tights and long boots.
• Tops: Camisole under fitted turtle neck or cowl neck knitwear in an assortment of colours was the order of the day. I stuck to black, grey, turquoise and citron pieces and added a black, skinny, waist-cinching belt most of the time.
• Jacket: I added a lightweight, tailored charcoal wool blazer or a black biker jacket to my top layer. I brought along several styles so that I wouldn’t get bored. It made for a polished and sleek look indoors once I removed my coat.
• Coat: I brought both my heavy, knee-length, charcoal false plain wool coat and thigh-length, gold puffer coat. I ended up wearing the wool coat most days because its extra length made it the warmer option. The double layer of jacket and coat over knitwear might not be your cup of tea, but the extra layer of warmth was perfect for me.
• Scarf: I kept my outfits fun with thick, colourful pashmina scarves that I wrapped around my neck several times. I rotated different scarves daily. I adore my scarves and often kept them on indoors. That’s the beauty of fine gauge cashmere scarves. They looked great both indoors and outdoors and gave my look the necessary punch.
• Footwear: I brought three pairs of knee-high boots, all of which are at least 8-hour walking shoes: black 20 eyelet Docs and grey slouchy boots to wear over jeans, and black pointy-toed patent boots to wear under skirts. All the boots are weatherproof with flat or one inch heels. I wore my Docs on snowy, wet days and they were brilliant. My feet stayed dry and warm as I traipsed through puddles and slush all day long.
• Gloves and hat: Cashmere-lined leather gloves and an ear-covering wool cap was essential. I stuck to black in true Manhattan style, but couldn’t resist bringing out my mustard yellow gloves from time to time. I don’t look good in a hat but it is what it is. You need headgear in freezing temperatures and I was willing to endure the look and the “hat-hair” that went along with it.
• Handbag: I carried my bright red patent tote. That and my vibrant scarves made me stick out like a traffic beacon in amongst all the New York black. But bright colours make me happy and I loved looking different.
• Accessories: It was a week without pearls as I stuck to scarves, belts and interchanging my specs. My wedding ring and white watch remained constant along with the black wool cap.

My fashionable, yet practical clothing formula worked wonderfully well. I felt comfortable, warm, energetic and stylishly fab during leisure and work time. There is absolutely no excuse in these conditions – dressing well while braving the elements is totally achievable. Ten degrees colder, however, would have been a different story. I probably would have opted for the full length puffer and another pair of gloves. How do you dress for the extreme cold?

Left: Laura and I arrived in virtually the same outfit when we met a few days before the YLF gathering. Skirt, turtle neck, biker jacket, black patent boots, tights, colourful scarf and charcoal coat. Uncanny!

Right: That’s me enjoying a cuppa on the Upper East Side and reading your hilarious comments on last week’s post about jumpsuits.