Welcome to an updated YLF!

The biggest change you will see today is a completely overhauled front page. We wanted to highlight visual content, like Angie’s outfits, and also surface some of the most popular posts from the deep archives. We wanted to do a better job of featuring forum activity on the front page, so instead of separate recent posts and recent photos on the left, the area now shows the two combined as they should be.

We’re very excited about the new front page. It was almost a year ago that we created a front page for YLF that was separate from the blog front page, and although we refreshed that layout a few weeks after launching it, we were never completely happy with the design.

New design elements on the front page had a ripple effect throughout the site. Most of these updates are purely visual and probably won’t change the way that you use YLF.

We got around to a few items on the honey-do list. Some forum members will be happy to see a little button near the bottom of most pages that takes you back to the top. Others will be happy that both recent and permanent role badges are visible beneath your profile picture. Previously this area only showed the role badges you had accumulated over the last 30 days and you had to go to your profile page to see your permanent roles. Now if you have a permanent role that you haven’t earned recently, it appears as a faded badge in the list. In the example below you can see that in Inge’s case this is true for the “helper” role.

For the last year or so veteran members have had the additional ability to flag forum posts as spam. This has been an enormous help to us. Today all members get the ability to help us moderate the forum using a “Report Post” option that appears underneath every post. After pressing this you can type in some more details about why you’d like to bring this post to our attention before sending the report to the team. Feel free to report anything you think we need to know about, whether it is suspected spam, something you find offensive, a copyright violation, or even if it is just to tell us that your spidey sense is tingling.

Last, but not least, there is a new forum category: Inspiration. This is a place to post anything that inspires your personal style, or that you think might be inspirational to others. It could be an outfit you saw on someone else, a new item in the store, an interior design theme, or a flower you photographed over the weekend.

That’s it. Be sure to let us know if you experience any problems. We will definitely be fixing little issues and tweaking the design as it settles in over the next few days.

We’ve talked about the power of heels, and how they take an outfit from fab to drab. I’ve also suggested adding heels to an outfit if it doesn’t feel right with flats. And Team Heels reigns supreme as our poll clearly demonstrated.

Heels create a longer leg line, accentuate calf muscles, add a dressy aspect to your ensemble, and amplify your femininity. So ladies, do outfits always look better with heels?

I’m going with a no. I absolutely believe in the power of heels, but also think that some outfit combinations look just as good or even better with flats (in the category of flats I am including a chunky one inch heel on a sleek riding boot.) For example, leggings were made for ballet flats. Such a natural and pretty pairing! I also love the look of skinny cargos and skinny jeans paired with flat gladiator sandals and ballet flats as much as when they are paired with heels. And when it comes to the Equestrian look, one close to my heart, it looks best with a tall flat riding boot.

Remember that heels needn’t be dressy. Cork, wicker and wooden heels with distressed leather uppers are casual shoes. Slouchy suede boots with chunky heels and heeled Dr. Martens are casual boots.

Over to you? Can flats look just as killer as heels, or do heels always elevate an outfit?

This post is sponsored by Nordstrom. Shop the Anniversary Sale: Next Season on Sale Now. Prices go up August 1.

Capes and cape-esque coats are trending a little more strongly than usual for Autumn and Winter. They are the best type of cover-up to wear over dolman and bat winged tops and knitwear, which are also trending for Fall. This pairing demonstrates the very real ripple effect of fashion trends.

I think that capes are too much of an acquired taste to ever go completely mainstream.  That being said, with my encouragement, most of my clients tried on capes and cape-esque coats at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale because they looked fresh and “new”. Surprisingly, a number of them actually liked the look and became proud cape-owners.

Capes are quite hard to wear because they are unstructured, fairly rigid, and voluminous. But when a cape with a great cut is worn in a flattering way, they can look classic yet edgy, a little avant gard and really hip.

Tall ladies with broad square shoulders and long necks will find it easier to pull off, but don’t lose hope if this isn’t your body type. Capes can work if you’re discerning about the details. I’ll walk you through them using examples that I’ve drawn from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale.

To my eye, capes look particularly good in colours, checks and tweeds. They look less severe and “batman-ish” that way. However, I have also seen dramatic black capes work beautifully when the the rest of the ensemble is just so. But if you’re a cape novice, I’d suggest a colour other than black.

The next thing to watch out for is length. Don’t go too long, especially if you’re petite. I tend to prefer capes that finish on or above the crotch point. But if you’re regular height or taller, a few inches below crotch point is okay.

The Helene Berman Wool Blend Cape (1) is the perfect shade of camel and was my one client’s favourite items that she bought at the sale. She is regular height and does not have a strong shoulder line. But the yoke detailing ensures excellent shoulder definition while the button detailing at the hem creates a bit of a sleeve. The contrasting tortoise shell buttons work wonders to create a contrast against the expanse of camel wool. They also make my clients gorgeous brown eyes twinkle even more.

The Via Spiga Asymmetrical Cape (2) is black but the asymmetrical patent zipper adds a good amount of texture to the silhouette. The cut is sculptural with lots of seams and darts, which gives it great structure along the shoulder line. The Tahari Plaid Cape (3) is even more sculptured. It also has lots of good seaming detail and an overall less circular shape. Both of these capes have effective buttons at the hems which create the illusion of a sleeve.

If you can’t get your head around the floaty and wide aspect of a cape, try one with more torso definition like the Steve Madden Tweed Cape (4) and the GUESS Cable Knit Cape (5). These capes have voluminous sleeves, but the shaping around the midriff AND the coat collars go a long way to making you feel more grounded in the silhouette. The textures of these capes are especially lovely and so are the pockets.

Petite ladies are after shorter cape styles like the Trouvé Twill Cape (6) and the GUESS Asymmetrical Wool Blend Swing Jacket (7). I call them “cape-esque” because they are really more of a hybrid between a cape and a trapeze jacket, which is why you won’t drown in the look. I have a couple of strong shouldered petite clients rocking these babies.

Lastly, if you like the idea of a cape but don’t want to invest in a coat, try a knitwear version instead. The Frenchi U-Neck Cape Top (8) is utterly adorable and particularly great on petites because of the cropped integrity of the style. It’s like a poncho with sleeves. So fun! The Beatrix Ost Hooded Poncho (9) is super because its double button fastening feature at the sides is very structuring. Casual, cute and hip for a gal on the go.

In the past I liked capes, but I never really loved them. However, I am absolutely loving capes this season because of the great assortment. Seeing them work well on my clients has also helped to make me cape crazy. If the Trouvé Twill Cape came in a different colour, that would be the choice for my own wardrobe. Although I stand at regular height with a giraffe neck, my dainty frame is easily overwhelmed by capes. I have to follow the petite guidelines in order for it to work for my body type.

One final tip: Remember to keep the under layers of a cape fairly sleek because wearing volume on top of volume is tricky.

Capes are a super idea for Autumn and mild Winters, when it’s still too warm to wear coats. Are you feeling capes this season?

This post is sponsored by Nordstrom. Shop the Anniversary Sale: Next Season on Sale Now. Prices go up August 1.

It gives me great pleasure to introduce my absolutely fabulous 39 year old client and friend, Bei-Jing, who is exceptional in many ways. Bei-Jing holds a Director position at Microsoft and is an engineer by profession. She works full time in a technical environment and frequently travels all over the globe. She also has three beautiful small children, so over the weekend she’s a busy Mum on the go. She is inspirational to say the least.

With a very demanding job and little voices to attend to at home, Bei-Jing has NO spare time. She is able to shop once or twice a season and that’s it. There is little room for error and no time to ponder about returning. We have to make the right decisions the first time round. She relies very heavily on me to make sure that she purchases the right wardrobe items that make her feel spunky, dramatic, powerful and comfortable each day. When Be-Jing lived in China for a while, she even organized time to shop together when business trips took her back to Seattle. That’s how totally in-sync we are about her style and how to evolve it each season.

Microsoft is an ultra casual and male dominated work environment. But this does not stop Bei-Jing from batting for Team Dressy, Team High Contrast, Team Heels and Team Skirt. I can assure you that people take her very seriously in a skirt. She holds a senior position at the company and has proved her worth over and over again. She is extremely confident and capable and that shines through no matter what she wears. In fact, people at Microsoft look forward to seeing what Bei-Jing wears each day, and she has become known as quite the fashionista.

As for many Seattleites, the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale is an exciting kick start for Bei-Jing’s Autumn and Winter wardrobe. This year I’m going to take you through some of the items that we chose when we pre-selectected a few weeks ago. Interestingly, Bei-Jing is 5ft 2, but seldom shops in the petites department. Occasionally we have jeans and dresses hemmed, and purchase the odd top in petites, but for the rest it’s regular sized merchandise all the way. Somehow, the proportions in regular fit better.

When Bei-Jing and I de-briefed for a few minutes before pre-selections, she said: “I want that black leather skirt, Angie! But what do I wear with it?”. I replied, “I had my eye on that skirt for you too and it’s easy. Match it up with a soft blouse or sweater and pumps to create a textural contrast. No leather boots, unless they are short booties and preferably in suede”. And here we see the lovely Bei-Jing in a Classiques Entier ‘Brenna’ Lambskin Leather Skirt with an on trend polka dot Pleione Tie Front Sheer Print Blouse. We layered a black camisole under the blouse to prevent grinning, and finished off the look with a broad black belt and red patent Mary Janes. For accessories, all we needed was diamond stud earrings. Bei-Jing also bats for Team Wear and wore this outfit to work a few days after preselections.

It’s obvious that Bei-jing has a very bold style, which is why she adores animal print and quirky accessories. We recently retired a well-used animal print coat from her wardrobe, which made the GUESS Leopard Print Faux Fur Coat the perfect replacement. We both jumped for joy when we found this item because it was so very perfect. Cozy, comfy, warm, retro and theatrical. I can’t think of a better home for this item because I know she’ll wear it with everything. I encouraged Bei-Jing to get the Classiques Entier Cowl Neck Sweater, which she’s wearing under the coat. It’s a flattering basic that will become a wardrobe workhorse. To give the item more punch, we added Cara Accessories Peacock Long Statement Pendant Necklace. Bei-Jing had her eye on it when she received the NAS catalogue and we weren’t going home without it.

With her own straight leg jeans, we finished off the ensemble with the Seychelles ‘Clue’ Bootie because it picked up the colour of the coat. The heels are pretty casual and Bei-Jing doesn’t need to walk around a lot during a work day, so they make a great addition to her wardrobe. Plus the idea of having light coloured Autumn booties makes for a nice change.

I always have to remember that Bei-Jing doesn’t like anything that fights with her bust line. As she puts it, “my boobs need to breathe!”.  Enter the Alice + Olivia Wool & Cashmere Sweater, which is very unique in design. It wraps around the neck a few times while the front pieces gently drape like a scarf. All it needs is a layering top and some comfy bottoms and you’re good to go.

Bei-Jing knows I have fussy feet and am very particular about my footwear, which has to go the distance AND look fabulous. When she heard that I bought the black Aquatalia by Marvin K ‘Undy’ Weatherproof Woven Shaft Boot, she had to have them too. As I mentioned last week, they are the best boots at this years sale, being completely weatherproof, impeccably made, super tailored and very comfortable. For wet and cold Seattle, this is a no-brainer item. Bei-Jing can wear them to work with jeans, skirts and dresses, but she can also wear them when mucking about with the kids over the weekend. She even joked that she could sleep in them, they are that comfortable.

I seldom try to limit the number of cover-ups my Seattle clients purchase because of the weather. Same goes for boots and knitwear. We never seem to have enough of them. I had pictured Bei-Jing in the Bebe Wool Blend Bouclé Jacket as soon as I saw it. But although she loved the colour, it was not love at first sight for Bei-Jing. I suggested that she try it on anyway because the cut was hip and her bust line would feel comfortable. Plus it was different to anything that she had, and she could wear it casually over the weekends too. She was smitten as soon as she popped it on. It’s cozy with interesting sleeves and deep pockets — a good thing for a Mum on the go.

Bei-Jing is into wearing necklaces and cocktail rings almost every day. Bracelets tend to bother her when she works at her computer so they are a no go. Kate Spade New York’s Emerald Cut Ring stole her heart because she loves blue. I personally really like combining blues with black and cream so that was the main motivation for this outfit. The bright cocktail ring adds a little fun to the look and makes Bei-Jing smile when she captures a glimpse of it during the day.

I have been working with the gorgeous Bei-Jing for years, season after season, and she is one of my earliest clients. Our closet reviews and shops are fast moving and no-nonsense because time is of the essence. But we also have busloads of fun together, trying new trends and colours while deciding whether we are too old to wear them! There is a lot to admire about Bei-Jing that runs much deeper than fashion and style. But from that point of view, what I appreciate and admire the most is how she bulldozes her environmental norm and enjoys every second of it. Bei-Jing is no stereotypically clothed engineer working in the Tech Industry with three kids at home. She is a highly intelligent and vibrant lady who enjoys expressing herself through her bold and fun style. And I am honoured to be helping her with her wardrobe. Thank you Bei-Jing for being an incredible client and a stylish role model.

Bei-Jing’s NAS items:

• Classiques Entier ‘Brenna’ Lambskin Leather Skirt
• Pleione Tie Front Sheer Print Blouse
• GUESS Leopard Print Faux Fur Coat
• Classiques Entier Cowl Neck Sweater
• Cara Accessories Peacock Long Statement Pendant Necklace
• Alice + Olivia Wool & Cashmere Sweater
• Aquatalia by Marvin K ‘Undy’ Weatherproof Woven Shaft Boot
• Bebe Wool Blend Bouclé Jacket
• Kate Spade New York’s Emerald Cut Ring