When the news came in this morning about the death of the legend and diva Dolly Parton, I was saddened, not because I’m a big country music fan (sorry to those who are; it’s just not my genre), but because I am a big fan of Dolly. She had so many wonderful traits. As someone…
You Bought It for a Woman Who Doesn’t Exist Yet Go and open your wardrobe. Not metaphorically, actually go and look. Somewhere in there, I’d put money on it, is a garment with the tags still on or never worn. Something a size down from where you are. Something for the gallery opening you don’t…
On 19 August 2008, I published my first post here. It was called How to Choose a Slimming Fabric, and it was two photographs of the same woman in two shirts. One stiff, one drapey. I asked readers to spot what else was going wrong besides the fabric. No introduction. No “welcome to my blog”.…
You have seen the graphic. Five dresses in a row, a tidy little caption underneath, and a confident promise that vertical stripes will make you look taller and horizontal stripes will make you look wider. It gets shared thousands of times. It looks authoritative. It is also, in the most important way, wrong. Not wrong…
The Sale Price Is a Comparison, Not a Saving Here is a sentence that has cost women more money than almost any other: “but it was reduced from $120.” We say it to ourselves in the shop. We say it to our partners at home. We say it, a little defensively, when someone admires the…
How to Express a Style That Is Functional, Genuine and Unique A lovely reader emailed me: how do I express a style that is functional, genuine and unique? It’s a great question, and it has a slightly annoying answer. You have to go back to the beginning. Not to the shops, not to your wardrobe,…
“I’ve Retired, But My Casual Clothes Are Still Boring” A reader recently asked me a question I hear all the time from women who’ve just left the working world behind: after years of dressing for business, how do I actually express my personal style now that “casual” is all I need? You don’t even need…
You Didn’t Fall in Love With That Dress. Your Nucleus Accumbens Did There’s a moment in a shop that we all treat as sacred. You’re walking past a rail, not really looking, and something stops you. You reach out. You hold it up. And you get that small internal lift, the one that says Oh.…
Why Do I Look Frumpy? The Real Culprits (And How to Fix Them) “Why do I look so frumpy today?” A reader wrote and told me that that’s how she feels in many of her outfits. If you’ve ever caught your reflection and thought exactly that, I want you to know it isn’t a mystery.…
It’s Not the Mirror, and It’s Not You You go into a fitting room feeling reasonably good about yourself and the outfit you’re wearing to the shops. You come out twenty minutes later having decided that you have terrible legs, that your stomach has staged some kind of coup, and that you should probably not…
If You’re a Shopaholic With “Nothing to Wear.” Here’s What’s Actually Going On. “I’m a shopaholic, yet I feel like I have nothing to wear, and it gives me anxiety because I have too much stuff.” This was emailed to me by one of my lovely readers. If that sentence made you wince a little…
Why You Packed a Hat and Never Wore It (And What To Do Differently Next Trip) A reader recently wrote to me with a confession I suspect a lot of you share. She’d packed a hat for her trip, a good one, chosen specifically for sun protection. It came home unworn. Why? Because nobody else…
You’re Not Buying the Bag. You’re Buying a Holiday from Yourself. Here’s a question worth sitting with before you tap “confirm purchase” next time: are you buying something because you want it, or because you want a feeling to go away? It sounds confronting. But understanding the difference is one of the most useful things…
What are the key wardrobe basics I need? Type this question into Google and you’ll get the same answer fifty times over: a white shirt, dark jeans, a trench coat, a little black dress, nude heels. Pin it, buy it, you’re sorted. Except you’re not, because that list was written for nobody in particular. It…
Do You Actually Suit Prints? (It’s Not a Matter of Taste — It’s a Matter of Physics) “I find prints tricky, I’m not sure about finding my preferred shapes and colours when trends don’t necessarily reflect them. My daughter says I should just wear solid colours and neutrals, but I like some prints,” wrote a…
A delightful reader wrote to me with this query: “I can’t believe that it’s now been about 10 years since I started reading the blog and taking all of the programs and masterclasses, and I would still say that it’s some of the best money I’ve ever spent! “I turned 60 in March, and maybe…
Before You Buy a Single Thing, Do This First Patricia is 80 years young, and she wants to look fabulous again. After five years as a full-time caregiver, she wrote to me asking where to start. Her words: “By necessity, I fell into lots of bad personal care habits, and now I would like to…
The final of my top 10 most Googled personal style questions is “What colours look best on me? I’ve been asked this question more times than I can count. In consult rooms, on comment threads, in DMs at 11pm from women standing in front of their wardrobes having what I can only describe as a…
Here’s a question I get all the time, and it makes complete sense that you’re asking it: “Imogen, I keep buying things I never wear. What is wrong with me?” Nothing. Absolutely nothing is wrong with you. But something very interesting is happening in your brain, and once you understand it, you’ll have a much…
A lovely reader recently wrote to me with the following conundrum: “I have smooth, wavy hair, with textured skin and have read your post about how to wear texture when you’re naturally smooth, but as I’m the opposite, I wanted some tips on how to wear smooth fabrics when you’re textured.” Ways to Add Smoothness…
I have been asked this question so many times I could answer it in my sleep. And honestly? That tells you everything. If “business casual” were actually clear, nobody would need to ask. Here’s the uncomfortable truth. “Business casual” and “smart casual” are not dress codes. They are dress code suggestions written by people who…
