This cap toe oxford is beautifully made, extra soft, very comfortable, and $89.95 at full price.My client, who has feet just as fussy as mine, bought these in teal yesterday and looked spectacular in them. She was grateful to find an on-trend and fun walking shoe that was kind to her feet. She intends to wear them with tapered jeans and trousers. Both colours are great in my book.

This is the last in a series of five outfits that showcased some of client Karen’s everyday Summer looks. You’ve seen stunning Karen love leopard print, rock white jeans, wear crops with fun flats, and sport a green linen blazer and stripes. Today she’s gorgeous in my favourite of the five looks — a cold shoulder top with flares and denim jacket. Her confidence in this outfit makes it look even better. 

Karen was excited to show me her new zebra printed top. It was such a coincidence because I had written about cold shoulder tops just that morning! Thoroughly delighted, we put together some outfit possibilities. What drew Karen to this top was the pattern, the semi-structured silhouette, the crease-resistant fabrication and the cut-out detail on the sleeves. Karen still wants to look and feel alluring at her age, and this is one way to show some skin while staying covered. 

I love Karen in this top because it’s bold, simple, dramatic, and of course, flattering. It’s in her favourite colour palette, black and white, and in one of her favourite patterns, animal print. It meets her strict sleeve length coverage requirement. It’s in a knit, which is Karen’s preference. And it’s on trend. This spells perfect in my book. 

We added even more drama to the top by pairing it with flared black jeans. Somehow, the extra volume on the bottom creates the best visual balance for the top. Because things cool down in Seattle, having a topper on hand is a good idea on most Summer days. We went with a denim jacket because Karen LOVES her denim jackets, and because it tones down the boldness of the top. That way Karen gets to enjoy the drama and tone it down all in one day. 

We finished off the outfit with Anyi Lu’s Luisa sandal in black patent, a black patent bag, graphic silver earrings and all essential shades. Karen’s beautiful glass green eyes provide the pop of colour along with a bit of magenta lipstick and gloss. 

Thank you Karen, for generously sharing your time and style with us. I can’t adequately express how much I love working with you and how much you inspire me. Apart from getting serious about how we feel about fashion and style, we also laugh and laugh and laugh. And laugh again. We truly have the best time. Cheers to many more seasons of fashion fun! 

As you can see by her reaction, my little assistant on photo shooting day was as impressed as we were with Karen’s stamina and grace.

Also on Karen’s Summer Style

1. Skirt and Denim Jacket
2. White Jeans, Tee and Jacket 
3. Cropped Pants and Fuchsia Flats
4. Denim Skirt and Linen Blazer
5. Cold Shoulders with Flares (this post)

I have suggested that you make a pile for sentimental items when you edit your closet. These are the items that you don’t wear, but that you can’t part with either because they tell a story, remind you of good times, or just make you smile. You can store them in a “sentimental box” that you keep away from the rest of your wardrobe items. That way you can look at them from time to time and think about those memories. 

I also have clients who prefer to take photos of their sentimental items instead of keeping them. The photo serves as the keepsake.

Personally, a photo is not an adequate substitute for the items in my sentimental box. But I have so few items in there that it’s no bother to store them. So for now, I definitely want to keep the physical items so that I can hold them when I want to reminisce.

How about you? Will a photo of the item work as well as keeping the sentimental piece itself?

As you might have noticed, I have been thinking a lot about the closet review recently. Having done this so many times in my own closet and for clients, it has become an intuitive thing more than a structured process. So I decided to spend some time trying to distill what I do into a usable set of steps. 

And If I haven’t convinced you that reviewing your closet on a regular basis is a brilliant idea, here are 10 more reasons. 

1. Keeping track of your inventory: You can’t wear something when you forgot that you had it. There’s nothing like a closet review to remind you that you have fab stuff. Wear it! 
2. Identifying wardrobe gaps and surpluses: By keeping track of your inventory, you’ll put the right items on your shopping list. No unnecessary duplication.
3. Embellishing capsules with the right pieces: Running through the contents of your wardrobe makes you think of each piece as an item, each item as part of an outfit, and items and outfits as components of a capsule. The result is a closet bustling with outfit possibilities.
4. Passing on items that do not work for your style: This is a liberating feeling. You’ll make others happy with the things that you’ve passed on to a new home.
5. Decreasing cost per wear: Familiarity with your wardrobe will lead to wearing items more frequently, and in more combinations.
6. Addressing new storage needs: Who doesn’t want their closet to look attractive and organized? Get that belt hanger. Get those shoe boxes. Hang up your necklaces inside your closet. Install those shelf and drawer dividers. Shape those boots. Give your closet that extra TLC and you’ll get it all right back.
7. Fine tuning your style goals: The more familiar you are with the contents of your wardrobe, the easier it is to compare them to your current set of style goals. Are your current wardrobe looks in line with these goals? If not, think about why that’s the case. Do you need to tweak your style goals, or do you need to adjust your shopping list. If it’s all in sync, enjoy the satisfaction that you are honing your style and mastering the wardrobing concept. 
8. Sparking off a sense of creativity: Running through the contents of your wardrobe kick-starts the creation of new outfit combinations. This costs nothing but a little extra time in your wardrobe. Priceless. 
9. Keeping things tidy: Closets always look neater after a review. As you sorted through your stuff, you refolded, rehung and reorganized items and got rid of the clutter. Bonus. 
10. Speaking to your inner control freak: I feel particularly in control of my life after I’ve reviewed my wardrobe contents. I walk into my neat, edited closet with a good knowledge of the daily looks I want to pull together. I feel a sense of calm, and this calm filters through to other areas of my life. 

Feel free to add on to my list in the comments. And let us know which part of the closet review process gives you the most satisfaction. Mine are a tie between #3 and #10. I love creating wardrobe capsules and I’m a complete control freak.